10 crystals that are toxic when added to drinking water

Adding crystals to your water bottle for their healing benefits, seems to be the hot thing to do right now, but did you know that some of them can be not only toxic, but outright deadly? Check out the list below to make sure that you are energising your drinking water, and not making a dangerous cocktail!

Malachite

This beautiful vivid green gemstone, which gets its colour from its high copper content, has been used for centuries, not only for sculptures, jewellery and as a green pigment, but also for cosmetics. Little did our ancestors know, malachite when ground into powder is a serious health hazard if inhaled, due to the same copper that gives its lush colour. Lapidarists today, are sure to take exceptional care when using this soft stone, by keep it wet and wearing a respirator.

You might be tempted to add this gem to your water bottle, and while it is safe to wear, drinking water contaminated with high copper levels can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach issues and headaches. While in the long term it can not only cause liver damage, but death!

Selenite

Getting its name from the moon, selenite also has a dark side, this popular mineral has been gaining a big following, not to be confused with sodium selenite which is highly dangerous when ingested, the selenite used for carvings and sold in crystal shops, is a very soft mineral composed of gypsum, only ranking as a 2 on Mohs scale. Selenite, beloved for its lustrous sheen, is water soluble, so it is advised to only keep this one as an ornament and away from liquids.

Moonstone

A major centrepiece in jewellery all over the world, especially in Europe, moonstone is another gem linked to the moon, and beloved by many. The famous rolling shine of this gemstone is caused by adularescence which is where light diffraction hits thin layers of orthoclase and albite within the stone. This is a crystal that most people are familiar with, but how many people know that you definitely should not put it in your mouth! Let alone your drinking water? Moonstone contains aluminium, which in high doses can cause brain and bone disease, there has even been a suggestion that it could be linked to Alzheimer’s.

Kyanite

It may seem like an appropriate jewel to add to your hydration routine, given its deep blue colour, but kyanite is another mineral, that is not only very dangerous to inhale over a period of time, causing irreparable lung damage, it also can cause gastrointestinal irritation.

Lapis Lazuli

One of the gemstones known all over the ancient world, and rather than being a crystal is a rock, lapis lazuli is rich with legends, history and myth, even being one of the jewels in the breastplate of Aaron, as mentioned in the Exodus, lapis lazuli, with its deep blue colour, mottled with flecks of gold, contains the deadly poison arsenic!, Due to it containing marcasite which gives it the sought after gold flicker that makes it so desirable. Lapis lazuli has been mined as early as 7000BC in Badakhshan Province of northeastern Afghanistan, and has been used for thousands of years, not only for statues, jewellery, and the famous sarcophagus of Tutankhamun, but also for a distinctive blue pigment used by the ancient Egyptians to make cosmetics.

Now, before you throw away your expensive lapis lazuli jewellery, it is completely safe to wear, but given its association with one of the most dangerous poisons known to man, and that arsenic has no taste or smell, meaning you would not even be aware of it, makes lapis lazuli unsafe for consumption. Arsenic poisoning causes everything from lesions on the skin to tingling in fingers and toes, and death.

Charoite

This lesser-known purple jewel from Russia may be mistaken for a crystal but it is a rock, just as is lapis lazuli, it may looks stunning on your neck with its distinctive purple hue, but it is actually poisonous to the human body if ingested, not only linked to pancreatic and lung cancer from inhaling the dust, but causing vomiting, abdominal pain, and watery diarrhea if consumed.

Pyrite puzzle box ring, by Jessica Vagg.

Beryl

Not just the name of your grandmother, beryl composes a variety of gemstones, the most recognisable being aquamarine. Being such a hard gemstone, ranking in at 7.5/8 on Mohs scale, you may be fooled into thinking that it would be perfectly safe to give that metaphysical boost to your water, but this beauty also contains aluminium, which as mentioned earlier, is not safe in high concentrations.

Aquamarine ring, with engraved silver backing, by Jessica Vagg.

Tiger eye

Worn as a piece of jewellery or held as a palm stone to give courage and perseverance, tiger eye has always been a favourite of jewellery lovers and collectors alike. It is a little-known fact that this gemstone, named for its shifting rays of yellows and browns, actually contains asbestos! just when you thought this deadly naturally occurring mineral, was only a risk in old houses and to unsuspecting miners of the past! While asbestos is useful in many industries because it is fireproof and resistant to heat and chemicals, it breaks off into small fibres that cause a deadly lung cancer called mesothelioma. While tiger eye is safe to worn in jewellery it is a no go, to use in elixirs or in its raw form.

Spinel

While this gemstone comes in a wide variety of colours, the most popular would have to be ruby spinel, and as it name suggests is used as a substitute for the very expensive ruby, and being another durable stone, ranking 7.5/8 on Mohs scale, makes it a popular choice for engagement rings and other special pieces. Along with containing aluminium, spinel also contains zinc. In lesser amounts, zinc is not toxic, in fact it is an essential trace element needed for development and optimal health, but if taken in large quantities it can inhibit copper uptake, causing a deficiency, but large doses of zinc can also cause lethargy, brain deficits, nausea, vomiting and even increased risk of prostate cancer.

Abalone

This beautiful and common addition to jewellery and mineral collections, is not a crystal at all, and in fact it is a shell, but given that it is often cut into cabochons and set in silver and gold, it can be forgiven in thinking that it is another gemstone. Given that abalone is a gourmet food item, and has been consumed for hundreds of years, with evidence of Native Americans harvesting this meaty shellfish from along the coast in California from a time long ago, you would think that surely this last item on the list would be safe to consume in a gemstone infused water, well! I am sorry to break it to you, but any kind of shell is notoriously dangerous for lapidarists and metaphysical trend setters alike.

While being cut and shaped abalone shell creates a fine dust that is highly toxic, and being an organic material, it may also contain bacteria that is unsafe if inhaled, for the same reason this beautiful and valuable shell should also not be consumed.

While it may seem that no crystal is safe to add to your water bottle, with influencers and crystal shops jumping onto this new trend, there are a small amount that are deemed safe, if you are still adamant that you would like to try out the metaphysical healing properties of crystals, please make sure to do your research thoroughly!

An idea could be to add crystals that you resonate with to a bowl, and keep it next to your drinking water to absorb their healing powers, or purchase a special drinking bottle that has a separate compartment inside to hold the crystals, so they never physically come into contact with the water itself.

I have also seen a lot of perfumes with crystals added, I would make sure to research the jewels used for these also, because now you know that many beautiful gemstones can actually be deadly!

Source material.

https://www.gemsociety.org/article/malachite-jewelry-and-gemstone-information/

https://www.health.wa.gov.au/Articles/A_E/Copper-in-drinking-water

https://www.acs.org/molecule-of-the-week/archive/s/sodium-selenite.html

https://www.bartleby.com/essay/Selenite-Research-Paper-FJLQGA9RGT

https://www.gemsociety.org/article/moonstone-jewelry-gem-information/

https://www.geologyin.com/2018/07/different-types-and-colours-of-moonstone.html

https://wwwn.cdc.gov/TSP/ToxFAQs/ToxFAQsDetails.aspx?faqid=190&toxid=34#:~:text=Exposure%20to%20aluminum%20is%20usually,or%20abnormal%20chest%20X%2Drays.

https://uwaterloo.ca/fine-arts/sites/ca.fine-arts/files/uploads/files/kyanite_35-48-100_09-25-14.pdf

https://www.gemsociety.org/article/what-were-the-gemstones-of-the-breastplate-of-aaron/

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/encyclopedia/Lapis_armenus.html

https://www.healthline.com/health/arsenic-poisoning#symptoms