Chromium is an element found naturally in rocks, animals, plants, soil, and in volcanic dust and gases. It has several different forms. Chromium(III) occurs naturally and is an essential nutrient. Chromium(0), the metallic chromium that is used for making steel, and chromium(VI), also known as hexavalent chromium, are usually produced through industrial processes. Both hexavalent chromium and chromium(III) are used for chrome plating, dyes and pigments, leather tanning, and wood preserving. Its compounds are both tasteless and odorless.

How You Are Exposed

Using chromated copper arsenic (CCA) wood preservative or lumber that has been treated with CCA may expose you to hexavalent chromium. Be particularly mindful of wood playground equipment that may have been treated with CCA.

Certain foods contain chromium(III), but this is not a concern as it is the kind of chromium that the body needs.

Inhaling contaminated air or having skin contact with the toxic forms of chromium is possible in the workplace.

You can also come into contact with toxic chromium compounds in drinking contaminated water or by living near uncontrolled hazardous waste sites containing chromium or near industries that use chromium.

How Can Chromium Affect Your Health?

Inhaling high levels of hexavalent chromium may cause irritation to the nose (runny nose, nosebleeds, and even ulcers and holes in the nasal septum).

Ingesting high levels of hexavalent chromium through contaminated food or water can cause stomach problems including ulcers, convulsions, kidney and liver damage, and sometimes death.

Skin contact with certain hexavalent chromium compounds may result in skin ulcerations. Certain people are very sensitive to hexavalent chromium and/or chromium(III); allergic reactions consisting of severe redness and swelling of the skin have been reported.

Several studies have shown that exposure to hexavalent chromium compounds can increase the risk of lung cancer. The World Health Organization has designated it a human carcinogen. 

Studies have also linked exposure to hexavalent chromium to birth defects in animals.

Chromium(III) is an essential nutrient that helps the body utilize sugar, protein, and fat.