Baby Safety / Compounds / Methylmercury chloride

Is Methylmercury chloride safe for babies and kids?

Context-dependent for kids

(Babies-specific data is limited; this page draws from human pregnant context.) Pregnancy alters the metabolism and distribution of Methylmercury chloride, potentially increasing fetal exposure. The developing embryo/fetus is vulnerable during organogenesis (weeks 3-8) and neurological development. Placental transfer should be assumed.

What is methylmercury chloride?

The IUPAC name is Chloromethylmercury.

Also known as: Chloromethylmercury, Methylmercuric chloride, chloro(methyl)mercury, Mercury methyl chloride.

IUPAC name
Chloromethylmercury
CAS number
115-09-3
Molecular formula
CH3HgCl
Molecular weight
251.09 g/mol
SMILES
C[Hg]Cl
PubChem CID
409301

Risk for babies

Context-dependent

Pregnancy alters the metabolism and distribution of Methylmercury chloride, potentially increasing fetal exposure. The developing embryo/fetus is vulnerable during organogenesis (weeks 3-8) and neurological development. Placental transfer should be assumed.

No specific reproductive toxicity data identified, but pregnancy-specific safety data is limited for most chemicals. Precautionary minimization of exposure is recommended.

What to do: Minimize exposure during pregnancy and lactation. Consult healthcare provider regarding specific risks. Consider alternative products with lower hazard profiles.

Risk for pregnant and nursing people

Context-dependent

Pregnancy alters the metabolism and distribution of Methylmercury chloride, potentially increasing fetal exposure. The developing embryo/fetus is vulnerable during organogenesis (weeks 3-8) and neurological development. Placental transfer should be assumed.

No specific reproductive toxicity data identified, but pregnancy-specific safety data is limited for most chemicals. Precautionary minimization of exposure is recommended.

What to do: Minimize exposure during pregnancy and lactation. Consult healthcare provider regarding specific risks. Consider alternative products with lower hazard profiles.

Regulatory consensus

2 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Methylmercury chloride. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
EPA——
IARC——

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where kids encounter methylmercury chloride

  • laboratory settings
  • research institutions
  • aquatic food chains
  • fish tissue

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Methylmercury chloride:

  • Thimerosal-free vaccine preservatives (2-phenoxyethanol)
    Trade-offs: Narrower antimicrobial spectrum. Single-dose vials eliminate need for preservative.
    Relative cost: 1.2× (single-dose vials 3-5×)

Frequently asked questions

What products contain methylmercury chloride?

Methylmercury chloride appears in: laboratory settings; research institutions; aquatic food chains.

See Methylmercury chloride in the baby app

Look up products containing methylmercury chloride, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in baby View raw API data

Sources (1)
  1. ATSDR Toxicological Profile — CAS 115-09-3 — reference

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →