Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  Itai-itai disease (イタイイタイ病) was the name given to the mass cadmium poisoning of Toyama Prefecture, Japan, starting around 1912. The term "itai-itai disease" was coined by locals for the severe pains (Japanese: 痛い itai) people with the condition felt in the spine and joints. Cadmium (Cd) poisoning can also cause softening of the bones and kidney failure. Effective treatments involve the use of chelators to promote urinary excretion of Cd. The cadmium was released into rivers by mining companies in the mountains, which were successfully sued for the damage. Remediation efforts in the affected region have been ongoing since 1972 and were mostly complete as of 2012. Monetary costs of the cleanup have been paid for in part by Japan’s national government, Mitsui Mining, and the Gifu and Toyama prefectural governments. Itai-itai disease is known as one of the Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan.
Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  Itai-itai disease was caused by cadmium poisoning due to mining in Toyama Prefecture. Regular mining for silver started in 1589, and soon thereafter, mining for lead, copper, and zinc began. The earliest records of mining for gold in the area date back to 1710. Cadmium is a metal byproduct of mining that is toxic to most organisms. Recent animal studies have shown that cadmium poisoning alone is not enough to elicit all of the symptoms of itai-itai disease. These studies are pointing to damage of the mitochondria of kidney cells by cadmium as a key factor of the disease.
Title: Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan
Content:  The cause of itai-itai disease was determined to be cadmium poisoning in the drinking water from the Jinzū River basin. The source of cadmium was discovered to be from Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company. Mitsui Mining began to discharge cadmium into the Jinzū River in 1910. The cadmium poisoned the river, thus poisoning locals' source of water. Any person who drank that water or ate food that was grown with the contaminated water, such as rice, would be likely to show signs of itai-itai disease.
Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  and 1950s, searching for the cause of the disease. Initially, it was expected to be lead poisoning due to the lead mining upstream. Only in 1955 did Dr. Hagino and his colleagues suspect cadmium as the cause of the disease. Toyama Prefecture also started an investigation in 1961, determining that the Mitsui Mining and Smelting's Kamioka Mining Station caused the cadmium pollution and that the worst-affected areas were 30 km downstream of the mine. In 1968, the Ministry of Health and Welfare issued a statement about the symptoms of itai-itai disease caused by the cadmium poisoning. The reduction of the levels of cadmium in 
Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  Over time, the cadmium that was released as industrial waste began to accumulate in the soil, algae and river organisms. This resulted in the local phytoplankton and algal species absorbing it in high quantities. Cadmium was subsequently passed through the food web to fish consumers. Fish also bioaccumulated cadmium through passive transport in the gills. Cadmium adversely affected fish, causing endocrine disruption and inhibited reproduction, and sometimes mortality. Due to the residents being unaware of the cadmium and its dangers, they used the water from the Jinzū to irrigate their rice fields. Cadmium is highly water soluble and the rice paddy’s prolonged exposure led to the rice strains quickly becoming contaminated and toxic. The local resident’s consumption of these strains of rice and drinking water then resulted in elevated cadmium body burdens – leading directly to symptoms characteristic of Itai-Itai disease. Cadmium is now considered one of the most dangerous toxic metal due to its ability to threaten food safety through being easily be absorbed into the rice paddies, then subsequently the rice.
Title: Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan
Content:  Itai-itai disease first occurred in 1912 within Toyama Prefecture. This disease was given the name "itai-itai" because this was the phrase victims would frequently cry out; it translates into "it-hurts it-hurts disease".
Title: Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan
Content:  Most victims of itai-itai disease were confined to bed because walking caused severe pain. Residents of the surrounding area that were harmed by this disease filed a lawsuit against Mitsui Mining & Smelting Company in 1968. Residents won this lawsuit and began to conduct negotiations. Mitsui Mining formally admitted that itai-itai disease was caused by their discharge of cadmium into the Jinzū River. Mitsui Mining was also obliged to pay recovery costs for the land. This meant that they had to ensure the poisoned land was returned to a safe and cultivable state.
Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  water supply reduced the number of new cases; no new case has been recorded since 1946. While the people with the worst symptoms came from Toyama prefecture, the government found patients with itai-itai disease in five other prefectures. After the first reports of Itai-Itai in 1912, it took 55 years for the epidemiological investigation to discover that the disease was due to cadmium poisoning. Delayed bureaucratic response was a common thread in the Four Big Pollution Diseases of Japan. The mines are still in operation and cadmium pollution levels remain high, although improved nutrition and medical care has reduced the occurrence of itai-itai disease.
Title: Itai-itai disease
Content:  increased the pollution of the Jinzū River and its tributaries. The river was used mainly for irrigation of rice fields, but also for drinking water, washing, fishing, and other uses by downstream populations. When the population complained to Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co. about this pollution, the company built a basin to store the mining waste water before leading it into the river. This proved ineffective, and many had already been sickened. The causes of the poisoning were not well understood and, up to 1946, it was thought to be simply a regional disease or a type of bacterial infection. Medical tests started in the 
Title: The Disappearing Spoon
Content:  Elements such as thallium, lead, polonium, cadmium and bismuth otherwise known as the poisonous elements, are discussed. Cadmium's huge effects on Japan were discussed. Cadmium was constantly dumped into waters, usually when mining for zinc. The constant dumping eventually led to a poisoning of the rice plants due to the poisoned water. This, consequently, led to the development of a disease called "itai-itai" or ouch-ouch, where people suffered tremendous pain, liver failure, and extremely damaged weakened bones. It took a very long time for people to discover the relation between this horrible disease and the poisonous water. Sam discussed thallium and ways it 

Question: itai-itai disease was a form of poisoning associated with ingestion of?
Answer: cadmium.
Cadmium.