

This effects the assimilation and transportation of oxygen in the blood to the various parts of the body, which has dire effect on the functioning. The action of cyanides and hydrocyanic acid on living animals, in particular on mammals, is attributed by and large to their irreversible reaction with the iron ions in the blood. A laboratory cleaning lady died a few years ago breathing HCN vapors released from a sink after pouring into it a cleaning acid. A few cases were documented where people died after breathing HCN vapors released where attempts were made to clean cyanide-containing vessels with acids. The exact confirmed evidences are sketchy, but one possibility is that the effective amount of cyanide ingested was reduced due to its reaction with the sugars in the wine to form the less toxic amygdalin.Ĭyanides react with acids to form the volatile and deadly hydrocyanic acid, HCN. Anecdotally, when attempts were made to poison the Russian Healer/Advisor to the Czar, Rasputin, by putting cyanide in his red wine and cake, he did not die. This compound is not very stable and decomposes in water to reform cyanides and sugar. The reason is that the cyanide ion can react with the sugars to form amygdalin. The toxicity is somewhat reduced if alcohol and sugar are present simultaneously with the cyanide. Therefore, when ingested, they quickly form solutions in the stomach which rapidly enters the blood and circulate through every part of the body. Potassium, sodium and many of the other inorganic cyanides are water soluble. Inorganic cyanides, the most available ones, are very toxic when ingested but their solution in water is even more toxic. Cyanides toxicity shows in relatively very short time. one may conduct toxicity tests on say rats or mice and apply the LD 50 data to human, since both are mammals.ī.

The mechanism of toxicity is the same for “similar animals”, i.The toxic effect is related linearly through a relatively large range of body weights, to the body weight of the victim, and,.This approach uses several basic assumptions which are not strictly correct. The values of the LD 50 are determined by feeding the poison to many animals of the same kind, say rats, and calculating the LD 50 based on their weight. For example, the LD 50 for Potassium Cyanide, KCN, is 5 mg/Kg and for sodium cyanide, NaCN, it is 6.4 mg/kg. The LD 50 is the quantity of toxic material, expressed in grams per Kg body weight of the person being poisoned, that will kill 50 % of the population in three days. The toxicity of materials is measured by a term called the LD 50. If the mixing ratio is say 1 cyanide to 9 sugar, one or two spoons will contain enough cyanide to kill the user! Crystalline potassium cyanide will not be distinguishable by the eyes from ordinary salt or sugar and bot will readily dissolve in water, tea or coffee. It can also be mixed with ordinary sugar or placed in a packet of artificial sweetener. To put this in prospective, 0.36 grams of potassium cyanide, a white crystalline material that looks like table salt or coarse sugar, occupies a smaller volume then the volume of salt that most people put on an order of French Fries. In reality, death due to cyanide poisoning will occur in much shorter time than three days, more likely in 2-6 hours. A single tablespoon of potassium cyanide will kill 90 % of 43 people, i. Thus, 90 percent of 13 people, about 12, who weigh 160 lbs can be killed using a SINGLE teaspoon of potassium cyanide.

To put these numbers in prospective, a teaspoon of salt contains 7.2 grams and a tablespoon contains 23.7 grams. Cyanides are extremely toxic and only a small amount of material is sufficient to kill a person.įor example, the probability that a person who weighs 160 lbs, (72.64 Kg), who ingests 0.3632 grams potassium cyanide will die within three days is 50 %, and if he ingests 0.55 grams, the probability is over 90 %. Why Cyanides are the Ideal Poison for Want-To-be Poisoners?Ĭyanide offers Want-To-Be Poisoners unique combination of properties that makes it an ideal poison for professionals as well as for amateurs.
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On the Feasibility of Poisoning with Cyanides and How to Prevent it.Į mail: 1.
