On October 16 (Friday), the State Food and Drug Administration issued a notice on its website, that is, the Notice of the General Department of the State Food and Drug Administration on Relevant Implementation Matters, which clearly requests that China will completely stop the consumption of mercury (mercury) containing sphygmomanometer and thermometers from January 1, 2026. More simply, the traditional mercury (mercury) sphygmomanometer and thermometer in the above picture will never be seen on January 1, 2026.

Why did you suddenly send such a notice? Isn't the mercury sphygmomanometer and thermometer that have accompanied us for many years good? What the hell is going on here?

1. Everything originates from the Minamata Treaty

The Minamata Treaty was actually named after a Japanese city. Minamata is a Japanese city that experienced severe mercury pollution in the mid-19th century, known as mercury pollution. Mercury is a toxic substance that can seriously pollute the environment. So on January 19, 2013, the United Nations Environment Programme passed a treaty aimed at reducing mercury pollution, known as the Minamata Treaty. China also participated in the signing of this treaty and was one of the first signatory countries. This notice also clearly stated that, according to the No. 38 announcement issued by the former Ministry of Environmental Protection and relevant ministries in 2017, the Minamata Treaty on Mercury came into force for China on August 16, 2017, which clearly stated that "from January 1, 2026, the consumption of mercury containing thermometers and mercury containing sphygmomanometer will be stopped." The simple point is that from January 1, 2026, Traditional sphygmomanometer and thermometers containing mercury (mercury) will no longer be consumed and will be replaced by new electronic sphygmomanometer and thermometers

2. What should we do if the traditional sphygmomanometer and thermometer at home are damaged?

Since mercury (mercury) is toxic, for the general public, many people still have traditional mercury sphygmomanometer and thermometers in their homes. If they are broken, what should be done?

Firstly, everyone should quickly use sticky paper or cotton swabs. When the window is open and ventilated, it is possible to wear masks and gloves to dispose of the leaked mercury, which can be collected into a sealed small bottle. It is best not to discard the collected mercury randomly. It can be sent to a specialized environmental protection department for professional disposal to avoid entering the natural environment and polluting the environment. Regarding some small amounts of mercury that cannot be collected, everyone should pay attention to long-term window ventilation and disposal.

In a word, it is a good thing to ban mercury sphygmomanometer and thermometers. As for the accuracy of monitoring blood pressure and temperature, Dr. Zhang clearly informed everyone that as long as they meet the national standards, the quality of electronic sphygmomanometer and thermometers allowed to be sold by the state will be monitored by the relevant national departments, so the accuracy will not be poor at all, and everyone can buy them with confidence