After absorption, cyanide distributes to a volume of approximately 40% total body weight. On the other hand, a conscious death lasting 2-5 minutes will feel like an eternity for the affected person, so cyanide poisoning should probably be one of the last things on the world's list of "preferred ways of dying." According to the National Institutes of Health, "Exposure to metabolic poisons can quickly cause seizures, respiratory failure, cardiac arrest, and death." When this happens the cells are dying. Exposure to hydrogen cyanide (AC) can be rapidly fatal. Therefore, in cyanide poisoning, even venous blood has bright scarlet staining. Cyanide is a metabolic poison. As a result, oxygen remains in the blood and circulates there in a form associated with hemoglobin. A cyanide is a chemical compound that contains the group C≡N. APPEARANCE: Colorless or pale blue liquid below 78°F (25.6°C), colorless gas above 78°F (25.6°C). Large doses of cyanide prevent cells from using oxygen and eventually these cells die. Cyanide is a rare, but potentially deadly poison. It works by making the body unable to use life-sustaining oxygen. A&E Real Crime spoke with Marcus Parks—whose podcast “The Last Podcast on the Left” ran a five-part, 10-hour special on Jonestown—to learn more about the last fateful hours of the men, women and children who died that tragic day. Cyanide acts fast because its molecules are tiny, allowing it to spread through the body rapidly and efficiently. Salts such as sodium cyanide and potassium cyanide are highly toxic. The cyanide effect could be reversed by hydrogen peroxide, mainly due to an activity by which H2O2 can be reduced by electrons flowing from NADH through a pathway that can be inhibited by antimycin A, and appears to be a cytochrome c peroxidase. This document is a general summary of cyanide's effects on human health and the environment, and is not intended to be a complete reference on all the environmental and health effects of cyanide. The prognosis of the victim depends on termination of further exposure, supportive care, and institution of immediate and aggressive specific treatment. Cyanide poisons the mitochondrial electron transport chain within cells and renders the body unable to derive energy (adenosine triphosphate-ATP) from oxygen. The mass death relied heavily on cyanide-laced Flavor Aid, with followers lining up to drink the lethal poison. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of a carbon atom triple-bonded to a nitrogen atom.. The poison blocks the cellular enzyme, cytochrome oxidase, which is responsible for the uptake of oxygen by the cell. What does cyanide do to the body? Cyanide is more harmful to the heart and brain than to other tissues, since a lot of oxygen is used in the heart and brain. In inorganic cyanides, the cyanide group is present as the anion CN −. It ultimately affects every cell in the body, but due to a higher demand for oxygen, it affects the central nervous system and cardiovascular system most rapidly. The distribution is rapid and is completed within 5 min after a single intravenous dose. Cyanide compounds that can be poisonous include hydrogen cyanide gas, and the crystalline solids, potassium cyanide and sodium cyanide. Human Health Effects Cyanide is produced in the human body and exhaled in extremely low concentrations with each breath. Specifically, it binds to the a3 portion (complex IV) of cytochrome oxidase and prevents cells from using oxygen, causing rapid death. Cyanide prohibits the use of oxygen on the body’s cells. The heart, respiratory system and central nervous system are most susceptible to cyanide poisoning. The human body has a strong detoxification function against CN-, and cyanide is a non-accumulating poison. How does cyanide on the human body? ; DESCRIPTION: Hydrogen cyanide (AC) is a systemic chemical asphyxiant.It interferes with the normal use of oxygen by nearly every organ of the body. When a small amount of exogenous cyanide does not cause a toxic dose to enter the body, it can be quickly converted into non-toxic or low-toxic substances and excreted from the body. ; Common sources of cyanide poisoning include.