Why is cyanide more poisonous than arsenic?

Arsenic is an element, cyanide is a family of compounds (sodium cyanide, calcium cyanide, hydrogen cyanide, etc.). Cyanide (especially HCN) acts within minutes or even seconds, while arsenic can take weeks or months to hasten the demise of the wealthy uncle or spouse. read more

Chronic arsenic exposure can remain in the body systems for a longer period of time than a shorter term or more isolated exposure and can be detected in a longer time frame after the introduction of the arsenic, important in trying to determine the source of the exposure. read more

The first consideration must be availability. The sale of highly toxic compounds is tightly regulated and very restricted. The days of walking into a chemist’s shop and buying enough arsenic or cyanide to wipe out a household, with no questions asked, are long gone. Internet searches for certain substances are monitored. read more