if arsenic deposits can be found in hair and fingernails, can the chemicals in pepto-bismol do the same?

Question

my teacher and i were having a discussion on this topic a while back, and i tried to find the answer by yahoo searching. i never could, i can't remember exactly what element in pepto-bismol, that im looking for. if i do find out ill post it.
they say that if arsenic is ingested deposits can be found in nails and hair. that's one way you tell of arsenic poisoning, if one of the main chemicals in pepto-bismol is in the same family then will it do the same when ingested?

Answer 1

According to the package Pepto Bismol is Bismuth Subsalicylate. The later part is related to aspirin.
Bismuth is much less toxic (see link below) than related metals including lead and arsenic which are on the same row and same column respectively in the periodic table.
Toxicity is usually related to both the body's reaction to the material and its retention in the body (a vaguely remembered fact that I can't recall the source - could be PBS or my first wife, an MD.) Obviously, if the body can wash out a potentially toxic material, it can't build up.
Based on these suppositions, I would believe that bismuth is not retained in the body (like lead and arsenic are) and therefore could not be measured in the hair and nails.

Answer 2

Lancenigo di Villorba (TV), Italy

I agree with who preceeds me.
As he written, Pepto Bismol is a product on basis of bismuth's "subsalicylate", sometimes it is mixed with its basic carbonates. Its formulation permit it to be used against gastro-intestinals diseases, e.g. gastritis or diarrhea.
I think bismuth's deposit prefer kidneys and brains tissues respect to nail or hairs.
As written in "International Programme of Chemical Safety", I said you that overdose of this or other bismuth's soluble compounds, it may lead to renal damage, encephalopathy or peripheral neuropathy. The same source advert possible neuropathy, the latter stopped by medical intervents.
Moreover, urine and stomach containt can be analyzed by fast exames, e.g. Reinsch's test in analogous feature to arsenic's compounds (bismuth's stain is very harder to dissolve than arsenic's one).

I hope this helps you.