The Effects of Lead Poisoning

By:

Joe Matten and Shelief Juárez

What Is Lead Poisoning?• Lead poisoning (Plumbism) is a condition caused by increased

levels of lead in the body.

• It is among the oldest work and environmental hazards known to man.

• Currently there is no known amount of lead that is too small to cause damage.

How it gets in your body People can get lead in their body if they:

• Put their hands or other objects covered with lead dust in their mouths.

• Eat paint chips or soil that contain lead.

• Breathe in lead dust (especially during renovations that disturb painted surfaces).

Causes of Lead Poisoning

• Soil

• Water

• Lead Paint

• Household dust

• Canned Food

• Cosmetics

Soil• Lead remains in soil near roadsides from leaded gasoline and around old

houses and fences due to lead paint.

• Root plants such as potatoes, beets, and carrots that have been planted in lead-contaminated soil contain significant amounts of lead and transmit lead into the body when consumed.

Water• Even today some drinking water still

travels through lead pipes and solder into homes.

• In ancient Rome lead in pipes may have contributed to the downfall of the Roman Empire.

15 µg/dl of lead in drinking water is considered an acceptable amount.

10 µg/dl  can be reached by consuming only 225 ml of contaminated water per day.

Lead Paint• Lead in paint was discovered

dangerous around 1900 and was banned in many countries in 1925 (1978 U.S. ban on lead paint).

• 42-47 million homes in the U.S. still contain lead paint (80% of American households built before 1978)

• Lead paint is known to taste sweet, therefore enticing children

Why did they use Lead Paint Lead Paint is:

• Bright

• Fast Drying

• Cheap

• Resistant to Water

• Anticorrosive

Household dust

• Household dust can contain lead from paint chips or soil brought in from outside.

Canned Food• Lead solder is sometimes used to seal

canned foods and can leach into food served on dishes with lead paint.

Cosmetics61% of lipsticks contain lead, with levels ranging up to 0.65 parts per million. Lead-contaminated brands included L'Oreal, Cover Girl, and Dior Addict.

Symptoms in Children Symptoms in children may include:

• Irritability • Loss of appetite • Weight loss • Sluggishness and fatigue • Abdominal pain • Vomiting • Constipation • Anemia • Learning difficulties

Long Term Effects of Lead Poisoning• Lead in children leads to:• A loss in IQ points• Reading Problems• Developmental impairments• Hearing Deficiencies• Speech deficits• The decrease of one’s attention span• Antisocial behavior• Aggressive behavior• Delinquency and increased criminal

behavior

Why is lead toxic?Lead is a metallic element with a high atomic weight and density that is much greater than that of water.

Since lead is positively charged, it is able to react with negatively charged organic molecules.

Lead is a stable element which means it cannot be metabolized in the human body.

Lead is bio accumulative which means it is passed up the food chain.

Heavy metals increase the acidity of the blood (lower pH levels).

Levels of lead poisoning

• Even the smallest exposure is harmful (as low as 10 micrograms).

• Moderate Lead Poisoning 20-44 ug/dl).

• Severe Lead Poisoning (45-69) ug/dl).

• More than 70 µg/dl is a medical emergency.

• Over 120 µg/dl  is potentially lethal.

ug = micrograms

dl = deciliters

How it effects IQ • Children show a decrease of 7.4 IQ points

for the first ten micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood. There is an additional loss of 4.6 IQ points for every subsequent amount of ten ug/dl after this point

How Lead Poisoning “Works”• Children are especially

vulnerable to lead because lead confuses the blood-brain barrier by imitating calcium, which is able to cross the barrier easily as their brains need calcium in order to develop.

Blood Brain Barrier Definition• The BBB is semi-permeable; that is, it allows some

materials to cross, but prevents others from crossing.

• Protects the brain from "foreign substances" in the blood that may injure the brain.

How Does lead Affect the Brain• In a child's developing brain, lead interferes with synapse

formation in the cerebral cortex, neurochemical development and organization of ion channels.

• It causes loss of neurons' myelin sheaths, reduces numbers of neurons, interferes with neurotransmission, and decreases neuronal growth.

Statistics310,000 U.S. children ages one to five have lead levels that exceed the government's acceptable limit.

US research predicts that some 30 million Americans are at risk from early death from lead due to having exceeded a blood lead level of 20 µg/dL at least once in their adulthood.

The average American consumes 400 pg of lead per day in food, air, and water.

As a nation, the United states consumes up to around 20 tons of lead.

The total amount of lead released into the environment is approximately 860,000 to 1,670,000 metric tons per year.

Lead is brought into the environment  300 times greater though human activity than naturally.

Statistics (continued)

Worldwide figures of lead poisoning in children:

• 28% of children between 3 and 5 and 78% of children under 2 have lead blood levels exceeding 10µg/dl. 

• Children absorb about 50% of lead taken into their bodies compared to 10-15% in mature adults.

• 1994 study shows that 80% of those between 3 and 5 years and 100% under 2 have lead blood levels exceeding 10 µg/dl.

Lead Poisoning during Pregnancy• Because the body “thinks” that

lead in the mother’s blood and bones is calcium, lead is able to move across the placenta very easily during pregnancy

• In Cairo more than 800 infants die annually due to lead poisoning in the womb 

Chelation therapy • What are chelates and how can they be used to treat lead

poisoning?

– A chelate is a special type of complex where organic molecules bind to metals at several points.

– Chelates produce stable compounds which lowers the toxicity of heavy metals.

– Chelation therapy is a treatment of lead poisoning where chelating agents are added into the blood stream and form compounds with the lead that can be excreted in urine.

Treatment (continued)

• Emergency blood replacement can prevent death in children with severe lead poisoning, but does not reverse neurological damage

• Unfortunately, there is no treatment for children with mild lead poisoning

History of Lead in Gasoline• Early 1920's Thomas Midgely of General Motors discovered an

effective antiknock agent for car engines by adding tetraethyl lead to gasoline.

• Leaded gasoline was only banned in 1991 in America although lead’s dangers had been known for thousands of years

Cars that use leaded gasoline in developing countries account for 95% of airborne lead pollution.

China Recalls• 103,000 multicolored necklaces, bracelets, earrings and charms

imported by Tweens Brands Inc,• 4,500 of the Eli's Small Drums and Liberty's Large Drums • 3,000 action figure toys called "Invincibles Transport Converters" • 300,000 of the silver-colored rings • 200,000 children's necklaces, bracelets and rings imported by

Spandrel Sales • 5,000 bamboo game sets called "Anima" • 132,000 children's necklaces using a fish symbol, popular among

Christians

¡Hola me llamo Dora!

PSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) has recalled over 300 million toys, jewelry, and cosmetics that contained lead.

Over 70% of products sold at Walmart are directly imported from China.

Lead paint…To Put on Your Kid’s Face!!!

In 2008 Walmart sold lead-containing face paint for children costing only $1.00!

Our Opinion is…

• Lead poses a very serious threat to humanity and the environment.

• The United States and other countries must work together to reform lead regulations.

• Companies and corporations must find safer alternatives than lead in their products.

Effects of Lead on the Environment• Lead shot and lead fishing sinkers have caused

widespread lead contamination in lakes, streams, and other bodies of water, and the metal is working its way through the food web.

• This is directly harmful to animals for example the imminent extinction of the California Condor.

La Oroya• La Oroya is a small mining town in the Peruvian Andes. Due

to the a Smelter Factory, 99% of children have blood levels that exceed acceptable limits. According to the 1999 survey, the average lead level triple the WHO limit. Even after active emissions from the smelter are reduced, the expended lead will remain in La Oroya's soil for centuries — and there's currently no plan to clean it up.

History of the Lead Pencil• The Modern day idea of a pencil originated in

Cumberland, England around 1560.• Pencils have never contained any lead.• The term “lead” refers to a mixture of graphite (carbon)

and clays.

In Ancient Rome, scribes wrote on papyrus with a stylus made of lead. The name still sticks today.

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