Contents
Lead can kill and it is not about bullets, but microscopic amounts of lead in a contaminated environment. It does not break down and accumulates in the body, which is especially dangerous for children. Environmental pollution and food are responsible for poisoning with this element. The mushroom picking season is approaching, remember that mushrooms contain large amounts of lead, do not give them to the little ones.
- Some foods accumulate more lead than others. This is influenced by, among others air quality and pollution of precipitation
- An example of such a product is mushrooms. This is one of the reasons why they should not be given to young children
- Lead supplied to the gastrointestinal tract with food is absorbed in adults in about 10%, and in children up to 50%.
- More current information can be found on the Onet homepage
Lead can poison over 260 Polish children
It slowly wreaks havoc on the health of children. UNICEF, based on its latest report entitled “Places and Spaces: The Impact of the Environment on the Well-Being of Children” warns that this element can poison over 260 people. children in Poland. This could have fatal consequences in the future.
– Lead is absorbed into the body through two routes: food and environmental, here the quality of the air we breathe is important. So it is very important where the child lives. If he grew up near a copper smelter in Legnica or in Silesia, where there are hard coal mines, he has a higher level of lead in the blood than a child from Podlasie. Let me give you the example of our friend who works with lead on a daily basis. When she moved from Legnica to Warsaw, she had a fairly high blood lead level. In Warsaw, despite working with this element, but in compliance with all safety standards, the level of lead in her blood decreasedę – says Joanna Gajda-Wyróbek, head of the Food Additives Laboratory at the Food Safety Institute at the National Institute of Public Health of the Polish National Institute of Hygiene – National Research Institute.
The Commission Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006, which is in force in the European Union, which sets the maximum levels of certain contaminants in foodstuffs, quite rigorously regulates the level of lead in food. Everything is tested: wines, grains, meat, vegetables, honey, dried spices.
The rest of the text below the video.
Food is not free from poisonous substances
– Particularly low limits of this element apply to food for infants and young children, while slightly higher limits are to food for general consumption. There are higher limits in leafy vegetables than in root vegetables, e.g. lettuce may have 0,3 milligrams of lead per kilogram and beet three times less. This proves that the environmental factor, i.e. air quality, and hence the pollution of precipitation, is of great importance – says Joanna Gajda-Wyróbek. – Although mushrooms are considered a food additive rather than a staple dish, it is worth remembering that they contain quite a lot of lead – the limit for mushrooms is 0,8 milligrams per kilogram in the regulation in question; this is due to the specificity of mushrooms that accumulate greater amounts of lead than, for example, vegetables. So let’s be careful when giving mushrooms to children – adds the expert.
It is worth remembering that lead supplied to the gastrointestinal tract with food is absorbed in adults in about 10%, and in children up to 50%. It is worth knowing that a diet rich in calcium and phosphorus (the easiest way to ensure such a diet is by eating dairy products) reduces the amount of lead absorbed in the intestines. In turn, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and citric acid intensify this process. Absorption and penetration of lead into the bloodstream is favored by deficiencies of micronutrients, such as zinc and iron.
The main sources of environmental exposure to lead for humans are: paints, drinking water, soil and dust, air and food.. Over 90 percent This element accumulates in the roots, so root crops grown in soils contaminated with this element can be particularly dangerous. Such plants include carrots, parsley, celery and beetroot. It is estimated that the share of atmospheric lead (from dust fallout) in plants is about 73-95%. Among the products of animal origin, the liver accumulates the highest amounts of lead. Whether soil is rich in lead is influenced by its distance from highly industrialized areas and highways.
Poland is high in the list of 43 countries exposed to lead contamination
In the report “Places and Spaces: The Impact of the Environment on the Well-Being of Children”, UNICEF analyzed, inter alia, the level of lead poisoning in children in rich countries, including Poland. In the ranking of 43 EU and OECD countries, showing in which countries children are most exposed to lead contamination, Poland was ranked 29th. The best situation is in the Nordic countries (Finland, Iceland and Sweden), as well as in Luxembourg and the United Kingdom. It is worst in Mexico, Costa Rica, Romania, Belgium and Malta.
– This chart shows that environmental pollution has a significant impact on blood lead levels. Because when it comes to food, the limits are the same throughout the European Union, moreover, a given product is often produced for the entire EU market. However, the Nordic countries have a less polluted environment, which may be the reason why these countries have lower blood lead concentrations, commented on the above reports from the UNICEF report by Joanna Gajda-Wyrzałek.
Symptoms of lead poisoning
Fortunately, it happens much less frequently than it used to be. There is a close relationship between the dose and duration of lead exposure and its concentration in tissues and the appearance of symptoms. They are not characteristic. It’s headaches, stomachaches, nausea, and colic. After some time, vomiting, drops in blood pressure and a drop in body temperature appear. Acute poisoning leads to failure of the kidneys, liver and nervous system. Chronic poisoning, as a result of lead accumulation, damages the nervous system, bone marrow, kidneys and skin.
Chronic lead poisoning (called lead poisoning) is most common in workers in printing houses, battery factories, and lead paint factories. Chronic poisoning mainly affects the digestive and nervous systems (fatigue, fatigue, muscle paralysis, memory impairment, mental disorders), and may also cause anemia resulting from disturbances in heme synthesis.
A characteristic feature of people with long-term exposure to lead is “lead complexion”. Egyptian and Roman women already applied a highly toxic lead white called cerusite or Venetian white to their face.
«Thanks to the pure lead content, matting properties and satin finish it gave, Venetian Cerousite has become the most desirable white primer. It was mainly favored by the European aristocracy, which could afford such an expense. The problem was that the more cerusite was used, the more it had to be applied to hide its unpleasant effects. Long-term use caused skin discoloration, the complexion turned gray, tired, took shades of yellow, green and purple, which finally made the face look like a dried old fruit. The constant use of the drug was also the cause of tooth decay, bad breath and hair loss, and even permanent damage to the lungs, ”Facepaint reads. The history of makeup »Lisa Eldridge.
Another symptom of excess lead in the body is “lead limb”, formed on the gums as a result of lead sulphide deposition and a characteristic blue-black border.
Long-term exposure to lead affects reproduction, causes emotional and nervous system disorders, as well as cardiovascular and immune system disorders. In Poland, thanks to diagnostic tests, it is possible to determine the level of lead in the blood; it is obligatory as part of the periodic tests of workers working in conditions of exposure to heavy metal poisoning.
You can find tests assessing blood and urine levels of various elements in Medonet Market.
Lead levels are higher in men and in smokers. According to data presented by WHO, one smoked cigarette contains from 17 to 980 ng of lead. Poisoning can occur from inhalation of lead compounds with contaminated air and from consumption of lead-contaminated food and water.
Lead has a negative effect on concentration, memory, and planning and problem solving. It can also increase aggression and anti-social behavior. Especially boys are at risk of brain damage and cognitive impairment from lead poisoning. In turn, exposure of girls to lead early in life, and even in the womb, can disrupt their hormonal patterns and is associated with delayed puberty.
Where is the lead?
Almost everywhere: in small amounts in certain toys, clothes, cosmetics, jewelry and kitchen utensils. It can also enter our food through soil or water. It is located in dust, sand in a sandbox, soil.
Historical leaded gasoline contamination is still present in soils around the world. In the past, lead was found in children’s products such as painted toys. Today it is still present in lead glazed ceramics (mainly in Mexico), in lead shot used in hunting (Norway), in new paints or in spices that are mixed with lead to add weight or add color (often produced in South Asia, but imported all over the world).
Other sources of lead exposure include:
- water from lead pipes;
- lead from the extractive industry and battery recycling;
- lead based pigments;
- canned lead for food.
In Poland, Silesia is a region with a high risk of lead contamination. In studies conducted in 2013-14 in a group of several hundred preschoolers from Piekary Śląskie, it was shown that 40 percent. had a concentration of this element at the level of 2 µg / dl, in more than 53 percent. in the range of 2-5 µg / dL, and 8 percent. – over 5 µg / dl, which poses a health risk. It’s still far better than in previous years.
Taking into account the results of the report, UNICEF recommends that the state:
- monitored and tested blood lead levels and lead contamination;
- introduced preventive and control measures;
- strengthen health systems to detect and treat children at risk of lead poisoning, especially in areas particularly prone to the effects of lead contamination (mining and smelting sites);
- conducted social educational campaigns on the risks and sources of contact with lead;
- has taken action at the global level to harmonize the standards and norms for the recycling and transportation of used lead-acid batteries.
– The Polish state monitors the lead content in food by conducting official controls, during which the State Sanitary Inspection examines food samples from trade or directly from producers. A product with an exceeded lead limit is not authorized or is withdrawn from it. Exceedances are not recorded too much, the producers themselves ensure that the product meets the EU requirements – refers to the UNICEF recommendations Joanna Gajda-Wyrzałek.