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Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

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Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#431

Post by hadlock »

09bjb wrote: post #370
hadlock wrote: post #289

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah in the US I recall in 1991 or 92 the pumps had "UNLEADED" in great big letters running up the side of them. My dad's '77 chevy had a gas gauge near the center console that said "UNLEADED FUEL ONLY". There's been another push to get rid of leaded gas in aviation but studies show that it's virtually undetectable in the environment.

Source? I have no reason to doubt you but would love to see where those data. Most of what I heard is that "lead exposure above zero is significant" and "if you're living near an airport, especially one serving smaller plans, you are being exposed".

This is specific to the reid-hillview county airport, north of san jose. It was in the news last fall. I can't/won't look for the exact broadcast, but the spokesperson for the airport was quick to point out that there's no detectable lead in the air. The FAA is not convinced either and has no intention of shutting down the airport.

At the bottom here is a link to the studies presented to the local government in an attempt to shut down the airport by local residents: https://news.sccgov.org/newsroom/reid-hillview-airport-airbo...

Here is a PDF of the "airborne lead study" which in fact only talks about blood lead levels, and does not include a single measurement of lead in the environment, oddly.: https://news.sccgov.org/sites/g/files/exjcpb956/files/docume...

I don't work for anything related to aviation or petrol, quite the opposite, and I don't have any interest in it, just was suprised to hear the FAA say that there's no detectable lead in the environment, and then a lead blood level study trying to argue otherwise. In the study they do admit that 25% of the homes in the study were built before 1960 (which I thought was an odd year to pick, as lead paint wasn't banned until almost 20 years later (1978), and I'd wager 65%+ of the homes there were built 1960-1978).

That's about as much time as I have to look down that rabbit-hole. I may be convinced, but there's enough cherry-picked data to make a very gray issue questionable. Looks like nationwide BLL is about 1.50 ug/Dl and in the homes less than a thousand feet directly downwind of the airport it was 1.70, and a child in a typical lead paint home was 1.90

It would have been much more convincing (and conclusive), to me, if there was a measurable amount of lead, particularly downwind, in the areas with the higher blood lead levels. But those readings either were not done, or were absent in the report.

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#432

Post by mahogany »

jimbob45 wrote: post #265
legitster wrote: post #61

I have a strong worries that our current generation will have a similar huge reckoning with marijuana. We are already seeing studies that show regular marijuana use is correlated with permanent decreases in intelligence, memory loss, motivation, and mental health. And anecdotally, this seems very apparent in my peer group. And Americans are using copious amounts of the stuff right now, and younger than ever before. I…

It seems like the biggest and most present problem with marijuana is that most don't understand that smoking marijuana is just as bad as smoking cigarettes[0]. Of course, that's obvious - smoking anything , even herbal theater cigarettes, are extremely bad for your health[1]. However, after years and years of the pro-marijuana lobby claiming that marijuana has no negative side effects and can't kill you, it would mak…

> It seems like the biggest and most present problem with marijuana is that most don't understand that smoking marijuana is just as bad as smoking cigarettes[0].

Where in that article does it say that smoking marijuana is just as bad as smoking cigarettes? Marijuana smoke is not good for the lungs and it contains carcinogens, but that doesn't mean it's as bad as tobacco. For example, another source[0] says: "Whether smoking marijuana causes lung cancer, as cigarette smoking does, remains an open question."

[0] https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/marijuana...

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#433

Post by TigeriusKirk »

downrightmike wrote: post #365

Small airports have more smaller prop planes, fun fact, they almost exclusively use leaded gas because it gives them more power. So if you live near one, you're getting a dusting of lead everyday. Like this one in the middle of $500k+ homes suburbs: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Chandler+Municipal+Airport...

The good news is the FAA is working to eliminate lead from general aviation fuel by 2030.

https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-industry-chart-path-elimina...

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#435

Post by maerF0x0 »

marcusverus wrote: post #395
maerF0x0 wrote: post #366

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you never know. We might be able to hit a critical mass with Authoritarian regimes regulating reproduction, and through gene editing. Perhaps when we finally translate "unintelligent people" into "vermin" we'll do what many previous iterations of society have done... genocide. Part of this is literally possible. A big part of made stark to point out that we should be careful in the way our language dehumanizes people…

Many things are true simultaneously. Genocide is a moral abomination, and we should be vigilant in guarding against it and its precursors. And folks with below average intelligence are just as human as everyone else, deserving of the same respect and the same rights. And there are many contemporary factors that would seem to make high IQ people less likely to procreate low IQ people--including the high cost (includin…

> including the high cost (including trade-off costs) of children

I honestly think part of it is like Parkinson's law, but for resources to spend on children -- Children are expensive to rich people largely because rich people spend lots on their children. (too much?) Children mostly thrive in opportunity and resources (so long as it isn't pacifying their desire to achieve for themselves).

On the tradeoffs, this is pure psychology. Generations of people who have shirked social responsibility, and maximized selfishness. "Me" generation + "me me me" generation and all that. Time for people who see society, humanity, and duty as more beneficial than getting a bunch of likes on TikTok for doing something that inconveniences others (like dancing in a crosswalk or something) .

200 ok /Rant

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#436

Post by rr808 »

tyjen wrote: post #309
breakyerself wrote: post #248

Black children had an adjusted 0.73 to 1.41 µg/dL more blood Pb (p https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7084658/

Learned about this phenomenon when considering buying a home built prior to 1978. The highest blood lead levels are seen in children living in denser population areas at or below poverty thresholds. Homes in these largely urban, low-income areas are disproportionately built before 1978 and subject inhabiting children to a significantly higher lead exposure risk. In 2014, it was estimated that 90 percent of all DC hom…

> In 2014, it was estimated that 90 percent of all DC homes were built before 1978.

Europeans go what? I'm thinking of all my friends and family and out of hundreds of houses I've been in I can only think of a handful that were built after 1978. I'm not sure why lead isn't a problem so much though, maybe phased out earlier? .

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#437

Post by chupasaurus »

iancmceachern wrote: post #430
Ansil849 wrote: post #359

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> because lead lobbyists continued to disrupt regulation efforts. I have genuine, actual trouble maintaining faith in humanity when I hear about people like this existing. It just makes me incredibly depressed and bummed out about life.

To add to this, they still mine (and make products from) Asbestos to this day in Russia. They even have open pit mines and use explosives.

And most of the asbestos mined there is being exported.

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#438

Post by cmrdporcupine »

hammock wrote: post #322
breakyerself wrote: post #248

Black children had an adjusted 0.73 to 1.41 µg/dL more blood Pb (p https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7084658/

From the study: >examined risk factors; survey years; binary gender; bodyweight; low birthweight; anemia; health insurance coverage; Medicaid/CHIP enrollment; federal Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) supplemental food program enrollment; use of water treatment devices; b age in months; c educational attainment less than 9th grade education; d housing built before 1960 or 1940; e number of cigarettes smoked inside t…

Yeah don't even start to read up on lead arsenate sprays in apple orchards through most of the 20th century. That will keep you at night up for a long time when you start to think about it.

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#439

Post by ianai »

Ansil849 wrote: post #359
tyjen wrote: post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Learned about this phenomenon when considering buying a home built prior to 1978. The highest blood lead levels are seen in children living in denser population areas at or below poverty thresholds. Homes in these largely urban, low-income areas are disproportionately built before 1978 and subject inhabiting children to a significantly higher lead exposure risk. In 2014, it was estimated that 90 percent of all DC hom…

> because lead lobbyists continued to disrupt regulation efforts. I have genuine, actual trouble maintaining faith in humanity when I hear about people like this existing. It just makes me incredibly depressed and bummed out about life.

I hear you. We’re just more sophisticated chimps. Sophisticated enough to devise ways to kill nearly all life on earth, but not wise enough to take care of the planet and ourselves.

Re: Lead exposure in last century shrunk IQ scores of half of Americans: study

#440

Post by jounker »

oh_sigh wrote: post #302
breakyerself wrote: post #248

Black children had an adjusted 0.73 to 1.41 µg/dL more blood Pb (p https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7084658/

I'm surprised they don't control for(or even mention!) fruit juice consumption, which can end up bioaccumulating dangerous amounts of lead and other heavy metals at a surprisingly low daily intake ([0] ~4oz of juice per day). I also very rarely see anyone talking about this source of lead intake - usually it is focused on water pipes or paint chips. Do black children drink more fruit juice than non-black children? If…

Based on my experience growing up poor, fruit juice was always more expensive than soda. If you’re living in shitty housing you’re probably not drinking much juice.
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