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Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

medicalxpress.com

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Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#191

Post by bluGill »

sandworm101 wrote: post #139
hedora wrote: post #6

I'd like to point out that, although it is illegal to put lead in water supply lines in the US, there is a loophole that allows it in hot water lines. As a result, for certain fittings, most big-box hardware stores only sell the leaded variants, and label them "hot water heater supply line" or something similar.

A few feet of hot water pipes in fittings won't create a problem. Think of the thousands of feet of pipe that water runs through, where it often sits for days, then spends a fraction of a second in a tap or shower nozzle. Worried? Just run the tap for half a second before drinking.

That depends on the chemical makeup of the water (I think PH, but maybe something else). Some water will dissolve lead quickly and thus be unsafe, while others will not. Some water will leave a coating on the insides of pipes and so the lead doesn't even touch the water (this coating can build up over time though), while others will clean that coating off and so lead can touch the pipe.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#192

Post by the__alchemist »

jeffbee wrote: post #4

There have always been people on this site who think RoHS was a conspiracy. There are a few people who do not take the public health problems caused by lead very seriously.

I have a conspiracy theory that people recommending leaded solder (And reacting hostilely to suggestions it may be dangerous) are demonstrating the effects of lead exposure.

I don't buy the "just wash your hands" argument.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#193

Post by jhallenworld »

jstarfish wrote: post #175
hedora wrote: post #6

I'd like to point out that, although it is illegal to put lead in water supply lines in the US, there is a loophole that allows it in hot water lines. As a result, for certain fittings, most big-box hardware stores only sell the leaded variants, and label them "hot water heater supply line" or something similar.

I had no idea it was unsafe to drink from green garden hoses until it was pointed out by an RV salesman trying to sell me a white hose for potable water-- in my 20s. I thought he was full of shit, but I was proven wrong. Hot water lines can't be the only loophole causing lead ingestion.

Interesting, I had no idea (I thought only the fittings would have lead, but it's the hose material):

https://toxicfreefuture.org/press-room/new-study-rates-best-...

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#194

Post by JumpCrisscross »

Natsu wrote: post #144
jopsen wrote: post #63

While a lot of this appears to be estimates... it's pretty wild of 30% of deaths from cardiovascular are caused by lead. Mostly in low/middle income countries. > It's items in the kitchen that are poisoning them On a positive note: This is something that can be fixed.

One problem with a lot of the studies is that the studies have a lot of confoundeing and estimates of lead's harm seem to be rising even as exposure decreases, which should make people stop and think more. But this doesn't come up that much because it is obviously bad for you, and there's generally no good reason not to avoid exposure and not many people care about precisely how bad it is for you. But it's weird that…

> estimates of lead's harm seem to be rising even as exposure decreases, which should make people stop and think more

Is the effect size or confidence rising? The latter makes sense. We're moving from a population systematically exposed to lead (no control) to one with lead-free kids for a change.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#195

Post by bloaf »

98codes wrote: post #155
CodeWriter23 wrote: post #129

Just a data point here, an acquaintance of mine gave himself lead poisoning by visiting the shooting range too often for target practice. I think he wears a breather when he goes now.

Wow -- how often for how long were/are they going?

There was a recent study which found child blood lead levels were higher in areas with high gun ownership after controlling for socioeconomics.

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/features/higher-rates-of-f...

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#196

Post by bluGill »

tomjakubowski wrote: post #33
hedora wrote: post #6

I'd like to point out that, although it is illegal to put lead in water supply lines in the US, there is a loophole that allows it in hot water lines. As a result, for certain fittings, most big-box hardware stores only sell the leaded variants, and label them "hot water heater supply line" or something similar.

Why is it specially allowed in hot water lines?

Hot water heating is where it is allowed. Some houses have hot water heating which should never touch tap water and so lead won't be a problem (well it might be to plumbers working on it).

Lead is an amazing material, too bad it is toxic, because from a materials stand point it is very useful to put a little into many different metals to useful properties.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#197

Post by londons_explore »

bobmaxup wrote: post #49
hedora wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

HDPE Nalgene bottles probably leach PFAS: https://www.reddit.com/r/Nalgene/comments/wqdgbi/are_nalgene... Glass or stainless steel would be a better choice (especially for storage).

Whats my risk of exposure to lead from improperly made glass or stainless steel?

Stainless steel could easily contain quite some ppm of lead. Metals are frequently recycled, and hard to separate.

Glass could also contain lead in contaminants - but actual metallic lead won't end up in the finished product - but lead oxides might well.

Having said that... There are probably many devices in your house or supply chain which deliberately contain lead in double digit percentages. Worry about those before worrying about contamination.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#198

Post by jstarfish »

lkbm wrote: post #90
jopsen wrote: post #63

While a lot of this appears to be estimates... it's pretty wild of 30% of deaths from cardiovascular are caused by lead. Mostly in low/middle income countries. > It's items in the kitchen that are poisoning them On a positive note: This is something that can be fixed.

I'm reminded of an old SSC post[0]: > See, my terrible lecture on ADHD suggested several reasons for the increasing prevalence of the disease. Of these I remember two: the spiritual desert of modern adolescence, and insufficient iron in the diet. And I remember thinking "Man, I hope it’s the iron one, because that seems a lot easier to fix." The discovery that we can dramatically reduce mortality by the relatively st…

Wow. How does one develop an iron deficiency in America? Bread and breakfast cereals are fortified with it and it's in multivitamins, eggs, pasta, most meats, and even some chocolate. I get spinach and peas aren't for everyone, but how does one end up with a deficiency in iron when it's added to the trashiest of food?

(We shit on it now, but maybe this is why the "food pyramid" was shaped so contrary to current sensibilities? Or maybe it's a potassium deficiency mislabeled as something else.)

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#199

Post by ironmagma »

thfuran wrote: post #74
amluto wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There’s another loophole: “lead free” means that the wetted surface is no more than 0.25% lead (by mass, I think). As far as I know, lead has nice properties as an element added to brass alloys. Which is not an excuse for using it, IMO. (Why is any of this still a thing? Stainless steel is cheaper than copper these days, and it’s a great material as long as you aren’t trying to screw one piece of stainless steel into…

Are there? It seems like plastics are shaping up to be the modern day lead.

Those don’t seem like comparables though. Lead is just one (or arguably a handful of) compounds, while there are at least dozens of species of plastic.

Re: Lead poisoning causes more death, IQ loss than thought: study

#200

Post by thiht »

hedora wrote: post #6

I'd like to point out that, although it is illegal to put lead in water supply lines in the US, there is a loophole that allows it in hot water lines. As a result, for certain fittings, most big-box hardware stores only sell the leaded variants, and label them "hot water heater supply line" or something similar.

Why are there so many loopholes in every single US law?

Everytime there’s a major health issue or anything extremely anti consumer it’s because of a loophole in the formulation of a US law.

Are US lawmakers that bad? Or is it judges who interpret laws literally instead of using the intent?

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