And they're only talking about low levels! "Even more troubling, the deaths were not linked to acute exposures, but to relatively low blood levels of lead."

"The study was the first to examine the link between low-level lead exposure (characterized as under 5 micrograms per deciliter of blood) and cardiovascular disease. Keep in mind, according to Harvard Medical School, average levels for Americans currently hover around 1 ug/dL."

I tested at 130 ug/dL in 2011. By 2015 I was down to 75 ug/dL. With my diagnosis, ME, the prognosis is death around 55 yrs., by heart failure (top cause of death), cancer second), suicide 3rd. I'm 62! :-)

Sonar

Low level lead exposure killing over 400,000 Americans a year, study reveals

by: Lori Alton, staff writer | October 6, 2019

Heart disease, the number one cause of mortality in the United States, is currently responsible for over 800,000 deaths a year. The primary risk factors for this potentially deadly condition are thought to include high blood pressure, lack of exercise, obesity, cigarette smoking and diabetes. But, with the results of a shocking study published in The Lancet, researchers are now pointing to another likely culprit – lead exposure.

Natural health experts have long warned that lead is a dangerous neurotoxin – for which there is no safe level of exposure. The startling study shows that lead exposure is not only associated with cardiovascular disease – but is responsible for the premature deaths of 412,000 (close to half a million!) Americans every year.

Even more troubling, the deaths were not linked to acute exposures, but to relatively low blood levels of lead.

Lead exposure is grossly ignored as a cause of heart disease and premature death

To conduct the large-scale, long-term population study, researchers examined the connection between lead concentrations, heart disease and all-cause mortality in over 14,000 adults.

The study was the first to examine the link between low-level lead exposure (characterized as under 5 micrograms per deciliter of blood) and cardiovascular disease. Keep in mind, according to Harvard Medical School, average levels for Americans currently hover around 1 ug/dL.

When the team specifically examined results for participants with blood lead levels between 1 ug/dL (the threshold of detection) and 5 ug/dL, they discovered that the risk of premature death increased substantially.

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In addition, the team found that people with higher lead levels (6.7 ug/dL) had a 70 percent greater risk of death from heart disease – when compared to those at the low end of the scale.

But that wasn’t all.

The researchers calculated that exposure to lead caused an 18 percent higher risk of dying from any cause, which translates to 412,000 deaths a year. Around 256,000 of those deaths occurred from heart disease, the team reported.

The researchers called low-level lead exposure an “important, but overlooked” risk factor for premature death in the U.S. – particularly for death from heart disease. The team stressed the importance of continuing efforts to reduce environmental lead exposure.

Additional studies support evidence of harm from lead exposure
Animal studies have shown that chronic, low-level lead exposure not only causes high blood pressure (a contributor to heart disease) but – by inactivating the body’s stores of beneficial nitric oxide – can also trigger atherosclerosis.

Lead exposure also contributes to atherosclerosis by inhibiting the repair of fragile, easily-damaged arterial linings. In addition, low-level lead exposure promoted the formation of blood clots – thereby directly raising risk of stroke and heart attack.

Not surprisingly, additional studies have reflected the findings of the Lancet study, linking higher concentrations of lead with high blood pressure, peripheral arterial disease and heart disease deaths.

Significantly, these findings directly contradict the prevailing wisdom concerning levels of lead at which harm can occur.

New research is causing experts to revamp views on low level exposure
Levels of 10 ug/dL to 25 ug/dL are considered proof positive that lead exposure is occurring – with levels of 25 ug/dL to 40 ug/dL considered “elevated.”

And, levels are considered “seriously elevated” between 40 ug/dL and 80 ug/dL, while levels over 80 ug/dL are “dangerously elevated” – with irreversible damage to health likely to occur.

As recently as 2013, only lead levels of 10 ug/dL, and above, were considered cause for concern. In fact, the National Toxicology Report previously described evidence linking blood lead levels under 10 ug/dL with heart disease-related mortality as “limited.”

Yet, participants in the recent study only had to average a modest 2.7 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood to see their heart health and mortality affected – in a negative way.

Warning: Children are much more susceptible to damage
With smaller, still-developing systems, children under age six are much more susceptible than adults to the physical and mental effects of lead poisoning. Sadly, symptoms may not appear – in children and adults alike – until dangerous and damaging amounts of lead have already accumulated in the body.

Signs of lead exposure in children include learning difficulties, irritability, fatigue, weight loss, vomiting and diarrhea. Pica – a craving for non-edible substances, such as paint chips or dirt – can also indicate lead poisoning in children.

Lead exposure in newborns is manifested by premature birth, lower birth weight and slow growth.

Adults exposed to lead may experience high blood pressure, joint and muscle pain, headaches, impaired concentration and memory loss – along with reproductive problems such as reduced sperm count in men and miscarriage and premature birth in women.

Of course, very high levels of exposure to lead can cause seizures, unconsciousness and premature death.

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More at the link:
https://www.naturalhealth365.com/lead-exposure-3142.html