Hypertension`s lead connection: Does low-level exposure to lead cause high blood pressure?
{open_quotes}Paying for the sins of the past.{close_quotes} is how researcher Howard Hu describes a proposed disease process in which lead stored for decades in the skeleton puts people at risk of high blood pressure. Previous research has linked this silvery white, poisonous metal to a host of ill effects in children, including learning disabilities, behavior problems, and brain damage. Now, Hu`s study indicates that past exposure may be causing today`s high blood pressure. If he`s right, the public health impact would be significant. {open_quotes}Tens of millions of Americans have been exposed over the years to lead,{close_quotes} says Philip J. Landrigan of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. {open_quotes}Adults today grew up at a time when we were still putting several hundred thousand tons of lead into gasoline each year.{close_quotes} Indeed, the men who developed high blood pressure during the recent study had in their bones lead concentrations, or lead burdens, that came from decades of everyday exposure. Such exposures resulted principally from breathing in fumes from leaded gasoline, drinking tap water from lead pipes or pipes soldered with lead, and inhaling or ingesting lead-laced paint dust or chips. This article goes on to discuss other studies and questions which still need to be answered.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 458690
- Journal Information:
- Science News, Vol. 149, Issue 24; Other Information: PBD: 15 Jun 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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