Lead Level in Blood

[XDM45]

The vitamin c I take are the 1000mg tabs you can get at walgreens for like 15 bucks. Taste like oranges, but don't chew them, most bitter thing you've ever tasted.

I have those now.. Good ones to get.

[yuppiejr]

http://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/lead/sources.htm

Some interesting stuff there, according to our pediatrician and my wife's OB, fish can accumulate a lot of heavy metals including lead which is why they recommend against pregnant women and children from eating it more than once or twice a month... still reading up on the science behind that though.

[870TC]

Maybe get a second test at a different lab?. Wouldn't be the first time results got screwed up,contaminated or swapped.

[dsm2nr]

What's your occupation? Any other hobbies, like cars running race gas?

[XDM45]

What's your occupation? Any other hobbies, like cars running race gas?

I work in IT Security, no other real hobbies that involve any chemicals like gasoline, pil, lead, etc.

[DanM]

Blood lead level has become a hot-button topic in recent years. When I started reloading for shotgun 30 years ago, there was very little concern about blood lead levels. There was growing concern over children eating lead paint chips, but not adult blood lead levels. Until a few years ago the maximum level had been 50 mcg/dl for adults and 10 mcg/dl for children under 6 years old. There has been more confusion, and/or politicizing, of lead in general in recent years. Some references have started quoting the recommended childrens level as the adult level, too. In 2009 the adult level was changed to 25 mcg/dl and the reporting age has changed from developing children under 6 to separating everyone over or under age 18 with the ABLES program.

I got my blood lead level tested last year since I reload lead bullets, shoot mostly lead bullets, and have cast lead bullets for the past three years. My BLL (blood lead level) was 0.7 mcg/dl. Everyone's experience is different, but the recommendations already given are sound: avoid ingestion (the greatest risk), inhalation (much smaller risk), and dermal contact (primarily cuts/openings in the skin).

Seems to me that you may have another source of exposure that has not been identified. To put this in perspective, this quote from the link below; "Between 10 and 25 µg/dL, lead is building up in the body and some exposure is occurring." This New York guide doesn't start to use the term 'elevated' with regard to BLL until the level is above 25.

http://www.health.ny.gov/publications/2584/

A second opinion (lab) could be a good place to start. As well as determining if there is another source of exposure. Good luck.

[XDM45]

Blood lead level has become a hot-button topic in recent years. When I started reloading for shotgun 30 years ago, there was very little concern about blood lead levels. There was growing concern over children eating lead paint chips, but not adult blood lead levels. Until a few years ago the maximum level had been 50 mcg/dl for adults and 10 mcg/dl for children under 6 years old. There has been more confusion, and/or politicizing, of lead in general in recent years. Some references have started quoting the recommended childrens level as the adult level, too. In 2009 the adult level was changed to 25 mcg/dl and the reporting age has changed from developing children under 6 to separating everyone over or under age 18 with the ABLES program.

I got my blood lead level tested last year since I reload lead bullets, shoot mostly lead bullets, and have cast lead bullets for the past three years. My BLL (blood lead level) was 0.7 mcg/dl. Everyone's experience is different, but the recommendations already given are sound: avoid ingestion (the greatest risk), inhalation (much smaller risk), and dermal contact (primarily cuts/openings in the skin).

Seems to me that you may have another source of exposure that has not been identified. To put this in perspective, this quote from the link below; "Between 10 and 25 µg/dL, lead is building up in the body and some exposure is occurring." This New York guide doesn't start to use the term 'elevated' with regard to BLL until the level is above 25.

http://www.health.ny.gov/publications/2584/

A second opinion (lab) could be a good place to start. As well as determining if there is another source of exposure. Good luck.

Thank you for the advice (you and everyone on here)... I think maybe it could have come from some of the buildings I've worked in maybe? I don't know. I will definitely go again in say 6 months, to a different place.

[hicap45z]

If you are a reloader, Richard Lee's book asserts that the process of sifting brass after cleaning is a huge source of lead exposure.
Picture yourself holding a sifting pan and shaking it (generating leaded dust) right under your face.

Also, my suspicion is that a person's age and where you grew up have a lot to do with the minimum level of lead you will have due to the use of leaded gas in vehicles.

Z

[XDM45]

If you are a reloader, Richard Lee's book asserts that the process of sifting brass after cleaning is a huge source of lead exposure.
Picture yourself holding a sifting pan and shaking it (generating leaded dust) right under your face.

Also, my suspicion is that a person's age and where you grew up have a lot to do with the minimum level of lead you will have due to the use of leaded gas in vehicles.

Z

I don't reload (yet at least) and yeah, I grew up in Saint Paul on the East side in a house in the late 1960-1970's (and the house was built in the the 1940s) until I moved to the 'burbs in 1978 to a new house (at the time).

[XDM45]

neco-vamping the post.

In May 2012, I had a BLL (Blood Lead Level) of 21
In Feburary 2013, my BLL was 7

I dropped by 2/3rds. I believe a lot of it has to do with the following:

The food I've been eating
Having range-only clothes I change out of before even getting into car.
Washing the range clothes and the clothes I wore home right away and then showering right away before doing anything else.
Shooting outdoors vs. indoors.

Maybe it all helped, maybe a lot, maybe a little, but whatever it is, I hope I keep doing it and it goes down even further.

[t140]

So ~2/3 was just from the range? Interesting. How many rounds were you shooting each Saturday when you were at 21?

[XDM45]

So ~2/3 was just from the range? Interesting. How many rounds were you shooting each Saturday when you were at 21?

Well, I've actually kept track of how many rounds fired from each gun, the range I was at, each time, etc.

From 04/21/2012 until 01/05/2013, I made 18 trips to the range, shooting a total of 9,600 rounds. Of that amount, 4500 were FMJ ball .45ACP new ammo and 5200 .22LR. I cleaned each gun after firing it for the day, and while cleaning it, I wore Nitrate gloves.

The least rounds fired from the .45ACP was 50. The most was 600. Average is 200. (Guesstimated Average)
The least rounds fired from the .22LR was 100. The most was 650. Average is 300. (Guesstimated Average)

Here's the .45 actual numbers

Range Date Rounds Fired
04/21/12 400
04/28/12 200
05/07/12 250
05/19/12 300
06/03/12 150
06/09/12 300
06/15/12 200
07/01/12 200
07/14/12 400
07/28/12 250
08/04/12 350
08/12/12 200
08/18/12 600
10/20/12 400
12/23/12 300
01/05/13 50

Here's the .22LR actual numbers

Range Date Rounds Fired
04/21/12 100
04/28/12 375
05/07/12 650
05/19/12 250
06/03/12 300
06/09/12 400
06/15/12 325
07/01/12 325
07/14/12 325
07/28/12 100
08/04/12 0
08/12/12 325
08/18/12 525
10/20/12 525
12/23/12 625

I suspect it wasn't from the range that I was getting the lead. Where from? Who knows. I traveled all over the US for a decade.

[t140]

So, 1,925 rds the month before the doc?

481 rds average on each visit does seem like a lot for indoors. But I would agree that there was probably something else contributing. Did you stop traveling recently?

[BlkVooDoo]

I used to work for Gopher Resource, which recycles lead from batteries and then sells billets and bars to Federal, and a few other various manufacturers. The work environment was mandatory respirator only, and we had to go through monthly blood checks. Some peoples genetics play into this significantly. Some people can process the lead in their blood out faster than others, some slower. That is something to keep in mind. Just to give you an idea, a dangerous lead level is 60+ µg/dL. We would send home employees for two+ weeks if their test was more than 35 µg/dL.

21 µg/dL is not a very high reading. I would not be concerned with that reading. Especially if your shooting habits have been consistent for a long time. 17 -25 µg/dL was normal for most employees while wearing full respirators.

I was always lucky and never had a high reading. Washing your hands frequently is important. Keeping your hands away from your face. Changing clothes, and showering asap.There are a few companies that make lead neutralizing wipes. There is also shampoo and body wash that you can get that neutralizes lead. I would have to say the lead dust more than anything is what contributes to high lead levels. Wear a dust mask when reloading. Make sure there is not a cold-air return for your furnace where you reload. Isolate that room as best as you can from the rest of your house. Install a bathroom exhaust fan. Try to create a negative pressure in that room.

Re-reading your previous post, wear a dust mask while cleaning as well. That will cut down on the lead dust intake.

[XDM45]

So, 1,925 rds the month before the doc?

481 rds average on each visit does seem like a lot for indoors. But I would agree that there was probably something else contributing. Did you stop traveling recently?

I stopped traveling in 2006 when I left my former industry.

A lot of that shooting is outdoors, probably somewhere between 50-75%.