Lead Poisoning - Everything You Need To Know - Dr. Nabil Ebraheim

Dr. Ebraheim’s educational animated video describes the condition of lead poisoning.

Lead poisoning can occur when lead builds up within the body, usually over a long period of time. This excessive amount of lead in the body can cause serious health problems. Young children are vulnerable to lead poisoning. It can affect their mental and physical development.
What is lead poisoning? It is a medical condition caused by increased levels of lead within the body that interferes with the normal processes of the body and it particularly toxic to children.
Why does this happen? Lead and calcium compete for the protein that is important for body functions, especially the nervous system. The lead can displace the calcium from that protein so the calcium will not be able to function properly.
How can we simplify the signs and symptoms of lead poisoning? Lines gingiva and long bones. Encephalopathy and erythrocyte basophilic stippling. Abdominal colic and anemia. Drop foot and drop wrist.
Lead inhibits the enzymes that are needed to make Heme. This means that lead interferes with the making of hemoglobin. There will be basophilic stippling of the cells because lead inhibits the ribosomal RNA degradation. The red blood cells will retain aggregates of ribosomal RNA that causes the stippling of the cells. There will be a “lead line” in the gingiva (gums) called the Burton’s line. The long bones will also have lead lines in the metaphysis that appear like white bands on x-ray because the lead is collected within these white bands. The width and density of these lead lines reflects chronic exposure.
At the RBC level, you will find anemia and also basophilic stippling of the red blood cells. The patient will also have encephalopathy associated with headache and memory loss. The patient may also have abdominal colic (pain, cramps and constipation).
Another condition that may occur due to lead poisoning is foot drop. The patient may experience permanent damage to the central nervous system and the peripheral nerves. This condition usually occurs from exposure to lead based pain typically used in much older homes. Particles from the lead based pain is ingested through the air or lead contamination may occur from contaminated drinking water. Exposure to lead for a long period of time may cause serious health problems!
Children are most vulnerable to lead poisoning. They typically will show signs of:
•Irritability
•Fatigue
•Lower IQ
•Lack of attentiveness.
The child may show signs of encephalopathy, nausea, vomiting, gait disturbances and seizures.
Lead poisoning in adults: exposure is typically occupational related.
•Personality changes
•Headaches
•Neuropathy
•Weakness
•Foot and wrist drop
•Stomach aches
Both children and adults will experience pale skin due to anemia because lead interferes with the normal formation of hemoglobin.
How do you diagnose lead poisoning? History of exposure, cm lead level usually greater than 5 (some people use higher numbers). If a complete blood count (CBC) test is done, you will find microcytic anemia. In peripheral blood smear you will find basophilic stippling (ribosomes). The serum iron is normal.
1.Eliminate the source of the lead contamination.
2.Chelating agent
a. Use of various drugs that help to remove the lead from the body
b. It binds the lead into a form that the body can excrete
c. It is used if lead levels are higher than 45 µg/dL in children and more than 70µg/dL in adults.
d. Dimercaprol (oral chelating agent) is used in encephalopathy
e. Succimer (oral chelating agent) without encephalopathy.
Lead toxicity from bullets
•Lead contamination may occur due to bullet penetration of a joint or introduced into the cerebral spinal fluid
•It may cause severe synovitis and low grade lead poisoning
•This condition is rare, however it can occur
Lead toxicity from soil
•Lead contaminating the ground water may also contaminate the soil.
•Lead poisoning may then occur due to ingestion of the food grown in this soil

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[AC-klgi]

In the 1960's when I was in elementary school, I was exposed to lead paint which got all over my legs and took a full year to get off skin. Made nothing but D's for 12 years. Didn't go to college.😢

[violagary]

Dr. Ebraheim, when I was a child, I and other children would us an iron railing as a swing. Not knowing of the flaking of the iron pipes we children would play on it. I was not of school age at that time and I believe that I still have the poisoning in my blood cells. Through my adulthood, blood tests were taken that shown the while blood cells were eating of the red blood cells. I don't know and did not know how or why. With this information I can now understand why I have anemia, constipation problems, and lethargy throughout my life. My age now is 76 and I would love to know what can be done for my health issues surrounding this lead poisoning and anemia. Thank you for this information.

[Ashelystanwood]

I been searching for hours why there are RNA aggregates in lead poisoning, it’s because lead inhibits ribosomal RNA degradation

[jackiemansfield]

Over the last decade, CEH has notified retailers Burlington, Marshalls, Nordstrom Rack, Ross, and TJ Maxx nearly 500 times that they were selling specific fashion accessories containing elevated levels of lead. Ross and Burlington accounted for over 300 of those notices.

[MrMarco]

Sucks to be a kid who drinks lead,

I don't like it.

BUT memorable

HOWEVER
SUCKS MORE to be a kid who drinks lead kinda seems a bit like RIGHT there.

That said, I got here looking for lead poisoning from soldering. I don't know if that's possible.. I'm sure many people wonder if that's a thing..

Anyway thanks for the video, the gum lining is really helpful. For someone looking to for quick ways proactive with looking for lead poisoning signs. Thanks.

[lauragallardo]

Check your dishes. Most dishes that were made before 2005 have lead.

[pranjalpandey]

Thank u for the information sir but I don't think that I can stop myself from eating it.

[athenafarrell]

Is this something I should share with my doctor?I was told my reading was.8 when I was about 8. Lived in a building in the bronx that wad built in three 1930's and still had same water works and pipes. It stays in your body forever right? I also attended a school with asbestos for 8 years of walking past it on stairs and in lunch room every day. They relocated.what does mean for my health?

[Rene-uzeb]

Turns out lead messes with iron metabolism, so you need to chelate lead first before you can chelate iron without running into problems. Especially since it seems lead exposure is unavoidable in the US. I did this by accident by using edta for years, which chelates lead preferentially. So edta needs to be a daily base stack, together with a trace element supplement.

EDIT: interesting. I just took a couple of edta doses today, first time of a USP grade chemical supplier, and some freeda calcium phosphate, and on this very evening, my voice is completely normal again, when it was raspy for the better part of a year and not that great before that. Quite amazing how quickly hypothyroid from lead exposure can resolve and how much better this edta works than the no brand arizona one, where consumers are not given a single good choice in a world that is full of lead toxicity. That has to be the quickest recovery I have ever experienced.

Edit: so what I found is that edetate disodium (Na-edta), the version I tried above, is MUCH more effective than calcium EDTA (CaNa-EDTA). As a matter of fact, oral calcium edta is insufficient to chelate enough lead from typical exposure. Guess what happened: in 2008, the FDA pulled the more effective edta from the market because of 'side effects' (after being in the market for a whopping 50 years). I mean all you have to do is take some calcium if you're worried about calcium loss.

I mean literally, one freaking day of disodium edta about same doses as I took previously every day of calcium edta, and my voice is completely fixed.
When before I could hardly speak on some days for a long while now. I don't know where the exposure is coming from, probably a mixture of house dust, air pollution, and food. I have a filter for water so doubt that's a problem.

Edit: sweat from exercise actually excretes lead. Fascinating. Much more than sauna, and much more than through urine. So they were right, sweating is detoxifying, particularly for lead, which has the biggest boost for exercise sweat at 50ug/l, which is huge, much higher than blood levels let alone plasma levels.

Excretion of Ni, Pb, Cu, As, and Hg in Sweat under Two Sweating Conditions, 2022

[hectorramirez]

Inhaling Lead fumes can affect your liver ? Because I don't drink much Alcohol but I have a liver like if I do heavy drinking. I been working with lead solder for 16 years. I'm 32 and I think I'm feeling the effects of it after covid

[MP-vfqz]

I've had bad stomach aches, but could lead cause irritable bowl syndrome?

[DonaldDWilliams]

What about dental fillings amalgam? If you have a tooth that is cracked and have amalgam.

[diontaedaughtry]

Thank you this was very helpful and informative 👍👍

[xryd_]

Just that everyone knows, only salts like used in paint are poisonous, the metal is less toxic.

[mickeycastellano]

i was in the navy and chipped paint for many months using paint chipping guns, breathing this dust all day... could this have an affect in later life

[sciencethclass]

Before I used to eat pencil lead but now I will definitely stop it.
Because I have so much big dreams in my life.

[yHilm]

I scared because I tried to get up and the lead stuck right in my leg

[Nawfelup]

My 8 year old autistic son has had lead poisoning for the last 6-7 years but the recent results are very high needing chelation.

However, I am.not convinced that DMSA without supplementation at 800 mg daily input will benefit... I think it will harm.him.more

Has snyone had experience with lead chelation

Thanks for your answers

[krithikab]

Hi dr.drank yogurt mixed with salt that was kept for 2 hrs from a brass cup.i didn't vomit but concerned if there could be food poisoning.could you please advise what to do and what do you think.i should have drank 50 ml

[rmd]

how abt lead interference with calcium and its treatment?