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Families who continually eat healthy, well-balanced diets are clinically less susceptible to lead toxicity. This is a well recognized fact that has been documented throughout the 20th century, beginning as early as the 1920s [1].
In general, frequent eating causes less lead to be absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. When a person ingests lead with an empty stomach, however, it is absorbed at a much higher level. One study reported that lead on an empty stomach was 35% absorbed while 8.2% of lead ingested with food was absorbed and 10.3% of lead ingested in food [2].
So which vitamins and nutrients, found naturally in a good well-balanced diet, are known to hinder the absorption of lead in the body?
1. Calcium: It has been documented since the 1920s that people with diets low in calcium show increase in lead absorption and toxicity.
2. Phosphorus
3. Iron: Iron deficiency is a world-wide problem for children and there appears to be a good number of them who also suffer from learning problems as well. Studies show they are generally in the same population at greatest risk for lead exposure. Long-term low iron diets increases absorption and retention of lead.
4. Zinc: It is a known metabolic antagonist of lead. Several studies have shown that increased levels of zinc in the diet reduce the amount of lead accumulation in the body.
5. Various vitamins (vitamin C, thiamin, vitamin E) [3]
It should be noted that nutrition cannot prevent lead poisoning when the person has been exposed to an overwhelming amount of lead. According to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
“medications exist that can rid lead from the body. Medications such as Succimer have been shown to significantly reduce lead in children with very high blood lead levels.”
Unfortunately, the damage done by toxic levels of lead poisoning cannot be reversed. Once the brain has been damaged it cannot be repaired. This is why good nutrition and good, balanced daily supplements are important for your child’s overall health and wellness.
References:
1. Aub, J. C., Fairhall, L.T., Minot, A.S., and Reznikoff, P. P. Lead Poisoning. Medical Monographs, Vol. 7. Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore, MD, 1926.
2. Rabinowitz, M.B., Wetherill, G., and Kopple, J. Absorption, storage and excretion of lead by normal humans. In: Trace Substances in Environmental Health IX, Proceedings of the IX Annual Conference on Trace Substances in Environmental Health (D.D. Hemphill, Ed.), University of Missouri Press, Columbia, MO, 1975, pp. 361-368.
3. Mahaffey, K. R. Environmental Lead Toxicity: Nutrition As a Component of Intervention. Environmental Health Perspectives: Vol. 89, pp. 75-78, 1990.
Tags: Diet, Lead Poisoning, Nutrition, Susceptibility, Toxicity
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