Why is Lead poisioning so common place in the Dominican Republic

ltsnyder

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As many as 90% of the women in Santo Domingo have some degree of lead poisoning, and nearly all the children born to them have serious cerebral damage. Can some one discuss this?

Where is the lead coming from, evidently it is an impurity in the gasoline, but where else?

-Lee
 

Keith R

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The DR took a long time (too long, to my mind) to get lead out of their petrol, but they have done so.

There are many other potential sources of lead. I don't know if Dominican paints have gotten all the lead out, but that's one possibility. Ceramics made with clay and glazes containing lead is another, especially those that might come in contact with food or beverages that are consumed. Lead water pipes. Food cans with lead solder (some Latin American nations have yet to ban lead soldering in food cans -- Brazil and Mexico only did so just a few years back, and they are generally considered leaders in food safety matters in the region).

There's also the traditional Dominican "remedy" Litargirio used on foot fungus. The US-FDA banned it from entering the US last year because they discovered exceptionally high levels (79%) of lead in it. Yet reportedly you can still find it in the DR.

There's also some places in the DR where artesanal "recycling" -- "mining" is really a better word -- of car batteries is conducted, without any safeguards against pollution of the ground or groundwater. There was an infamous case of this in Haina few years back, where the surrounding area became so contaminated with lead that high levels were found in the blood of neighbors and children were born with severe birth defects.[http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/1999/107p917-920kaul/kaul-full.html]

Remember, too, that poor nutrition can highten the effects of exposure to lead.

I'm curious, Lee. Where do you get those stats? Last I heard, the DR was not yet conducting health surveillance for environmental contaminants such as lead. In fact, SESPAS reportedly has identified it as one of the areas where good studies and data is lacking but is urgently needed....
 

gringo in dr

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Keith R said:
The DR took a long time (too long, to my mind) to get lead out of their petrol, but they have done so.

There are many other potential sources of lead. I don't know if Dominican paints have gotten all the lead out, but that's one possibility. Ceramics made with clay and glazes containing lead is another, especially those that might come in contact with food or beverages that are consumed. Lead water pipes. Food cans with lead solder (some Latin American nations have yet to ban lead soldering in food cans -- Brazil and Mexico only did so just a few years back, and they are generally considered leaders in food safety matters in the region).

There's also the traditional Dominican "remedy" Litargirio used on foot fungus. The US-FDA banned it from entering the US last year because they discovered exceptionally high levels (79%) of lead in it. Yet reportedly you can still find it in the DR.

There's also some places in the DR where artesanal "recycling" -- "mining" is really a better word -- of car batteries is conducted, without any safeguards against pollution of the ground or groundwater. There was an infamous case of this in Haina few years back, where the surrounding area became so contaminated with lead that high levels were found in the blood of neighbors and children were born with severe birth defects.[http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/1999/107p917-920kaul/kaul-full.html]

Remember, too, that poor nutrition can highten the effects of exposure to lead.

I'm curious, Lee. Where do you get those stats? Last I heard, the DR was not yet conducting health surveillance for environmental contaminants such as lead. In fact, SESPAS reportedly has identified it as one of the areas where good studies and data is lacking but is urgently needed....


On the front page of www.dr1.com

Lead poisoning a serious problem
According to Dr. Steven Null, as many as 90% of the women in Santo Domingo have some degree of lead poisoning, and nearly all the children born to them have serious cerebral damage. Null told Llennis Jimenez from Hoy that the high incidence of lead is a result of the use of poor quality gasoline, the consumption of contaminated fruits and certain contaminated calcium products. The researcher said that inferior application of environmental norms and government regulations were the chief causes for the contamination. As a consequence of the lead in the bloodstream, the children suffer from early dental loss and are more pronto to osteoporosis. In his exclusive interview with Jimenez, Null said that the population of Haina is considered to have the highest level of lead contamination in the world, and its entire population carries indications of lead poisoning. Large amounts of lead were found even in breast milk. Null, a nutrition specialist, has been working for seven years to reduce the dangerous lead contamination in the local population. He is asking the authorities to close a battery factory located in Haina, as even the lowest quantities of lead are very unsafe for children. At the present time, Null is working for the Friends of Lead-Free Children.
 

Criss Colon

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Null is working for,"The Friends Of Lead Free Children"

So,there you have it!!! The MORE LEAD he finds,the more donations,the more "Job Security"!!! Same as the "HIV/AIDS" "statistics" that those who benefit from elevated numbers spout as "Statistics"!
The money would be better spent on nutrition,and education! Cris Colon
 

Keith R

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gringo in dr said:
On the front page of www.dr1.com

Lead poisoning a serious problem
According to Dr. Steven Null, as many as 90% of the women in Santo Domingo have some degree of lead poisoning, and nearly all the children born to them have serious cerebral damage. Null told Llennis Jimenez from Hoy that the high incidence of lead is a result of the use of poor quality gasoline, the consumption of contaminated fruits and certain contaminated calcium products. The researcher said that inferior application of environmental norms and government regulations were the chief causes for the contamination. As a consequence of the lead in the bloodstream, the children suffer from early dental loss and are more pronto to osteoporosis. In his exclusive interview with Jimenez, Null said that the population of Haina is considered to have the highest level of lead contamination in the world, and its entire population carries indications of lead poisoning. Large amounts of lead were found even in breast milk. Null, a nutrition specialist, has been working for seven years to reduce the dangerous lead contamination in the local population. He is asking the authorities to close a battery factory located in Haina, as even the lowest quantities of lead are very unsafe for children. At the present time, Null is working for the Friends of Lead-Free Children.

My bad. I confess I have not read the DR1 news for close to a week, as I am in the midst of preparations for a business trip to South America. But in a way my question still stands -- how does Null get his stat of 90% contamination? I strongly suspect he is either extrapolitating from a small study group in Haina or pulling the figure out of the air. I am not in any way denying that there may be a lead contamination problem in the DR -- I suspect there may be, just as there has been discovered in Montevideo, Uruguay, Monterrey, Mexico and even recently here in Washington, D.C. -- but I think his figures are suspect until some rigorous health surveying is done, something the DR has not yet accomplished.

BTW, I would point out that, unless something is done to substantially improve waste disposal in the DR, the current growth in consumption of inversors, rechargeable batteries, flourescent lamps, computers, telecom equipment & consumer electronics in the DR will eventually pose serious problems with regards to contamination of soil and water from several heavy metals, not just lead, but cadmium, mercury and nickel. Europe, Japan, Canada & the US only awakened to this problem in recent years. Until now, most of the Latin American & Caribbean nations have said, in effect, that we'll think about that issue later, when we have alot of such items and after we have done some basics like improve collection rates for household waste. Trouble is, by the time they get around to addressing the problem, it may be too late and the cost of dealing with it (not only cleanup, but helping those whose health & mental development have been damaged) will be overwhelming...
 

ltsnyder

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This subject reminds me of the attitude of many Dominicans I have meet.

I have seen so many. . .

Let me put it this way, I had some batteries that wen t bad, I was about to put them in my pocket to dispose of them properly, the dominican I was with waved his hand no (signaling it was not neccisarry), he took the batteries from me, and with a good throw, threw them into an open field (soon to be urban development.

I am really interested in the statistics of the level of lead in members of the community. If lead is >still< in the gasoline through contaimination then you know what those blue clouds of smoke from Motoconco and car exaust all over the country is doing to you.

-Lee