Imported Ayurvedic Medicine and Lead Poisoning

Horiuchi, Tomoaki; Narimatsu, Kazuyuki; Hokari, Ryota

doi:10.2169/internalmedicine.9178-21

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 2 publications

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“…In most locations that completely removed lead from gasoline, mean blood levels fell to approximately 3 μg/ dL. Higher residual blood lead levels were observed in locations with widespread exposure to lead from sources other than leaded gasoline such as exposures to lead mining and smelting, lead battery recovery operations, lead-contaminated waste sites, e-waste recovery operations, lead-glazed pottery, and leadcontaining cosmetics and medications [29][30][31][32][33][34]. Now to extend, update and corroborate the 1999 analysis by Thomas et al [28], we have gathered 38 additional reports.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relation of blood lead levels and lead in gasoline: an updated systematic review

et al. 2022

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Background Millions of tons of lead were added to gasoline worldwide beginning in 1922, and leaded gasoline has been a major source of population lead exposure. In 1960s, lead began to be removed from automotive gasoline. Removal was completed in 2021. Objectives To determine whether removal of lead from automotive gasoline is associated with declines in population mean blood lead levels (BPb). Methods We examined published studies that reported population blood leaded levels for two or more years, and we calculated average concentrations of lead in gasoline corresponding to the years and locations of the blood lead level measurements. Results Removal of lead from gasoline is associated with declines in BPb in all countries examined. In some countries, BPb continues to fall after lead has been eliminated from gasoline. Following elimination of lead from gasoline, BPb less than 1 μg/dL have been observed in several European and North American countries, and BPb less than 3 μg/dL have been documented in several studies from South America. Discussion There remain many countries for which no multi-year studies of populations BPb have been identified, including all of Central America, high population countries including Pakistan and Indonesia, and major lead producers including Australia and Russia. Conclusion Removal of lead from gasoline has been a public health success. Elimination of lead from gasoline has enabled many countries to achieve population mean BPb levels of 1 μg/dL or lower. These actions have saved lives, increased children’s intelligence and created great economic benefit in countries worldwide.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relation of blood lead levels and lead in gasoline: an updated systematic review

et al. 2022

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Lead and arsenic intoxications by traditional and alternative medicine: men are more sensitive than women

Gerke,

Seifert

2024

Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol

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Traditional and alternative medicines are widely used around the world and include for example herbal medicine, Ayurveda, traditional Chinese medicine, and indigenous therapies. Due to the long history and the mostly natural origin of traditional remedies, it is often assumed that they are harmless, but in recent decades more and more case reports have been published in which traditional medicine has caused metal poisoning. This paper provides an analysis of published cases in which patients have suffered metal poisoning due to traditional or alternative medicines. A systematic literature search was performed on PubMed, whereby 210 patient cases from a total of 102 case reports and 30 case series were identified and then analyzed about various aspects. Most of the traditional medicines involved come from Asia and are mainly contaminated with lead and arsenic. The analyzed patient cases show a high degree of heterogeneity with regard to age, sex, intake reason, symptoms, and severity of intoxication. The metal intoxication itself and the cause of the poisoning often remained unrecognized for a long time, which resulted in many patients undergoing unnecessary diagnostic methods and ineffective therapeutic approaches before the correct diagnosis was made. The evaluation of the available patient cases revealed a higher sensitivity to metal poisoning in children compared to adults and a higher sensitivity in men compared to women. Anemia and basophilic stippling were frequently observed and became more common as the metal content in the blood increased. Hopefully, this paper raises awareness of the potential dangers of traditional and alternative medicines, both from the patient’s and the doctor’s perspective, so that in case of intoxication, treatment can be initiated quickly using the correct diagnostic methods. As ingested metals do not only circulate in the blood but also accumulate in soft tissues and bones, long-term monitoring is necessary to ensure that patients make a full recovery. Doctors should be aware that, in contrast to common belief, men are more sensitive to this type of intoxication than women, necessitating particular attention for diagnosis and treatment.

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Imported Ayurvedic Medicine and Lead Poisoning

Cited by 2 publications

References 2 publications

Relation of blood lead levels and lead in gasoline: an updated systematic review

Relation of blood lead levels and lead in gasoline: an updated systematic review

Lead and arsenic intoxications by traditional and alternative medicine: men are more sensitive than women

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