Blood Testing For Lead

[jakharath]

Howdy there guys,

Wondering if any of y'all have your blood checked for lead levels. I've smelted over 1000 pounds of wheel weights and other lead out doors in the past few months. I tumble all of my brass in my garage - sepperate building from the house. I do reload and store bullets and primers in the house.

To be on the safe side I subjected myself and my 1 year old daughter to lead tests. Our levels were both normal. I used this test as a metric to see if my safety practices were workiing. Looks like I'm taking the proper percautions.

Do any of y'all have your lead levels tested?

If so, how often?

Thanks,
Jason

[Four-Sixty]

I melt mostly reclaimed shot outdoors and tested normal a few weeks ago.

[Bret4207]

Near as I can tell, if you wash your hands well and don;t eat, drink, smoke, etc,. while or after playing with lead you'll likely be okay. If this is a concern, you should have gotten it checked prior to playing with lead so you had a base line to work from. Peoples base lines will vary with other factors outside casting.

[captaint]

What Bret said. I get tested every year. Never been above high normal. I think shooting indoors can be a problem. My numbers dropped 7 or 8 points when I stopped shooting indoors. enjoy Mike

[bobthenailer]

A+ on Brets post , Ive been casting for over 40 years with smelting done outdoors and casting done indoors have made almost 1/2 million cast bullets allways checking normal when blood tested for lead
The only 2 people who i know who ever got lead posining shot extensvley at someother indoor ranges with poor ventlation . Ive been shooting at a indoor range almost every week since 1975 with 22 lr in the winter months but we have excellent ventlation.

[snuffy]

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=16442&highlight=poisening

Take a look at the above thread. It's been running here for a while, it should be a sticky.

[MikeS]

I don't know what my lead level is, but after a few days of feeling really bad, and having my legs swell up really bad over the weekend, I went to the doc today to find out that I have congestive heart failure! I doubt lead had anything to do with it, I'm pretty sure having a weak heart from a few heart attacks, and being diabetic is what did it for me. Doc wanted to put me in the hospital, but then said I could stay home, as long as I loose 5lbs by tomorrow. He's giving me large doses of a diauretic, I have gained 15lbs of retained water in the last week, so he feels 5lbs is a realistic goal. If I don't it means the pills aren't working and will need IV drugs to get rid of the water (and a short stay at the hospital). I guess it's a good thing my bathroom is within 5' of my computer! :)

I've been trying to get my doc to test my lead levels, but he keeps telling me that I have other problems to worry about without adding lead levels into it too. I guess this heart failure stuff is pretty serious, my sugar levels have been going crazy lately (53 one moment, a few hours later over 500, next day 85, etc.) and when I tried to ask him some questions about my insulin today he said he's not worried about it right now, and that I need to take care of the water retention before he'll worry about anything else! Anyone else have congestive heart failure? If so, are there any suggestions that I might not get from my doc, or the WebMD type sites?

[jakharath]

Bret4207 - So I'm not supposed to chew on the wheel weights to tell if they are lead? ;)

Captiant - I haven't shot indoors in at least two years. The downside is shooting outdoors with the Texas heat. Nothing like a 1911 too hot to pick up before you start shooting. It was my fault for leaving it in direct sun while shooing other guns.

Snuffy - Thanks for the link

MikeS - Good luck with your health issues.

[leadman]

MikeS, I have had many health issues also so if it was me going thru what you are going thru now I would do my best to keep my sugar where it should be as this can cause it's own problems.
I would think if you were in a hospital they would want that stable also. Could be wrong with some of the mistakes health care workers make.
You have to look out for yourself.
Good luck.

[Jbar4Ranch]

I spent 23 years working at a lead smelter, and we would have our blood lead checked every month by our own in plant infirmary. The plant shut down twelve years ago, and I haven't had it done since.

We would typically smelt, process and ship ~200 tons of lead every 24 hours, and it was a nasty environment to work in.

[303Guy]

I had mine checked just to see and was shocked at having high blood lead. My practices were seriously not good. When I set up again I will be doing things very differently! Lead oxide dust was the culprit in my case.

[captaint]

Regarding the shooting indoors issue - I think bobthenailer "hit it on the head". Ventilation likely has to be good to avoid problems. Where I was shooting, there was about no ventilation. Mike

[popper]

MikeS - pulmonary or kidney problem causing the water retention? I wouldn't concern my self with the web advice, do what the doc says. Get rid of the fluid.

[MT Gianni]

Caster for over 20 years, frequent shooter. My last test came back as less than 3.

[303Guy]

Beer has a way of getting the kidney's going. Gets the bladder going too. It also makes you feel good!:drinks: It helps squat with blood lead though.:cry:

[MikeS]

MikeS - pulmonary or kidney problem causing the water retention? I wouldn't concern my self with the web advice, do what the doc says. Get rid of the fluid.

At this point I'm pretty sure it's pulmonary. I've had a number of heart attacks in the past, and my heart is fairly weak. I did make my doc happy, as he wanted me to get rid of 5lb of water but I was able to get rid of 10lb of water in the first day, so I'm responding well to the diuretics.

[mold maker]

Mike do what the Dr recomends for your heart cond. My Dad lived over 20 years under the Docs care, with the same problem. It did finally take him, but he was 87 and had other complications.
Just had my lead level checked last week. The results were lead level of "2". That's down from "4" that had been my norm for many years. I quit shooting at an indoor range over a year ago.
I'm casting and shooting more now than ever. I'm thinking the previous levels were entirely due to the indoor range (1970s) poor ventulation.
As far as lead safety while casting, common sense cleanleeness, and being smart with lead oxide dust, as you remove the dross from the pot, is the key.

[Harter66]

Well fellas I'm fully poisoned . 10 is the upper limit the 1st test in June had me at 15. The retest in lat July had me down to 13 this Friday I will retest . My down fall was most likely a full disreguard for any pratice of safety,I was a little depressed and just really didn't care. That and I work in a facility filled w/oxidizing lead paint,oxidized 30-50 old galvanized everything ,everywhere 4days a week. A month w/o any personal ammo contact and near insesant hand washing at work w/boraxo helped get it down. Unfortunatly I don't have a baseline from the past .

[Buckshot]

.............I've been casting since the 70's. I smoke while casting. Have taken no special ventilation precausions, but I don't cast in a closet :-) Lead fumes aren't a problem in a casting furnace. But lead oxide is. I used to cast in our utility room, and once moving to town 12 years ago I've been casting in the garage.

I was scheduled for a blood test late last year and asked if they could test for lead. I was asked why. I explained I cast lead bullets and had never been tested. They said okay and they checked. Along with the rest of the results my lead level was listed as 2.7 with a suggested range of <10. I had taken no special precausions, although I generally don't put my fingers into my mouth while casting ;-). Guess I'll just keep doing what I've been doing.

................Buckshot

[John Guedry]

I have mine tested every year never had an above normal level yet. An old plumber told me to drink milk after workin' with lead, it helps flush it from your system. Don't guess it could hurt.

[Bill*]

I have mine tested every year never had an above normal level yet. An old plumber told me to drink milk after workin' with lead, it helps flush it from your system. Don't guess it could hurt.

I knew about milk after welding galvanized, but never heard of it after working with lead. Good to know. And if it doesn't help, like you said....it can't hurt. Thanks

[Hook]

jakharath, I work for Public Health and a portion of the lead protection program is in my bureau. As you have read above, large people can work with, use, and be around lead with little to no cause for alarm as long as common sense is used. That IS NOT the case when it comes to short people.

Your one year old should be carefully supervised whenever she is around your lead or lead casting/smelting area. A toddler can be seriously damaged or killed by contact with a much lower lead level than you or I ever would be. If she plays on, or comes in contact with, any of the surfaces where you work with lead, be sure to wash her hands and any other part of her body that was exposed immediately.

Whenever my grandkids are visiting, I follow these procedures and make sure that nothing ever goes to their mouths that may have lead dust, particles, or whatever, on it.

[303Guy]

Apparently, high blood lead in adults can cause or worsen mental health issues. Stress and anxiety and memory problems can result. I'm not sure just how much lead it would take to have a measurable effect or even how the lead can be blamed at all but it likely doesn't help any. I was planing on getting my great-nephew into casting but not anymore. later maybe when he's an adult. He has plenty other things to do at the moment, like hunting and fishing.

[zxcvbob]

Well fellas I'm fully poisoned . 10 is the upper limit the 1st test in June had me at 15. The retest in lat July had me down to 13 this Friday I will retest . My down fall was most likely a full disreguard for any pratice of safety,I was a little depressed and just really didn't care. That and I work in a facility filled w/oxidizing lead paint,oxidized 30-50 old galvanized everything ,everywhere 4days a week. A month w/o any personal ammo contact and near insesant hand washing at work w/boraxo helped get it down. Unfortunatly I don't have a baseline from the past .

10 is not bad for an adult. Kids are different. As long as you are trending in the right direction, don't worry about it.

[jakharath]

Hook - My little hellion doesn't go in my reloading room. When I tumble (always outside) she either isn't home or stays inside. I only smelt when she's not home.

We'll probably both do lead tests once a year just to be on the safe side. I try to be strict (boarder line paranoid) with any of the 'shooting related hazards' and my munchkin. I miss a lot of hugs because I may have something on my clothes.