History of lead poisoning

The lead poisoning is the Maladie correspondent with an acute or chronic intoxication by the Plomb.

Lead poisoning during the ages

Prehistory

Lead counted among the first metals exploited by the Man, like the Cuivre and the tin which were used to produce the Bronze as of the Préhistoire, in particular in Asia Mineure (in current the Turkey), and in the Middle East (current Jordan) with the Bronze Age it there 6000 to 8000 years before our era.
Cette exploitation resulted very early in the appearance of intoxications in the man and his pets. These intoxications are retrospectively detected by the archeologists via the analysis of old bones. One can suppose that as a metal particularly malleable and easy to melt, lead was used to make Bijoux carried to same the skin, which have being factor private individuals of lead poisoning (the first collar of lead neck is gone back to 6000 to 8000 years. He was discovered in the ancient city of Anatolia.

Antiquity and Byzantine period

One often quotes lead poisoning like one of the causes of decline of the Roman Empire, mainly because of crockery out of lead or tin rich in lead which would have poisoned the leading nobility at the point seriously to disturb its understanding. Lead is indeed likely to maintain the serious mental disorders at those which are exposed to a chronic intoxication.

The toxicity of Lead is quoted by the doctors of antiquity, in particular by Nicandre de Colophon which, 2250 before our days, quoted the Céruse of lead among the Poison S. It described the Anémie induced by the intoxication with lead, as well as the colics of lead.
Ceci which did not prevent the Roman middle-class of the time from being poisoned while eating and drinking in lead crockery, or to use lead in certain make-up, or worse to sweeten the wine (with the Acétate of lead obtained by the action of the vinegar on lead) what was already known to cause a form of Goutte known as “ lead drop ”, disease attends in the Roman rich person .

More than 1000 years later, (Aulus Cornelius Celsus) known as Celse, in one of the volumes of its medical encyclopedia, approximately a century before our era, listed the lead white lead (or “ white lead ”) in the list of the Poison S for the Man. Against did its toxicity of lead, it estimate that the sap (juice) of Noyer (or of nut?) mixed with wine, or the Mauve were good antidotes. In spite of this knowledge of the toxicity of lead, Celse also quotes of many authorities of the time by recommending its use in many Onguent S, of which applied to the wounds to stop the Hémorragie and to reduce the risks of infection or Inflammation.

At the same time, Vitruve, engineer and architect of Jules César, which also served its Auguste successor, has when recalled him in a treaty devoted to the water conveyance that “ water is much healthier in the terra cotta pipes than in lead conduits. It seems to be become prejudicial because of lead, and indeed white lead and produced starting from lead, and it is considered harmful for the human body ”

One often quoted the lead pipes like source of intoxication and dilapidation of the Roman elite, but it seems that water was enough Calcaire to protect the pipes from the Corrosion by a deposit of Carbonate S. If new pipes and fabricaton and installation to them, work of new adductions, and repairs could in certain cases and temporarily to contribute to increase the lead contents of water, it would be thus rather with the use of crockery containing of lead, and perhaps with the Onguent S nouveau riches out of white lead and Minium of lead which would have to be allotted lead poisoning and lead drop of the Roman rich person.
Le minium is known in antiquity; Pline Old the and Vitruve tell that one accidentally discovered it following the fire of a villa. Pline specifies that white lead (white lead) heated in dishes and brewed ends up changing color and producing the “minium” . Minium was then used to imitate the Cinabre, but also and until our days like drug or traditional remedy or poison. (Let us note that the term minium initially at that time indicated the Cinabre or Sulfure of mercury (HgS), then the white lead (white lead), which explains historical confusions between white lead, minium, Vermillon, cinnabar.

High-means-age and the Middle Ages

Lead at that time continues to be used, in particular like ballasts and in architecture, one also finds it like contaminant of tin.
La lead drop prevails still, a priori always because of the alcohol-lead association, poisoning for example seriously the emperor Charles Quint, and of many elderly. One also finds it in the deads of the mines of money and other metals, from where it contaminates the environment.
Des indices (polluted grounds) lets think that around the faience manufactures using lead as composed of enamel, of the cases of lead poisonings probably existed, just as on the metalliferous sites exploited for the lead or the money which is often associated for him.
Le monk Theophilus, at the end of the 11th century, described its preparation starting from the calcination of the white lead (operation which releases from the harmful vapors).

Rebirth at the XVIIIème century

Various craftsmen at these times are exposed to lead, just like the minors.
Le sugaring of the wine with the lead acetate persists in and continuous poisoning the drinkers: At the 17th century, in Germany, Eberhard Gockel, doctor of the town of Ulm noted that among its patients, the monks who did not drink wine were in good health whereas those which drank some were victims of painful colics ( Colica Pictonum ). The culprit was here still the “sugar of lead” (acetate of lead obtained while plunging blocks of Litharge in vinegar

XIXème century

This period knew an explosion of the cases of lead poisoning because of a very increased use of lead by the armies (ammunition) and especially in the form of lead white lead paint. The fashion of neogothic also started again the manufacture of stained glasses and architectural lead ornaments, generating epidemics of lead poisoning in the workmen of the building and in the factories of production of lead.

Ludwig van Beethoven died with Vienna the March 26th 1827, suffered during many years from a low register and painful lead poisoning (perhaps also at the origin of its Surdité). This lead intoxication was not diagnosed of alive sound, but recently thanks to analyzes post-mortem of its hair. Does the origin of this poisoning remain unknown (sweetened wine with the lead acetate? alcohol distilled in pipes of copper welded with lead? Comb of lead? black lead frequently carried to the mouth?.).

XXème and 21st centuries

Acute lead poisoning touched before mainly the minors and workmen of the Métallurgie of lead, those which used Vaisselle of lead, and the workmen crimping with lead the stained glasses. But with the advent of painting to lead very much used until in the first quarter of the XXème century, and which will remain it for the anti-corrosion paints until the end of the XXème century, and especially with the invention and the massive diffusion of the leaded gasoline, lead poisoning remained very current at the 19th century and 20th century.
C' is besides the first disease to be declared Occupational disease.
Malgré the prohibition of lead in paintings and the gasoline in many countries, serious cases of lead poisoning persisent today in majority of the big cities (old habitat where the children are exposed to paintings containing of lead) and industrial areas.

Sometimes thousand-year-old pollution & durable after-effects

Prehistoric and ancient pollution of origin has effects which perdurent today:
Ainsi a recent study analyzed human Squelette S and animals (bone and/or teeth) old of 1500 with more than 2000 years in an archeological site which is old and important mining zone of the South of the Jordan.
Cette zone now desert provided Cuivre and lead as of the Bronze Age, then at the times nabatéenne, Byzantine Roman and . Around the Roman ruins of the town of Phaino, one found the remainders of 250 old copper mines where many Roman prisoners were sent as Esclave S. One still finds there “sterile” polluted by lead and copper, but also of the Chrome, Cadmium and Manganèse).
Les enquiring wanted to know if a pollution by the Heavy metals had already had an impact on the man and the animal at the prehistoric times , Romans and Byzantines. The study actually detected the appeared phenomena of bio-accumulation seems it precociously, several thousands of years ago, these mines having been open as of 7000 years before J.C., with successive peaks of production of copper at the beginning of the Bronze Age, lasting the age of iron and at the time of the period romaine.
L' study confirmed that the tooth (more stable than the bone) was an excellent support for retrospectively studying recent pollution or ancient, on the condition of respecting a Protocole precise, because the Dentine and the dental enamel accumulate less lead than the root of the tooth which she even in accumulates more than the jaw, with important differences according to the age, and the animal considered (Herbivore, Omnivore, Carnivore, Mammifère, Insecte.) ; For example, the animal molars contemporary analyzed near the site contained on average 48 copper Mg per kg in the root, that is to say almost twice as much as in the bone of the jaw (28 mg/kg) and much more than those of an alive comparable animal in a little polluted zone (4 mg/kg). On the other hand for lead, it contained 126 of them Mg per kg, which is less than in the bone of the jaw of the same individuals (with contents of 268 lead mg/kg for the jaws of goat and 270 mg/kg for the symphyse mentonière (left the jaw lower human located just at the top of the chin), instead of 18 mg/kg in an alive comparable animal in zone not polluée.
Les teeth, as the bone of the jaw bioaccumulent much more lead than of copper. Conversely the cranial bone or of the rib cage bioaccumule much more copper than of lead (and more on the external face of cranium that on the inner face in both cases, which could translate an external contamination via the scalp)
L' study as showed as the skeletons of the time of bronze present contamination different from those of the period byzantine.
Des traces of frequent Arthrite of the members on the skeletons could be allotted to an intoxication by the lead and the copper (which can act as Synergie and affect the solidity of the bone, or increase the risk of Parkinson's disease).
In addition, the study showed that the Chèvre S and Mouton S raised by the man on this zone were and are still today reached lead poisoning (Several campings of stockbreeders Bedouin S are still established in this area, with goats and sheep). Analyzes showed into 2000 of the copper and lead rates in Gymnarrhena micranthia (local plant consumed by the goats and sheep) from respectively 40 and 60 Mg/kg. It should be noted that the sheep are contaminated than the goats, perhaps by what they bio-accumulate more, or because one leaves more freedom to these last and that they can choose their food.
L' study as showed as as of the prehistoric period, toxic metals were dispersed at important distances starting from and the ore processing extract ranges. One can clearly speak about bio-accumulation , since on a zone where the lead rate lies between 20 and 30 Mg/kg, the sheep of antiquity studied had accumulated of them 524 Mg/kg (average measurement in the jaw lower). On the same site, an old human bone contained of them 170 mg/kg (6 times more than the rate of lead of the ground in the same archaeological layer; value of the ground which has not had to evolve/move much for 7000 years because lead is a priori not very mobile in this type of very arid zone). For copper the same bone contained of them 177 Mg/kg, where the layer of the ground contained of it “only” 44 Mg/kg (4 times less). 177 Mg/kg corresponds toosseous copper a rate more than 40 times higher than the average rate considered normal at the man at the XXème century (4.2 mg/kg).
Les human bones of the Byzantine period was shown more charged out of lead and copper that those of the prehistoric men studied, just as the rate of lead of the layers formed a deposit at these times, which shows a pollution and a contamination which increased during the temps.
On can as deduce from these data as the life and the death of the slaves working in these mines have being extremely painful. According to the lead content of their bones, the human ones which lived in the wadis polluted by the mines of the Jordanian area of Feynan were contaminated by lead than the human residents of a polluted industrial park of High Silesia (Poland) died into 1993 studied by Baranowska and coll (1995) (bone of the sternum analyzes). They are also much higher than the contents announced in the workers of the metallurgy of Sweden (40 to 100 µg/gram of bone by Ahlgren and his/her colleagues (1976) and Ahlgren and Mattsson (1979).
On can compare these rates with those measured in the human skeletons of the period prehispanic of Tenerife (Spain); 0.7 to 18.83 ppm

See too

Saturnisme, avian Saturnisme
Heavy metals, Plomb, Plombémie
Azarcon (or alarcon, coral, luiga, Maria luisa, rueda which are synonyms).
toxic Ammunition

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