ENV221H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Engo, Uterine Fibroid, Lead Paint
Document Summary
Oct 24 - lecture 13 environmental health the basics. Humans take in toxins by: drinking water, food eating, air breathing, medicinal drugs , occupational exposures, incidental and accidental exposures (cosmetics, household accidents). Very hard to get away from contaminants. Genetically modified 5 digit code starts from 8. 4 digit code starts from 3 or 4. "heavy metals": lead, mercury arsenic zinc tin chromium cadmium copper. Lead poisoning interferes with normal development of the brain. Sources include lead paint lead gasoline lead contaminated soils drinking water from lead pipes. Lead mimics and interferes with body intake of calcium. Lead might be embedded in bones instead of calcium. Baby bearing moms might transfer that lead tied up in bones into their fetus. Lead still a problem in developed societies due to old pipes. Mercury can be found naturally in the environment and due to human activities as well. Human activities have doubled the mercury in atmosphere due to fossil fuel burning.
