Why are people allowed to manufacture lead bricks for occupational use when the extreme dangers are known?

Question

Aside from its uses in radiology, the application of lead in occupations, to me, seems arbitrary and despicable. Why do they still produce "lead bricks," "lead sheets," "lead solder," and so forth?

If you even touch a lead brick for one second, lead is absorbing through your skin, penetrating into your blood stream, and circulating through your body to bind itself with your organs and doing damage - particularly to your BRAIN. Knowing that, why are these products allowed to be sold?

I've heard that the actual element of lead is innoculous and does not accumulate in the human body at all, and that it are the other contaminants and things in the products that are do damage in the body. Is this true? Does this mean that a "lead brick" isn't harmful since it's in its hardened, elemental form?

Answer 1

Lead bricks per se present relatively little danger to health or environment. Most of the danger comes from the mining and manufacturing processes, and these are tightly controlled in most countries.

In general, the use of lead is being reduced or eliminated wherever possible. For example, the use of lead solder in electronics has been banned in the EU, and manufacturers in many other countries have also switched to lead-free solder.

Answer 2

Its interesting because lead is a component in hair solutions like Grecian Formula and Youth Hair...

Answer 3

Touching a lead brick for one second does little or no damage to one's system.  It is the constant handling of such items that cause problems.

Of course, some paints have lead in them.  If you put those things in your mouth (like toys) you can ingest the lead, which is worse than touching it.

However, ANY material can be used if you use proper safety precautions.  I used to use lead-based solder on a daily basis, as a computer technician.  The trick was, you don't breath the smoke!  So you hold your breath while you're making a quick solder connection, or you use a fan if you're doing bench work.  if you have what is called a Wave Solder device, you need to install an exhaust hood.

A "lead brick" is more of a figure os speach than a real item (like, "That idea went over like a lead brick") There ARE lead bricks, but mostly they are used as the  basic form in which lead is stored and moved. No one builds building out of "lead bricks" . . . .

Lead sheets, of course, are needed as insert for those aprons you wear when you get an X-ray.  Lead foil is often used over the cork on wine bottles.

I don't think anybody uses lead pipes in the United States any more, but they are still present in some old buildings, and other countries.

Lead is often used in pottery glazing material in other countries, like Mexico.  So if you buy a glazed pot from Mexico you must NEVER usua anything acing int (like orange juice or vinegar) becasue the acid will "leach" out the lead and put it into your food.  Glazed pots from Mexico should be used for decorations only.

Lead is needed for car battiers, what are called Lead-Acid Batteries.  But that is whay you have to take them back to the battery store when you buy a new one.  they send them to a special company to be reclaimed and/or recycled.

lead is a perfectly good matieral, when treated properly and with respect.

You simply over-react to the problem.