In 2019, an estimated 5.5 million adults worldwide died from heart disease, and kids under the age of 5 lost a combined 765 million IQ points due to lead exposure, results of a new modeling study published in the journal The Lancet Planetary Health show.
Evidence shows that exposure to metals such as lead interferes with human intercellular function, resulting in oxidative stress and chronic inflammation, which can lead to hypertension, high cholesterol, and changes in the heart’s ability to contract. This puts individuals at risk of ischemic heart disease, stroke, left ventricular hypertrophy, heart failure, and peripheral artery disease.
