This heavy metal is considered a trigger for mental disorders and behavioral changes

How does lead affect the psyche of man?

More and more people in the world are suffering from mental health problems. Physicians have now found that people who have been exposed to a certain toxic metal as children have more mental health problems and behavioral problems. Unfortunately, this metal has been used on many different occasions in everyday life in the past.

Researchers at Duke University found in their recent research that if people were exposed to elevated concentrations of lead in their childhood, it could damage their mental health in adulthood. The experts published the results of their study in the English language journal "JAMA Psychiatry".

What was lead used for in the past??

Lead is a metal that people around the world have used in the past, for example for the construction of water pipes. Lead was added as anti-corrosive paints and filled in gasoline to maintain engine durability. Over the years, however, physicians have discovered that lead is toxic and can be extremely dangerous to health. Stress in childhood can affect mental health in adulthood, researchers say.

Lead accumulates in the body

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), no known level of lead exposure is known to be safe. Over time, lead particulate accumulates in the bones, brain, and other organs of a person, increasing the risk of health problems, including high blood pressure and kidney damage.

Lead affects personality development?

Lead that accumulates in the body can also disturb the central nervous system, and some studies have linked lead exposure in childhood with behavioral and intelligence deficits. The exposure to lead in childhood can influence a person's personality development and predispose them to psychological problems in adulthood, the authors of the study explain. The research indicates that people who have high levels of lead in their blood at an early age develop mental health problems more often when they reach the age of 38. The study also shows that sufferers more often develop unhealthy personality traits such as neuroticism.

Over 1,000 subjects studied

The research team examined data from 1,037 subjects born in 1972 and 1973 in Dunedin, New Zealand. New Zealand was one of the countries that added the highest levels of lead to gasoline. In addition, blood tests were performed on 579 children to measure their exposure to lead at 11 years of age. The results showed that 94 percent of these children had lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter blood (ug / dl). If nowadays a child has such lead values, it is immediately referred for examination to a specialist. However, this was not the case decades ago.

Psychopathological factor was determined in the subjects

Throughout the study, participants participated in regular mental health assessments, the most recent of which was not until the volunteers were 38 years old. The researchers evaluated the psychopathological factor (p-factor) of the participants, a measure of mental health. They identified the factor on the basis of eleven disorders: abuse of alcohol, dependence on cannabis, tobacco and drugs, behavioral disorders, depression, generalized anxiety disorders, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, mania, and schizophrenia.

Lead made subjects less comfortable with other people

After reviewing the p-factor in relation to lead levels in the blood, the physicians concluded that while the impact of lead exposure on mental health may be relatively low, it may have far-reaching implications. The exposure of lead decades ago could affect the mental health of people today in their 40s and 50s, warn the authors. In addition to increasing the risk to mental health, it appears that childhood exposure also influences the general personality of adults. When interviewing friends and family members about participants' personalities, the experts found that those with the highest lead exposure showed more neurotic tendencies, were less comfortable to deal with, and less conscientious than subjects with less exposure to lead during childhood.

Adaptability to different life situations was impaired

The scientists also find that healthier personality traits can affect a person's adaptability to different life situations, affecting their relationships and levels of job satisfaction. Negative personality traits, according to the physicians, go hand in hand with a poorer mental health. The research team now wants to find out in further studies if exposure to lead in childhood can also influence the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and the development of cardiovascular problems. (As)