In our daily lives, we often come across many hidden dangers. One of these dangers is certain metals, like lead, cadmium, and arsenic.
These metals are found in many things we use or encounter every day. A new science report shows that these metals can increase our chances of getting heart disease.
Heart Disease and Metals
A recent study from the American Heart Association revealed that even small amounts of these metals can cause heart problems.
This includes diseases like strokes, diseases affecting our body’s main blood vessels, and diseases affecting the blood vessels in our legs.
This study was released in the Journal of the American Heart Association. It points out that environmental pollutants, like these metals, are factors that we can change to reduce our risk of heart disease.
Dangers of Metals in Our Body
According to the report, higher levels of arsenic in our urine and higher levels of lead and cadmium in our blood increase our chances of getting stroke and heart disease by 15% to 85%.
Dr. Gervasio A. Lamas, who led the team that wrote the report, said that almost everyone is exposed to these metals at some level.
This exposure contributes to the overall risk of heart disease, strokes, artery disease, and premature death due to heart problems.
Where These Metals Come From
Most of the time, we don’t realize that we’re exposed to these metals. They are found in old paint, water pipes, tobacco products, some foods, cosmetics, electronics, and even in the air from factories.
Lead and cadmium can also come from cigarettes. Cadmium is found in certain batteries, pigments, plastics, ceramics, glasses, construction materials, and fertilizers.
Most of the arsenic exposure comes from groundwater, which can contaminate our drinking water, soil, and the food we grow in that soil.
How Metals Affect Our Bodies
These metals can stay in our bodies for a long time, settling in our bones and organs. Dr. Ana Navas-Acien, who also worked on the report, said these metals disturb our body’s normal functions.
People who live closer to highways, factories, and waste sites, or in older homes, face a higher risk of exposure. These risks are also higher in places where environmental rules are not well enforced.
Global Impact and Solutions
Dr. Navas-Acien explained that this problem affects people all around the world. Those with lower incomes are more likely to be exposed to toxic metals.
They often live in places with contaminated air, water, and soil. By tackling this issue, we can reduce heart diseases and help achieve fairness in health across all communities.
The report suggests a variety of ways to reduce the risk. It includes testing people for these metals, keeping an eye on the level of metals in the environment, reducing metals in tobacco, and protecting our water systems.
Right now, there are no medical treatments to undo the damage these metals do to our blood vessels.
But, Dr. Lamas believes that we can improve heart health by finding ways to remove metals from our bodies or reduce their harmful effects.
If you care about heart health, please read studies about how eating eggs can help reduce heart disease risk, and Vitamin K2 could help reduce heart disease risk.
For more information about heart health, please see recent studies about how to remove plaques that cause heart attacks, and results showing a new way to prevent heart attacks, strokes.
The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
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