This is being created as a public safety message for those of us that enjoy shooting. I have posted snippets of it before in various threads, but figured I would make a more formal post with the idea that a larger audience might see it.

Nearly two years ago I was getting a routine physical at my Doctor's office. I offhandedly mentioned to him that I shoot and reload recreationally and am exposed to lead often, both by handling cast lead in reloading and breathing in the fumes at indoor ranges. He suggested that I get a test for lead in my body. One was a blood test. This is more of a point in time measurement that sees if you have been exposed to lead recently. Unfortunately, low lead levels in the blood is not necessarily a good test of lead levels in the body. One of the reasons lead is so bad for us is that it easily attaches to cells in the body. And it stays there. The results came back and I was very high. I am thankful for this test then because if I took a break from shooting, the lead levels in my blood would gradually decrease and would go down to normal, or close to it and I would never have known to check any further for lead.

Since my levels were high, I did what is called a urine challenge. It basically involves taking a a few pills of a chemical called EDTA. This chemical is used in chelation and it extracts heavy metals from the body and allows them to be excreted in urine. The urine can then be tested for levels of heavy metals. The sample was sent to labs and came back off the charts. The recommended level of lead in the body is < 10 micrograms per gram of sample. Mine was 700. The doctor had never seen a number so high. My levels were high for other heavy metals too, like antimony (an ingredient in gunpowder) and aluminum.

Since this past December, I have been undergoing regular chelation treatments (i.e. my own personal lead remediation), which involves receiving a 1/2 hour IV drip of an EDTA and vitamin B12 cocktail. I have gotten the number from 700 to 400, and now down to 60. I will be continuing until I can get that number down to 10 or less and perhaps periodically afterwards too. Personally, I don't feel like I have ever felt the effects of heavy metal toxicity. Does that mean there were none, I assume not. But heavy metals do effect children and pregnant women in the form of learning disabilities and birth defects.

I have a lot of friends on the site who have been asking me to come shoot with them. I have really been trying to avoid going shooting until this is finally under control. The big debate is the source of the lead posioning. My doctor believes that growing up in the industrial state of New Jersey already hamstrings us and raises our numbers. I have done some reading on absorption of lead, and it is not through the skin. So I would only attribute some of it to my loading lead bullets (although I have switched to complete metal jacketed for loading). My belief is that the majority came from shooting in poorly ventilated indor ranges and breathing in vaoporized lead dust. Even if my bullets are fully surrounded with copper, the guy's next to mine aren't. And I have no doubt that I am breathing leadclouds from everyone else around me. I am not really interested in pinpointing the exact cause. I am sure that it is some combination of all of the above. I also don't know if I am more susceptible to this lead posioning for some reason than the general public, but I do know that I will make it a rare occasion to shoot indoors now.

Anyway, hopefully this story will make you take an extra second to ask your doctor for a lead test the next time you go for your checkup.

 

If anyone wants to ask a question privately, or even find the name of my physician (since most doctors do not have regular on-site chelation treatments), please feel free to PM me.

Thanks, I've been thinking about asking my Doc.to add the lead test to my blood test prescription but I always seem to forget. After reading what you so strongly suggest I will make sure that I follow through since I am an R.O. and am around shooters 4 days a week. Thanks again.

Scig

That was so hard to read.

How about wearing a repirator mask and gloves while shooting indoors? Are we too macho to do this or is would this be overkill?

How about wearing a repirator mask and gloves while shooting indoors? Are we too macho to do this or is would this be overkill?

 

that would absolutely help, but depends on the people, wearing a regular mask might help.

 

Easiest solution, shoot outdoors, and like Old School said, don't shoot at places that have the air quality of a coal mine. =)

I think what old school was saying, you know something is bad for you and you have an idea how it occurs so why not take steps to lessen your damage.

I used to take the mind set of oh well if it kills me, it kills me or whatever happens, happens, after my dad got cancer and how it not only effected him but changed the lives of my whole family and relatives I would never put myself in a continuous situation where I increase my risks and its something I have control over.

Its almost selfish to put yourself in that type of danger and not consider if you were to get sick the effect on loved ones.

No one is saying live in a bubble but in this case there are simple easy things to do to drastically decrease your exposure, so why not take those steps.

I wear nitrile gloves and a face shield when I reload the shield is mainly for potential primer pops, and I try to do most if not all my shooting out doors now.

How about wearing a repirator mask and gloves while shooting indoors? Are we too macho to do this or is would this be overkill?

 

I've worn an N95 mask w/OV Relief for certain things at indoor ranges.

 

I wash my hands before I leave the range.

 

For regular shooting, as somebody else said, if you indoor range resembles a dungeon you should probably find a different place to shoot on a regular basis. If you get home and blow your nose and there is funny stuff in the tissue then change something.

 

 

 

I have never had anything funny in my nose from shooting (that I noticed anyway), but I do usually leave indoor ranges with a faint metallic taste in the back of my tongue/throat. And I would always wash my hand with the pumice abrasive mechanic hand cleaner in the bathroom.

Thanks for sharing this with us, it really is very helpful. I prefer to shoot outdoors for a variety of reasons, and this is yet another reason to continue doing so. But I am also planning to start reloading and the posts in this thread gave me some very good tips on how to do it even safer.

 

This thread should be stickied, or another thread with all the great tips should be stickied.

Ha. I wonder how many people that are concerned with breathing in lead and fumes while shooting also smoke..........................

 

I did see a guy shooting indoors with a real filtration system, not just a skimpky mask from Home Depot. Looked like the stuff you would wear while painting cars.

Start sporting one of these at your favorite indoor range. You'll get the "he must know something we don't" look.

 

The NPL? LOL! All you are worried about is CERCLA sites? I think there are only a hundred or so on it in NJ and a few thousand pending nationwide.

 

I would check the NJ Known Contaminated Sites List (KCSL). There are 15,000 sites on that list in New Jersey:

 

http://www.nj.gov/dep/srp/kcsnj/

 

Or, better yet, use NJDEP IMAP to plot the KCSL, Classification Exception Areas (CEAs, long-term contaminated groundwater), Well Restriction Areas (WRAs), in your own neighborhood on a pretty map that shows your house!

 

http://www.state.nj....s/depsplash.htm

 

(click to launch i-map dep in the top left corner)

 

nice. maybe ill just buy a house on a remote deserted island. At least there wouldnt be any restrictive gun laws!