Osteoporosis and Lead Poisoning Follow Up

[k9ophile]

I got my test results back and have a high lead level. My doc has recommended chelation therapy. He wants me to get 20 infusions. Good news: it looks like my insurance will cover it. Bad news: it means 20 trips to Nashville. (172 miles round trip) I have an appointment in August with the endocrinologist about my osteoporosis and will get his input before starting treatment.

As an aside, my iron levels are so good he wants me to stay off an an iron supplement. The DS really is an amazing phenomenon. I've read so many accounts of people needing iron infusions. One cannot, in any way shape or form, compare their results to anyone else. I might have to change my regimen if I do choose chelation. Along with removing the lead, it will affect my other minerals. One risk is hypocalcaemia which may be good for not making new kidney stones? I'll research this situation as much as I did my WLS options.

Right now, I'm moderately .

 

[DBmom23]

How do you think you were exposed to lead and what made your doc check levels? So glad for you that you have it diagnosed and sorted out with a plan.

 

[k9ophile]

I had an abnormal homocysteine level when we were trying to figure out why I lost 20 pounds in a year after so many years at a constant maintenance weight. He thought I might have some malnutrition or even a cancer*. Homocysteine is an amino acid and breakdown product of protein metabolism and can indicate too much lead in the body. (It turns out I had quit "stress eating" after I retired. At my job I was devouring way too many carbs and denying that! Carbs can be evil when over consumed)

As for my exposure, I'm in my mid-sixties. I grew up around several types of lead exposure. Even if one does not eat lead paint, its dust can be problematic. I also ran around barefoot in the summers and got my feet covered with tar. I cleaned that tar off with leaded gasoline almost daily in the summer time and for several years. Apparently, all the lead was stored in my bones and didn't become a problem until my osteoporosis advanced. With the thinning of my bones, the stored lead was released.

With lead paint and leaded gasoline being things of the past, there isn't that much exposure in middle to upper class America today. Unfortunately, lead paint can still be found in areas of high poverty.

*ALL my labs have always been great. It took a period of adjustment when I retired. I had a solid routine for meals and supplements that went to hell after I was no longer at work. Losing that routine and the 20 pounds scared me shitless. Now I am very happy with my body. Knowing that my labs have been good was incredibly reassuring. So I have embraced the weight loss with mixed feelings. I AM happy that I'm healthy; I now have more big clothes to get rid of. They're mostly size 16 and there's a good need for that size at a local church clothes closet. I'm just way too lazy in this weather to clean out my closet. But if that's as bad as it gets, I'm happy!

 

[DBmom23]

Thank you for sharing your story. Best wishes for a new chapter of bone health and "unleaded" living!

 

[southernlady]

Sorry you are dealing with this...when you first wrote the post, my first thought was, I wonder if she's my age (I'm 61 now) and lead paint was very common in my youth.

With lead paint and leaded gasoline being things of the past, there isn't that much exposure in middle to upper class America today. Unfortunately, lead paint can still be found in areas of high poverty.

It can also be found in ANY homes built before 1970. Ours is full of lead paint, it's ALSO over 100 years old. Of course we also have asbestos tile in our upstairs bathroom which is going to have to be removed in the next year.

But what I didn't do is get tar on my feet.

 

[newanatomy]

I am glad you are on top of all of this. Thank you for sharing this information.

 

[k9ophile]

It can also be found in ANY homes built before 1970.

Yeah, and there isn't much way for those in poor areas to remediate the hazards of their environment. I watch shows like Property Brothers, Love It or List It, etc. on HGTV. It can wreak havoc on a renovation budget. How many poor people can afford to own a home, let alone renovate it?!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local...e898e6-eea8-11e4-8abc-d6aa3bad79dd_story.html
There must be thousands like him throughout the USA. I'm not attempting to turn this into a political post, yet it's hard to ignore the realities of resource availability when it comes to health care.

 

[Larra]

@k9ophile low calcium is actually BAD as far as kidney stones are concerned. If you lose calcium via chelation, you will need to supplement extra calcium citrate to keep your serum calcium level good and also to keep your PTH from going up, which would result in MORE calcium being leeched from your bones to keep calcium at a safe level, and hence more osteoporosis. Your body works hard to keep serum calcium within a narrow range for heart health, so if you don't get enough, it takes it from your bones. You can therefore have a "normal" serum level but be maintaining that level at the expense of your skeleton. So if you do a series of chelation treatments, you will need to have your PTH checked periodically along with your calcium level to make sure you aren't damaging your bones.

 

[k9ophile]

Thank you so much for this information. It helps in the decision process.

 

[JackieOnLine]

oh, crap K9 - how does this happen?!

 

[JackieOnLine]

oh, good - I saw your other thread with no replies so I'm glad there was another one.

I've lived in old houses, dammit. is there no end to the crap that can happen to us?! no, there isn't.

 

[southernlady]

oh, good - I saw your other thread with no replies so I'm glad there was another one.

I've lived in old houses, dammit. is there no end to the crap that can happen to us?! no, there isn't.

Merged the two threads.