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Megan Phillips and Geselle Tablada

Mrs. Tallman

AP Calculus

10 February 2017

Lead in the Body

The human body is a very delicate system, and when a foreign substance enters the body,

it can have extremely detrimental effects. In the past, lead was commonly found in countless

everyday items such as paint and gasoline. Because lead was found in these items, the particles

easily transferred into the air and soil and affected millions of people. Using Eulers method, the

concentration of lead in the body can be calculated and analyzed in different scenarios. Lead

poisoning is a completely preventable issue, and proper measures should be taken to ensure no

one consumes lead anymore.

Lead is not a man-made chemical; this element is naturally occurring within the crust of

the Earth. This harmful toxin was a typical ingredient in paints, pigments, gasoline, jewelry,

cosmetics, and even some traditional medicines. Although it is not quite known why lead is used

in all of these products, there is no justifiable reason for putting it in these products and

endangering the health and well being of millions of people. Today, there are laws against

companies using lead in their products. In past years, lead consumption was a major problem

among children as lead was in most toys paints. Unfortunately, lead poisoning is a still a hot

topic with the Flint Water Crisis which involved an entire city ingesting water that was delivered

through lead-coated pipes. Although it is quite easy for lead to enter ones body, it is not always

so easy to detect it before it has started its destruction of the body.

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If lead enters the body, its effects are not automatically noticeable. There are some

immediate physical symptoms including abdominal pain, headache, and constipation, but those

symptoms could easily be identified as a simple stomach issue. Lead enters the body and

confuses it into thinking the lead is calcium or some other type of essential nutrient. The deadly

element then builds up in teeth and bones and makes its way to the brain, kidneys, and liver

(Facts about lead). This element can harm the brain and central nervous system of a child

and cause a coma, convulsions, or death if ingested in large amounts. Even if a child does not die

from lead consumption, they could live the rest of their life retarded or have mental disorders and

behavioral problems ("Lead Poisoning and Health").

Figure 1. How Lead Affects People of Different Ages

Figure 1 shows how the exposure of lead affects people of different ages. In children,

lead has an effect on their brain, nervous system, kidneys, and blood. On the contrary, lead

attacks all of the aforementioned systems as well as the digestive and cardiovascular systems.
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Furthermore, when a pregnant woman ingests or inhales lead, she is at a higher risk of

miscarriage, premature birth, or even malformations. Lead has a catastrophic effect on the human

body, but it is most detrimental to ones brain.

Aside from causing a child to become mentally-challenged, lead has a shocking

correlation with low test scores. According to an article in the Detroit Free Press, the lead levels

of the students who scored at the not proficient level were higher than any of the lead levels in

the students who scored at higher levels in math, writing, reading, and science.
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Figure 2. Lead Levels and MEAP Score Correlation

Figure 2 shows a compilation of the lead levels in the students who scored differently on

the math, writing, reading, and science sections in the MEAP test. All of the subjects except for

writing followed a negative correlation between lead levels and scores (Lam). Lead has also been

connected to cases of ADHD, Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity disorder. It has been found that

blood lead levels less than two micrograms have been associated with up to 290,000 cases of
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ADHD among children in the U.S. (Mclnerney). These children may have a harder time learning

than others because they are unable to focus on what they are supposed to be learning. It was

also found in 1979 that children with higher lead levels found in their teeth had lower IQ scores,

needed more special education services, and had a significantly higher failure rate in school.

When looked at again years later, these same children were found to have had a seven-fold

increase in failure to graduate high school, lower class standing, greater absenteeism, impairment

of reading skills sufficiently extensive to be labeled reading disability (indicated by scores two

grades below the expected scores), and deficits in vocabulary, fine motor skills, reaction time,

and hand-eye coordination (Needleman). Lead has a very detrimental effect on children. Not

only does it have an effect on their current health and wellbeing, it can also take a large toll on

the childs future.

Unfortunately, once lead enters the body, it is extremely difficult for it to exit. The most

common ways for lead to exit a body is through urine, hair, nails, and sweat. The lead exits out

of the blood in the body if it is excreted by urine, and it exits out of the tissue in the body if it

excreted through the hair, nails, and sweat. By using Eulers method, different scenarios were

carried out to determine how much lead would be in the body on any particular day.

A(t) = previous A(t) + L + kca * C(t) + kba * B(t) - kac * A(t) - kab * A(t) -kad * A(t)

Figure 3. Blood Compartment Equation

Figure 3 displays the equation used to calculate the amount of lead in the blood on any

day. The previous days amount of lead was added to value L, which is the amount of lead

consumed through food, air, and water. The proportions of lead entering the blood from the

bones and tissue was also added. The values for the amount of lead that exited the blood and
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flowed into the bones and tissue compartments were then subtracted to result in the exact amount

of lead in the blood only.

B(t) = previous B(t) + kab * A(t) - kba * B(t) - kbd * B(t)

Figure 4. Tissue Compartment Equation

Figure 4 exhibits the equation that calculated the lead concentration in the tissue

compartment of the body on any given day. The previous days lead amount in the tissue was

added to the proportion of lead that was being absorbed from the blood during the day in

question. Then, both of the proportions of lead exiting the body to the blood and outside

environment were subtracted. This left the equation with a value of how much lead was in the

tissue at one specific day.

C(t) = previous C(t) + kac * A(t) - kca * C(t)

Figure 5. Bones Compartment Equation

Figure 5 gives the equation utilized to find the amount of lead in the bones compartment

of the body on a specified day. The previous days amount of lead in the bones was added to the

proportion of lead that came in from the blood compartment. The proportion of lead that ejected

from the bones to the blood was subtracted, leaving the value of how much lead was left in the

bones.

By creating a spreadsheet with these three different equations, graphs were created to

provide a visual of just how difficult it is for lead to leave the body.
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Figure 6. Lead in the Body

Figure 6 portrays a graph of lead levels (measured in micrograms) throughout 400 days in

the different areas of the body. The blood compartment starts off with a large leap into high

values, but this is mainly due to the consumption of lead from the environment going directly

into the blood at 49.3 micrograms per day. The blood levels eventually level off to about 1,585

micrograms of lead. The tissue compartment follows a similar pattern with a slightly large leap

in the beginning but leveling off to approximately 620 micrograms of lead in the end. The bones

compartment, on the other hand, follows a mostly linear pattern. The line has nearly the same

slope throughout the whole graph, meaning that the lead levels in the bones will continue to

increase as time progresses.

With the graphs information, it can be concluded that lead hardly ever leaves the body.

Yes, lead can escape through urine, hair, nails, and sweat, but once it collects in the bones, it is

nearly impossible for it to ever leave the body. With the recent Flint Water Crisis that has
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occurred, multiple sources have expressed concern over the lead in the water sinking into the

bones of Flint residents and staying there for the rest of their lives.

With Eulers method, equations can be modified to fit other scenarios. For instance, say

the subject of an experiment was put into a lead-free environment after the 400 days. The

equations used in the spreadsheet could be modified to accommodate this situation, and a new

graph could be made, as well.

Figure 7. Lead in the Body with Modified Exposure

Figure 7 models a graph of the lead levels in ones body after they have been exposed to

it for the first 400 days and put into a lead-free environment for the next 400 days. The initial

400 days of the graph resemble the graph shown in Figure 6. Once the subject was placed in a

lead-free environment, the amount of lead in the blood and tissue dropped down towards zero.

The bones compartment did not drop towards zero, but it did level off to about 2400 micrograms

of lead by day 800. The graph of the tissue compartments lead level would eventually start to
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decrease towards zero, but the lead level would not reach half of its peak amount until about

23,280 days. That calculates out to equal about 64 years for lead levels to drop to just half of

what the value was at its highest.

Eulers method could also work with even more conditions added on. For example, the

proceeding graph will take into account the medication given to the subject.

Figure 8. Lead in the Body with Modified Exposure and Medication

Figure 8 pictures a graph of the lead levels in the different compartments of the body

after the subject was placed in a lead-free environment and given anti-lead medication on and

after day 400. The blood and tissue compartments continue to stay near zero after day 400, but

the bones compartment still has a much higher concentration of lead.The lead level in the bones

continues to increase steadily even after the use of the medication, however around day 600 the

lead levels start to drop. The medication does assist in the decline of the lead in that part of the

body, though. Lead levels would decrease in the bones steadily with the lead-free medication on
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top of being in a lead-free environment. It would only take about 2,800 days in order for the lead

level to drop to half of what it was at its highest.

All in all, the three graphs portray the fact that it is extremely difficult for lead to escape

the body. Lead poisoning is a very prevalent problem with the Flint Water Crisis happening less

than 100 miles away, and once it has sat in a body for a little while before it is detected, it is too

late to stop it from wreaking its havoc on the body of the poisoned. Harm caused by lead is

nearly irreversible; however, there are some methods proven to help improve cognitive ability if

they are stimulating enough. The methods would not be necessary if lead was never in everyday

items in the first place.

Eulers method is just one way of keeping track of the amount of lead in a persons blood,

tissue, and bones. The method can also be used for keeping track of amounts of other substances

in the body such as calcium or iron. This could be useful to people who struggle with calcium or

iron deficiency and allow them to keep up with how much a certain supplement is helping them.

Eulers method would also be eligible for utilization in determining the amount of soap scum

building up in pipes.

Conclusively, lead is a serious problem that needs to be dealt with properly. Math

concepts like Eulers method can be put to good use by measuring how bad the issue at hand is

and going about the solution the right way. Without lead poisoning, countless people would be

able to live their lives without worrying if their child was going to be handicapped or mentally-

challenged for the rest of their life or worse, die. Water is a basic human right because

everybody needs it to survive, so every city water source should be without lead.

Work Cited
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"Facts about Lead and Its Human Effects." Facts about Lead and Its Human Effects - King

County. King County, 29 Dec. 2016. Web. 09 Feb. 2017.

Lam, Tina, and Kristi Tanner-White. "Learning Struggles: Study Shows Kids with Poisoning

History Often Do Poorly on Tests." Detroit Free Press [Detroit, MI] n.d.: n. pag.

Print.

"LEAD." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, 30 Sept. 2013. Web. 08 Feb. 2017.

<https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/lead/health.html>.

"Lead Poisoning and Health." World Health Organization. World Health Organization, Sept.

2016. Web. 05 Feb. 2017.<http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs379/en/>.

Lead Poisoning. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2017. <http://keywordsuggest.org/gallery/

265085.html>.

Mclerney, Maura, Esq, and Alissa S. Werzen, M.D. "Impact of Lead on Learning." Education

Law Center PA (2016): n. pag. 2016. Web. 9 Feb. 2017.

Needleman, HL, et al. The Long-Term Effects of Exposure to Low Doses of Lead in Childhood:

An 11- Year Follow-Up Report. New England Journal of Medicine. Vol 322; No. 2, pg.

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