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People generally reject the idea of injecting toxic substances into food, except when it involves hunting wild game. Perhaps surprising to nonhunters, up to 95% of hunters use lead projectiles,
Comparison of the lethality of lead and copper bullets in deer control operations to reduce incidental lead poisoning; field trials in England and Scotland.
The use of nonlead projectiles eliminates lead exposure experienced through eating wild game. Hunters are not averse to using lead-free projectiles: when hunters were given free copper projectiles, 77% used these nontoxic projectiles.
Physicians are in a unique position to explain the risks of lead exposure to hunting patients and their families and also explain the option of using nonlead projectiles.
FigureExamples of 0.30-caliber, 165-grain lead and lead-free rifle projectiles and illustrations of projectile cross-section. A typical solid-copper projectile (A) is longer than a copper-jacketed lead projectile (B) for the same caliber because of the greater density of lead than copper. Both projectiles are designed to expand on impact; however, the lead projectile typically disintegrates into hundreds of fragments while the copper projectile retains nearly all of its mass. These lead fragments are the source of lead ingested when eating wild game. Nearly all lead hunting projectiles have a copper jacket to reduce lead fouling of the firearm barrel, which occurs with pure lead projectiles.
It is important to keep in mind that the California condor nearly went extinct largely from lead poisoning as a result of scavenging lead-shot carrion.
Medically, it is clear that eating wild game harvested with lead projectiles increases lead serum levels.
As lead is one of the few substances that does not have a safe level of exposure, it is important to prevent all lead exposure. Lead has negative consequences for nearly every major physiologic system, with the central nervous system being the system classically impacted. Very low levels of lead exposure result in neurologic impairments,
Comparison of the lethality of lead and copper bullets in deer control operations to reduce incidental lead poisoning; field trials in England and Scotland.
Physicians need to be proactive in sharing with their patients the risks of potential lead exposure through eating wild game. Often when I explain to hunters the risks associated with lead exposure, especially when considering their children, their response is, “I have been hunting for years and I am fine.” My response to them is, “but just imagine how smart you could have been.”
References
Lindboe M.
Henrichsen E.N.
Høgåsen H.R.
Bernhoft A.
Lead concentration in meat from lead-killed moose and predicted human exposure using Monte Carlo simulation.
Food Addit Contam Part A Chem Anal Control Expo Risk Assess.2012; 29: 1052-1057
Comparison of the lethality of lead and copper bullets in deer control operations to reduce incidental lead poisoning; field trials in England and Scotland.
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