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04.09.2018 Home & Food

Health Alert! Symptoms Of Lead Poisoning During Pregnancy

By Boldsky.com
Photo- Master FilePhoto- Master File
04.09.2018 LISTEN

What Are The Symptoms Of Lead Poisoning During Pregnancy? Both children and adults are prone to lead poisoning.

Also, pregnant ladies are known to be vulnerable to it. Therefore, if you are a pregnant woman, you must ensure the prevention of lead poisoning by taking extra care for the sake of your unborn child, since the impact could be really dangerous for your health as well as your baby's health.

For instance, pregnant women with lead poisoning run the risk of miscarriage, premature delivery, and birth-defects related to the baby's nervous system, brain and kidneys or behavioral and learning issues of the child in future. During pregnancy, it is imperative to watch out for symptoms of lead poisoning. These usually include mood swings, headache, extreme lethargy or weakness, lack of appetite, stomach ache, muscular or joint pain, nausea, a metal taste inside the mouth, anxiety, and so on.

Effects Of Lead Poisoning On The Fetus/Baby If a pregnant woman swallows or breathes in lead, it directly gets into her blood, and adversely affects the fetus. High quantity of lead in the blood results in issues related to the development of the brain as well as the nervous system of the baby, and may create further problems post-birth. They are likely to develop learning problems or there might be slow growth. Also, some other effects could be sudden abortion, low birth weight or reduction of circumference of the infant's head.

How Is It Treated? It is very important to understand the source or reasons for the lead poisoning in pregnant mothers. Once it is determined, the specific risk-reduction methods could be worked out. Additionally, any sort of deficiencies in calcium or iron would need to be taken care of. The formal treatment for lead poisoning refers to the chelation therapy, which includes administering chelating agents into the body in order to remove the toxic heavy metals such as lead or mercury.

The chelation therapy is a tried and tested method in the field of clinical toxicology. Owing to certain side effects, a lot of care has to be taken while a patient undergoes this treatment. It is the most preferred method of treatment for ailments caused by poisoning related to metals such as iron, lead, uranium, mercury, arsenic, plutonium and so on. Although the chelation therapy is effective in treating lead poisoning, there may be certain side effects involved too. Those include harm to kidneys, dehydration, allergic reactions, low levels of calcium in the blood, brain-disorders causing problems related to memory, learning ability, self-control, etc. How Can It Be Prevented? Prevention is better than cure! This stands absolutely true in case of lead poisoning too. Pregnant ladies can take that extra care and prevent it completely. Let us explore how:

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