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High blood lead level among the Mahayana Buddhist monk: a note for environmental implication

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Abstract

Lead has no biological function and is one of the most toxic metals. Of several heavy metals, monitoring of lead is an important focus in occupational medicine. In exposure and risk evaluation, monitoring lead biologically has several advantages over technical exposure assessment. In this article, the authors report a very high blood lead level among the Mahayana Buddhist monks. This is a forgotten high-risk population. The environmental implication in the monitoring and controlling of this population is raised.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand

    Viroj Wiwanitkit

  2. Department of Clinical Chemistry, Faculty of Allied Health Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand

    Jamsai Suwansaksri & Suphan Soogarun

Authors
  1. Viroj Wiwanitkit
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  2. Jamsai Suwansaksri
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  3. Suphan Soogarun
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Correspondence to Viroj Wiwanitkit.

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Wiwanitkit, V., Suwansaksri, J. & Soogarun, S. High blood lead level among the Mahayana Buddhist monk: a note for environmental implication. Stoch Environ Res Risk Assess 22, 805–807 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00477-007-0188-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00477-007-0188-0

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