Lead in Game Meat [Buzz?]

[cjcj]

Study finds lead in game meat

May. 18, 2008 12:00 AM
McClatchy Newspapers
BOISE, Idaho - The meat in your freezer from the deer you shot last fall may be contaminated with tiny fragments of lead from the bullets that killed it.

A study released last week by the Peregrine Fund and Washington State University shows that people who consume venison from game animals killed with lead bullets risk ingestion of the poisonous metal.

Tiny amounts of lead can cause brain development problems in children. Even amounts previously considered safe in adults are now known to increase rates of death from heart attack and stroke.

"X-rays revealed that processed ground venison from 80 percent of the deer sampled in the research contained metal fragments," said Rick Watson, vice president of Boise-based Peregrine Fund, a raptor conservation organization. Officials there pulled donated venison from food pantries in March after lead was found in 60 percent of meat tested

 

[BuzzH]

cjcj,

Do some research...its not a problem...and all copper bullets suck.

Donated Venison Cleared for Distribution to Needy
Posted: April 1, 2008

DES MOINES — Food pantries in Iowa have been given approval to resume serving deer venison to the needy after sampling of the ground meat for lead indicated only trace amounts.

A total of 10 samples of ground venison from a food pantry were tested by the University of Iowa Hygienic Laboratory over the weekend. All 10 samples had less than 1 part per million of lead, eight had no detectable amounts and two had only trace amounts.

Distribution of venison donated to the food pantries by hunters was temporarily halted last week until the ground meat could be sampled for lead. More than 25,000 deer have been donated to hunger programs through the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)-administered HUSH (Help Us Stop Hunger) program in the last five years representing more than 4 million meal servings. HUSH is a cooperative effort among deer hunters, the Food Bank of Iowa, meat lockers and the Iowa DNR. The two main goals of HUSH include reducing the deer population while providing high-quality red meat to the needy in Iowa.

"Based on the samples that were analyzed and the extensive data currently available through blood testing of Iowans by our department, no additional tests of the venison are necessary," said Ken Sharp, director of the environmental health division of the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH).

“When we look at the results of this testing and the blood data that has been collected over the years, the venison provided through the HUSH program presents no recognized risk for lead exposure,” Sharp added.

Lead poisoning can cause significant health problems for young children and pregnant women. Lead-based paint is the leading cause of lead exposure for children. Since 1992, more than 500,000 Iowa children and more than 25,000 Iowa adults have been tested for lead poisoning. None of the cases of lead poisoning identified from this testing resulted from ingestion of venison, according to the IDPH.

Based on these results and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) established guidelines for daily lead intake, the IDPH states that people can safely consume the following amount of ground venison:

Children under the age of 6 years: 2 four-ounce servings per week
Pregnant women: 1 four-ounce serving per day
All other adults: 3 four-ounce servings per day
If parents are concerned about their children’s exposure to lead in venison, they should ask their physician to test their children for lead poisoning, according to the IDPH.

Hunters with ground venison in their own freezers should consider the daily intake recommendations made by the IDPH based on the FDA established guidelines. How the meat was processed and what care was taken to clean the animal when it was harvested should be considered on other cuts of venison to determine the likelihood of lead being present.

Testing of the HUSH venison was prompted when North Dakota issued a press release last Wednesday urging food pantries across that state to not distribute or use donated ground venison through its hunter donation program after 53 of 95 packages detected metals through x-ray testing.

“This is a question we have never encountered before. We wanted to do the sampling so that we would have confidence that the venison is safe,” said Ross Harrison, coordinator of the HUSH program for DNR.

Harrison said he is pleased that distribution of the venison can now continue.

“One of Iowa’s most valuable natural resources is its deer herd. The HUSH program has been a perfect match of being able to utilize this resource in a positive way to help some of our most needy citizens,” said Harrison.

“This testing confirms what we have believed all along that donated venison can be a valuable contribution to the health of needy Iowans,” Harrison said.

 

[cjcj]

So you Dismiss the "science" in the Idaho article.......this could be like global warming...Pick a science.


quote from your "science"

Testing of the HUSH venison was prompted when North Dakota issued a press release last Wednesday urging food pantries across that state to not distribute or use donated ground venison through its hunter donation program after 53 of 95 packages detected metals through x-ray testing.

 

[BuzzH]

From the science I've read, solid lead that is ingested is of no concern. Even less so when I know who took care of the animal.

Hey, put on the tinfoil hat if it fits...

 

[cjcj]

From the science I've read, solid lead that is ingested is of no concern.

Now I know why your a "closet" liberal... not many hunters are.

But I will gladly give you a free box of .338 [in copper] for your Elk hunt...man do they pack a punch!hump