Global decrease in blood lead concentrations due to the removal of leaded gasoline

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) 2023-05, Vol.324, p.138207-138207, Article 138207
• Main Authors: Lacerda, Diego, Pestana, Inácio Abreu, Santos Vergilio, Cristiane dos, de Rezende, Carlos Eduardo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air lead; Blood lead; Cities; Environmental Monitoring; Gasoline; Gasoline - analysis; Human exposure; Humans; Hydrocarbons; Lead - analysis; Legacy lead; Tetraethyl Lead
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.138207

Lead (Pb) is a chemical element with extreme toxicity that is classified as one of the ten chemicals of most significant concern to human health. The main problem involving Pb is its use as a fuel additive (tetraethyllead - TEL) at a global level, which raised the atmospheric Pb concentrations. It is estimated that between 80 and 90% of the atmospheric Pb in large cities came from the use of TEL, and as a consequence, it was also the main source responsible for human exposure to the element. Therefore, this work aimed to evaluate, through a systematic review, the blood concentrations of Pb in scientific articles published in the first two decades of the 2000s to compare the global and regional trends of each continent over time. Our data show the importance of removing TEL in decreasing human exposure to Pb worldwide. We observed exponentially decreasing blood Pb concentrations over the years after additive removal on all continents, resulting in a global trend which TEL's use was the major process governing human exposure worldwide. In addition, the results also showed that, despite the removal of Pb additives lowering levels of human blood Pb, the general population remains exposed to the element through exogenous and endogenous sources. The exhaust Pb particles were deposited into the environment in proportion to the traffic flows, and the legacy of Pb in the environment requires novel primary prevention remedy to curtail exposure. [Display omitted] •Blood lead concentrations decreased exponentially in the last decades worldwide.•Tetraethyllead was the major driving force governing Pb exposure.•The general population remains exposed in part as a legacy of leaded gasoline.•This study emphasizes the importance of primary prevention for decreasing exposure.