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ALS diagnosis and survival linked to metals in blood, urine
Medical Xpress / University of Michigan / Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry ^ | Aug. 6, 2024 | Stephen Goutman, M.D., M.S. et al

Posted on 08/13/2024 7:29:01 PM PDT by ConservativeMind

People with higher levels of metals found in their blood and urine may be more likely to be diagnosed with—and die from—amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, a study suggests.

Researchers have known that ALS, a rare but fatal neurodegenerative condition, is influenced by genetic and environmental factors, including exposure to pesticides and metals.

This latest study examined the levels of metals in the blood and urine of people with and without ALS, finding that exposure to individual metals and mixtures of metals is associated with a greater risk for ALS and shorter survival.

Goutman's team measured metal levels in plasma and urine samples from over 450 people with ALS and nearly 300 people without the condition.

They found that elevated levels of individual metals, including copper, selenium and zinc, were significantly associated with higher ALS risk and earlier death.

They then used these results to create environmental ALS risk scores. The environmental risk scores indicated that mixtures of metals in plasma and urine are linked to around a three-times greater risk for the disease.

In this study, the inclusion of an ALS polygenic risk score to assess a potential moderating effect of underlying genetic factors did not alter the association between metal exposure and disease risk or survival.

Investigators also discovered that participants working in occupations with a higher likelihood of metal exposure had increased levels of metal mixtures in their blood and urine.

This echoes a previous study from the research team which found that people with ALS reported higher occupational exposure to metals prior to diagnosis.

By avoiding high risk activities associated with metal exposures, Goutman says, individuals might lower their overall exposure and potentially mitigate risk.

(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...


TOPICS: Health/Medicine
KEYWORDS: als; blood; metal; minerals; sclerosis
For metals to be rather higher in an active ALS patient versus a control means the patient is getting these metals on a frequent current basis and/or had built up a high reservoir of these minerals. We excrete metals all the time, normally, so finding high levels in urine and blood really is a bad sign, once already diagnosed with ALS.

Selenium, copper, and zinc were noted metals identified in ALS patient fluids.

1 posted on 08/13/2024 7:29:01 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
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To: Mazey; ckilmer; goodnesswins; Jane Long; BusterDog; jy8z; ProtectOurFreedom; matthew fuller; ...

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2 posted on 08/13/2024 7:29:43 PM PDT by ConservativeMind (Trump: Befuddling Democrats, Republicans, and the Media for the benefit of the US and all mankind.)
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To: ConservativeMind

That would explain Lou Gehrig, baseball’s Iron Man.


3 posted on 08/13/2024 7:38:30 PM PDT by shotgun
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To: ConservativeMind

Had a friend who died from that. She was tested for all of that and was negative and died. Nonsense. All “knowledge” is not final.


4 posted on 08/13/2024 7:40:15 PM PDT by Fungi
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To: ConservativeMind

Cause or correlation? I see nothing here that eliminates correlation.


5 posted on 08/13/2024 7:42:13 PM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy - EVs a solution for which there is no problem)
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To: ConservativeMind

Yes, most people excrete those metals and they are fortunate because they won’t be harmed by them. But some people are not able to excrete them and they build up. The average person can continue to eat their regular foods and even take their daily vitamins and minerals.


6 posted on 08/13/2024 7:46:55 PM PDT by ladyjane
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To: ConservativeMind

Selenium, copper, and zinc are all essential to good health in small amounts, and toxic in excess. Personally I doubt that they cause ALS, and am guessing that their excretion is due to a disease process. An environmental toxin called β-Methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) from cyanobacteria has been linked to significantly increased occurrence of sporadic ALS in populations with frequent dietary consumption of food sources containing high levels of BMAA — including the Chamorro population of Guam where ALS incidence is approximately 100 times greater than other populations https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19929726/ .


7 posted on 08/13/2024 7:55:09 PM PDT by devere
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To: devere
Chamorro population of Guam where ALS incidence is approximately 100 times greater than other populations

Wowser. What's their diet consist of?

8 posted on 08/13/2024 8:03:58 PM PDT by BipolarBob (My AR rifle is named Kindness after the phrase "You should kill your enemies with kindness".)
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To: ConservativeMind

Uh oh...I’ve been taking a zinc supplement since COVID started.


9 posted on 08/13/2024 8:08:09 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom (“When exposing a crime is treated like a crime, you are being ruled by criminals” – Edward Snowden)
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To: ConservativeMind

maybe, but it’s genetic

my Wife, her Father and her Brother all died of it, so...


10 posted on 08/13/2024 8:25:22 PM PDT by Chode (there is no fall back position, there's no rally point, there is no LZ... we're on our own. #FJB)
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To: ConservativeMind

I had a friend who worked his way through college in the early 70’s making beverage cans. He complained that he often came home covered in tin and steel dust. He died a few months ago of ALS. Thanks for posting.


11 posted on 08/13/2024 9:57:17 PM PDT by rexthecat
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To: shotgun
That would explain Lou Gehrig, baseball’s Iron Man.

Actually, high iron can be a problem too. It's not something that the mainstream medical establishment looks for.

The Iron Curse

12 posted on 08/13/2024 10:07:56 PM PDT by Disambiguator
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To: ConservativeMind

Wow- lots of folks take zinc, especially during covid-


13 posted on 08/14/2024 6:28:42 AM PDT by Bob434
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