Document k99nQoLQrMQdNRR0dgn4yveKB

> > l i October 26* 1931 Mr. P. E. Y/ormser, Sec*y Lead Industries Assn., 420 Lexington "ve., Hew York, N. Y. Dear Mr. W'ormser; * I am sorry indeed that I have not had an opportunity to publish the work which I presented at' the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society. What I presented was to some degree uncompleted work,which has since been completed, but which has not been published due to the fact that I have had no time to get it in shape for publication. I spent the greater portion of the summer in Mexico studying the problem of lead in the normal Individual in cer tain primitive communities of Mexico. The results which I obtained there fully verify, I believe, the conclusions which I have arrived at on my work in this country. I hope to have this work published soon, and I shall be glad to send you a reprint when it is finished. I might briefly state the conclusions which are justified by our work in this country and in Mexico. A small quantity of lead Is normal for the animal organsim,ln fact it is impossible, so far as we have been able to discover, to avoid contact with lead compounds since very many staple food materials contain minute quantities of lead. We have analytical results on quite a number of food materials both In this country and elsewhere, and it Is safe to say, I believe, that some portion of the lead ingested by the normal individual and absorbed in his tissues, comes from the lead In vegetation, and in animals as a consequence of lead in the soil. In our own community there is an additional increment of lead from small fruits and vegetables that are sprayed with lead-containing Insecti cides, with a further contribution in all probability from cans made in such a way that there is contact of solder with food material. It is furthermore true that containers with tinned surfaces show variable quantities of lead as result of the contamination of the tin baths. A variety of other sources, some small and insignificant and others occasionally more important, furnish lead as a contamination of our food and drink. So far as our studies go, the whole diet of a normal man may contain as little as .05 mgs. or as much as .5 mg. The mean value for one Individual studied over a period of a year, was approximately .2 of a milligram. This corresponds fairly well with the average daily lead excretion of such an individual over a prolonged period. xe 00i487i f So much for the present. I hope In the very near future to be able to provide you with detailed information. Very truly yours* RiTiET KE" ou001 ry ..