• @givesomefucks@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      -19
      edit-2
      1 day ago

      Bloodletting is pretty beneficial tho…

      I mean, not everyone donating does it out of the goodness of their heart, there’s a health benefit.

      But back when they just let it out… That’s still the treatment for lead poisoning and off the top of my head I can’t think of a reason it wouldn’t help with micro plastics in the same way.

      But when bloodletting was a big thing. So was lead poisoning.

      It wasn’t helping for the reason people thought, but it’s not up there with surgeons intentionally not washing their hands before surgery

      • @ByteJunk@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        5
        edit-2
        12 hours ago

        Bloodletting is definitely NOT a treatment for lead poisoning, or for anything that you can think of.

        Poisoning by metals is usually treated by using a chelating agent: a molecule that creates an ionic bond with that metal, and makes it easier for the body to excrete it or prevents it from being absorbed further, like dimercaprol or EDTA.

        Guys, we figured all this shit out in the 18th and 19th century. How are we going back to the days of the dumbdumb? This moronic concept of “me think so must be” is dead: we actually test hypothesis now.

      • @SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org
        link
        fedilink
        English
        613 hours ago

        Yes, like that. Good job, some idiots may actually believe that. Now post it on wherever those idiots are like instragram and tiktok or whatever.

      • @Neuromancer49@midwest.social
        link
        fedilink
        English
        491 day ago

        Scientist here. Microplastics in the body are too ingrained in our bodies for bloodletting to do much of anything. They’re even found in fetuses.

        The good news (?) is we don’t know enough about microplastics to conclusively say they’re horrible for our health. The bad news is, I’d bet a lot of money that they are.

        • ssillyssadass
          link
          fedilink
          English
          21 day ago

          The whole situation seems pretty hopeless. Is there any hope for improving the situation, or can we only hope that our governments can ban plastic outside of necessary areas before it goes further south?

          • @Neuromancer49@midwest.social
            link
            fedilink
            English
            51 day ago

            Well, we don’t yet have evidence that it’s bad for our bodies, per se. That’s step one to getting things to change, IMO. So far we just have theories. Personally, I subscribe to the theory that microplastics are linked to changes in immune cell function/inflammation, which in turn leads to changes in the brain amd leads to some types of neurodegeneratove disorders like Alzheimer’s. Again, a theory, not any conclusive proof. It could be the case that microplastics aren’t causing damage.

            But, with the technology we have now, I can imagine some solutions. Most promising, in my opinion, would be something akin to an mRNA vaccine. Introduce the mRNA to your body to produce a protein that targets plastic and leads to its removal from the body, almost like an antibody.

            But with the NIH in the United States now targeting mRNA vaccine research for “critical review” as part of Trump’s agenda, the technology may not be long for this part of the world… even though it has revolutionized our ability to quickly, safely, and inexpensively produce vaccines against disease.

            • ssillyssadass
              link
              fedilink
              English
              31 day ago

              Well, Europe is picking up researchers now like an inverse Operation Paperclip, so it’s possible research could continue.

              • ℍ𝕂-𝟞𝟝
                link
                fedilink
                English
                119 hours ago

                The whole mRNA research that the US Pfizer vaccine and all other mRNA based vaccines were based of was conducted in Germany, the US only licenced the vaccine for production.

                Research will continue and has been continuing, but it might not be available in the US. You bet Trump and Musk will get it if they need it though.

        • @givesomefucks@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          01 day ago

          Same with lead…

          When it builds up in the blood stream above a certain concentration it starts getting stored in organs.

          I know they can cross the bloodbrain barrier, I’m just not sure when/how it starts to accumulate in organs. If it’s just immediate, yeah, no gains.

        • @Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works
          link
          fedilink
          English
          11 day ago

          So, I just looked it up and people with hemochromatosis are able to safely (all other conditions being okay) donate blood, and are allowed to do so more frequently than usual. Previous restrictions were based on the concern that they might lie about dangerous things like HIV, because they couldn’t afford to pay for blood removal.

      • @Venus_Ziegenfalle@feddit.org
        link
        fedilink
        English
        11 day ago

        and off the top of my head I can’t think of a reason it wouldn’t help with micro plastics in the same way

        That’s not a replacement for research. Bloodletting was the subject of one of the first ever clinical trials and we’ve known since then that it’s not effective or even harmful. There’s a handful of exceptions where it’s still done but never without a solid reason.