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Christopher Holstege of the Blue Ridge Poison Center at the University of Virginia Health System and colleagues at Virginia Commonwealth University have enlisted atomic absorption spectroscopy to show that people who drink moonshine, an illicit alcoholic drink common in Virginia and the southern states, are putting themselves at serious risk of lead poisoning. Holstege found that more than half of the illicitly distilled alcohol samples tested contained the toxic metal at levels well above Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines for water, which suggest 15 parts per billion (ppb) or less is acceptable. Illicitly distilled liquor, also known as moonshine, bootleg, white lightning, corn liquor, and hooch, is considered by some to be part of the cultural heritage of the USA. However, longstanding traditions can nevertheless lead to health problems. "Because moonshine is considered a tradition of the past, toxicity from moonshine consumption is likely to be overlooked," Holstege says. Lead toxicity effects due to moonshine consumption include microcytic anaemia, saturnine gout, variegate porphyria, hypertension, nephropathy, seizures, and encephalopathy, according to the researchers. Holstege and his colleagues studied 48 different still samples of illicitly distilled moonshine obtained from law enforcement officials. 43 of these samples had lead content ranging from five to almost 600 ppb, while the remainder were free of lead within detection limits. "No significant studies have been done to analyze Virginia moonshine for impurities since the 1960s," Holstege adds, "Hopefully this research will make the public aware that there are still hazards associated with drinking moonshine." He explains that a person would have to drink half a litre a day of the most contaminated moonshine sample to reach dangerous blood levels of 10 micrograms or more per decilitre. "With hundreds of thousands of gallons of moonshine produced around the nation annually, physicians need to be aware of this problem when evaluating moonshine abusers." Indeed, moonshine has been implicated in four out of five adult deaths related to lead poisoning in the USA over the last two decades. AAS is a very sensitive technique and Holstege warns moonshiners and moonshine abusers not to rely on homespun tests for checking whether their illicit beverage is lead free or not. "We recently tried using the household lead paint home test kits on the moonshine samples known to have lead in it," he told SpectroscopyNOW, "They did not work. People cannot check their moonshine for lead content with these over-the-counter testing kits." Holstege also points out that moonshine may contain other contaminants, such as ethylene glycol (antifreeze), the herbicide paraquat, and other toxic compounds. "We cannot definitely say that a moonshine sample is safe," he says, "rather it does or does not contain the substances we searched for." As to the source of the lead in the samples, car radiators are commonly used as stills for moonshine production and these are modified using copper piping and barrels and all sealed together using lead soldering. Related links: |
Moonshine can seriously damage your health |
