By JERUSALEM POST STAFF JANUARY 8, 2025 11:50
"A 2 to 3 points lower IQ doesn't sound like much, but when you apply that to the entire European population, it's quite a lot."
Widespread lead pollution from the Roman Empire's metals industry caused a cognitive decline across Europe, with researchers estimating a 2- to 3-point drop in IQ due to lead exposure, a recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) suggests.
The study found that atmospheric lead pollution began during the Iron Age and peaked during the late second century BCE at the height of the Roman Republic, coinciding with the expansion of mining activities. Scinexx reported that during the nearly 200-year period of the Roman Empire, approximately 500 kilotonnes of lead were released into the atmosphere, contributing to health impacts.
https://m.jpost.com/science/science-around-the-world/article-836586
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