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  1. #1

    Default Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    My question involves an injury that occurred in the state of: Illinois

    This topic involves personal injury from lead exposure to a “food-grade” product sold by an online company, as well as damage to property from the lead.
    I am a recreational home beer brewer in the state of Illinois, and I bought a thermohydrometer from an online brewing supplies company based in Minnesota. They sold this thermohydrometer for the explicit purpose of home beer and wine brewing.

    It looks like this: http://static.zoovy.com/img/homebrew...hydrometer.jpg

    As you can see, it is a hollow glass tube with an internal thermometer, and weighed down with metal shot on the bottom so it will float in liquid.

    In January 2013, I was making a batch of beer, which involves boiling barley in water for about 90 minutes. Near the first 5 minutes, I immersed the thermohydrometer in the water, to take a temperature reading. The bottom of the glass broke, releasing all of the metal shot into the beverage.

    I did not think anything was wrong, and boiled for 90 minutes like usual. Afterward, I drank about 8-12 oz. of the liquid, to see how it turned out. I additionally dumped the solution to a ~$1000 metal fermentor.

    At this point, I realized the glass had broken, and realized I may have been exposed to lead. I rushed to an Urgent Care clinic and saw a physician. From all of the stress, my BP was higher than 140. They took a blood lead level test, which later showed moderately elevated blood lead levels that were above average, but not yet at the level that would necessitate immediate treatment.

    I contacted the online company, who stated that the device did not contain lead. They told me they imported it from an international manufacturer, and emailed me a digitial copy of a signed and stamped letter guaranteeing the device did not contain lead.

    I then tested the device again with an additional chemical test from 3M, which immediately gave a positive result indicating lead.
    At this point, I am first worried about the elevated lead level in my blood. According to scientific research studies, the precise level I am at is associated with increase death, and increased risk of tremor. The latter is a problem, because I am in training to be a surgeon, and my hands now shake.

    Additionally, I am worried that the lead may have contaminated my property, including the ~$1000 fermentor that was almost brand new.
    Can I sue these guys for either personal injury, falsely stating their product has no lead, property to damage (in small claims), or pain and suffering (as evidenced by my high BP in urgent care)?

    I am fairly confident I will suffer health effects due to their negligence, but besides the tremor, these will most likely not manifest for decades, and are only backed up by research. If I were to send the broken device to an analytical lab, I am very confident they will document excess lead, based off my two chemical at-home tests, and visual inspection.

  2. #2
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    Contact a good personal injury lawyer

  3. #3
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    Are you sure your high level of lead hasn't come from someplace else? Every place I checked states that there thermo hydrometers are non-mercury and lead-free.

    This may cost you a lot of money to file suit and in the end, come out with nothing. You may want to go back to the vendors web-site and buy 3 more thermo hydrometers. Recheck one yourself, send one out to a lab and keep one in a safe place in case the one sent to a lab comes back positive for lead.

  4. #4

    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    Quote Quoting Who'sThatGuy
    View Post
    Are you sure your high level of lead hasn't come from someplace else? Every place I checked states that there thermo hydrometers are non-mercury and lead-free.

    This may cost you a lot of money to file suit and in the end, come out with nothing. You may want to go back to the vendors web-site and buy 3 more thermo hydrometers. Recheck one yourself, send one out to a lab and keep one in a safe place in case the one sent to a lab comes back positive for lead.
    I do not think there is a way to conclusively prove that my elevated blood lead levels were a result of this incident. The facts we have to work with are 1) I purchased that device from them, as evidenced by the receipt 2) the device contained lead, according to multiple chemical tests 3) the device failed during normal use, releasing toxic material into food/beverage 4) I ingested a solution that had been exposed to the lead at high temperature for 90 min. 5) a blood test conducted by a physician shortly after demonstrated elevated lead levels.

    Thankfully, I pre-emptively bought additional thermo hydrometers for the exact reason you stated. I am debating sending one of the new, sealed ones to EMS analytical for mass spectrometry analysis, although this would cost around $100 for dubious benefit.

    The way I see it, there are 2 options: 1) sue for personal injury for continued damage over the course of my lifetime (although this would depend on whether the courts accept expert opinion and scientific studies) 2) sue for property damage as a result of toxic contamination. In this case, I *think* the case would be pretty straight forward if an analytical lab proved the food-device contained lead.

    Any way I look at it, I feel pretty screwed by their gross negligence on this, and with really little way to recoup my losses and medical expenses I'll end up having to pay if I face problems down the road.

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    1) sue for personal injury for continued damage over the course of my lifetime
    Back up the pick up, son.

    What actual damage have you suffered directly from this incident? No, I don't want to hear "I drank something that had lead in it!" That's not necessarily an injury. What actual injury are we talking about? Have you gone blind? Got brain damage? Suffered paralysis? Brittle bones? Encephalopathy? Parasthesia? Kidney failure? Liver failure? Seizures? Hair falling out?

    My guess here is that you've not experienced ANY of these, because you weren't exposed to enough lead for this to be an issue. And in fact, living in an industrialized society as we do, you are exposed to more lead on a daily basis just from going outside - and it's still not enough to cause that level of injury. No, not even your "tremor", which given your overwrought tone here, is likely entirely psychosomatic.

    Certainly, consult a personal injury attorney, but be prepared to be told to stop panicking and go home.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    For all we know, you could have been eating old house paint.

  7. #7
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    Quote Quoting LawResearcherMissy
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    Certainly, consult a personal injury attorney, but be prepared to be told to stop panicking and go home.
    Why not? "Sure I'll take your case. Write me a check for a $25,000 retainer and I'll get the ball rolling for you. I can bill you at an hourly rate of $450".


    AnxiousStudent,

    if you're really thinking of suing, you better get that second thermo hydrometer to an independent lab and the broken one sealed and sent to an attorney. Also seal your metal fermentor and any brew from that batch the possible lead poisoning had come from.

  8. #8

    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    Quote Quoting LawResearcherMissy
    View Post
    Back up the pick up, son.

    What actual damage have you suffered directly from this incident? No, I don't want to hear "I drank something that had lead in it!" That's not necessarily an injury. What actual injury are we talking about? Have you gone blind? Got brain damage? Suffered paralysis? Brittle bones? Encephalopathy? Parasthesia? Kidney failure? Liver failure? Seizures? Hair falling out?

    My guess here is that you've not experienced ANY of these, because you weren't exposed to enough lead for this to be an issue. And in fact, living in an industrialized society as we do, you are exposed to more lead on a daily basis just from going outside - and it's still not enough to cause that level of injury. No, not even your "tremor", which given your overwrought tone here, is likely entirely psychosomatic.

    Certainly, consult a personal injury attorney, but be prepared to be told to stop panicking and go home.
    I see you're point, but understand this: Just because you cannot see and quantify the damage now, does not mean it isn't there.

    There is a significant amount of peer reviewed science showing that the lead levels I have are harmful. Here's one of many: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0918192146.htm .

    "Compared to participants with blood lead below 1.9 µg/dL, participants with blood lead between 3.6 µg/dL and 10 µg/dL had:

    a 25 percent higher risk of death from any cause
    a 55 percent higher risk of death from cardiovascular diseases
    an 89 percent higher risk of death from heart attack
    two and a half times the risk of death from stroke"

    If I were to tell someone that there is a 25% chance their life was going to be cut short by the gross negligence of a company, they'd probably be upset too. That study was published in Circulation with a sample size of 13,946, fyi.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Quoting Who'sThatGuy
    View Post
    Why not? "Sure I'll take your case. Write me a check for a $25,000 retainer and I'll get the ball rolling for you. I can bill you at an hourly rate of $450".


    AnxiousStudent,

    if you're really thinking of suing, you better get that second thermo hydrometer to an independent lab and the broken one sealed and sent to an attorney. Also seal your metal fermentor and any brew from that batch the possible lead poisoning had come from.
    Yea I agree. It is definitely being sealed. Even if nothing comes of this, I will not use it again, as I'd rather take a big $$$ hit than have people get sick from it.

  9. #9
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    How about the CPSC....

    So far you have evidence of a panic attack? No actual evidence of lead in the thermometer. No actual evidence of injury caused by lead. You need more than that.

  10. #10
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    Default Re: Exposed to Toxic Food Preparation Device Labeled "Food Grade" but Containing Lead

    I see you're point, but understand this: Just because you cannot see and quantify the damage now, does not mean it isn't there.
    Oh, sweetie.

    The courts don't work that way. If the damage isn't quantifiable, there isn't any damage, as far as the courts are concerned.

    If you live anywhere near a factory - and unless you live in West Middle Of Nowhere, you do - you're getting exposed to greater levels of lead DAILY than what you accidentally ingested. But if it will make you feel better to spend a lot of money to get a court to tell you what I just did, you go right ahead. It's your wallet.

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