Science Memes

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logs are for quitters (mander.xyz)

submitted 4 days ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 72 points 3 days ago (11 children)

If we could consume uranium, you could have a teaspoon's worth and be done with eating for the rest of your life.

[–] [email protected] 146 points 3 days ago (9 children)

I think that's technically true regardless.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 3 days ago (8 children)

I wonder if that's actually factual or not. Uranium by itself isn't too terribly dangerous. It's the whole fission byproducts thing that's the buzz kill.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 3 days ago (2 children)

You would get heavy metal poisoning, same as if you ate a chunk of lead

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 days ago

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 days ago

Interestingly, no. It's not the same as if you ate a chunk of lead.

Lead binds to calcium channels, and then blocks them. This makes it a bit of a neurotoxin. It also accumulates in the bones.

Uranium on the other hand is one of the heavy metals that the body is good a filtering out of the blood. The body is not as good at expelling the uranium. It accumulates in the kidney. This can lead to kidney disease, and other related issues. And that's just the chemical toxicity of Uranium. Add in the radioactive side of things, and you have a truly distinct form of metal poisoning.

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