Washington, Sep 10 - Studies have linked exposure to environmental lead with cardiovascular diseases. However, they have looked at lead concentrations in blood, not bone, which is a better indicator of cumulative lead exposure, says a new study.

Researchers from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the University of Michigan School of Public Health (U-MSPH) found that bone lead was associated with a higher risk of death from all causes, particularly from cardiovascular diseases.

'The findings with bone lead are dramatic. It is the first time we have had a biomarker of cumulative exposure to lead and the strong findings suggest that past exposures to lead represent an important predictor of cardiovascular death,' said Marc Weisskopf.

Weisskopf is assistant professor of environmental and occupational epidemiology at HSPH and lead author of the study.