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In 1898, Marie and Pierre Curie
discovered radium.
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Claimed to have restorative properties,
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radium was added to toothpaste,
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medicine,
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water,
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and food.
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A glowing, luminous green.
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It was also used in beauty products
and jewelry.
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It wasn't until the mid-19th century
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we realized that radium's harmful
effects as a radioactive element
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outweighed its visual benefits.
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Unfortunately, radium isn't the only
pigment that historically
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seemed harmless or useful
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but turned out to be deadly.
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That lamentable distinction includes
a trio of colors and pigments
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that we've long used to decorate ourselves
and the things we make:
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white,
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green,
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and orange.
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Our story begins with white.
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As far back as the 4th century BCE,
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the Ancient Greeks treated lead to make
the brilliant white pigment we know today.
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The problem?
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In humans, lead is directly absorbed
into the body
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and distributed to the blood,
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soft tissues,
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and mineralized tissues.
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Once in the nervous system,
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lead mimics and disrupts the normal
functions of calcium,
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causing damages ranging
from learning disabilities
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to high blood pressure.
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Yet the practice
of using this toxic pigment
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continued across time and cultures.
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Lead white was the only practical choice
for white oil or tempera paint
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until the 19th century.
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To make their paint, artists would grind
a block of lead into powder,
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exposing highly toxic dust particles.
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The pigment's liberal use resulted
in what was known as painter's colic,
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or what we'd now call lead poisoning.
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Artists who worked with lead complained
of palseys,
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melancholy,
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coughing,
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enlarged retinas,
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and even blindness.
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But lead white's density, opacity,
and warm tone
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were irresistible to artists like Vermeer,
and later, the impressionist.
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It's glow couldn't be matched,
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and the pigment continued to be widely
used until it was banned in the 1970s.
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As bad as all that sounds,
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white's dangerous effects
pale in comparison
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to another,
more wide-spread pigment, green.
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Two synthetic greens called
Scheele's Green and Paris Green
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were first introduced in the 18th century.
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They were far more vibrant and flashy
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than the relatively dull greens
made from natural pigments,
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so they quickly became popular choices
for paint
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as well as dye for textiles,
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wallpaper,
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soaps,
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cake decorations,
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toys,
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candy,
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and clothing.
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These green pigments were made from
a compound called
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cupric hydrogen arsenic.
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In humans, exposure to arsenic
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can damage the way cells
communicate and function.
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And high levels of arsenic have been
directly linked
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to cancer and heart disease.
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As a result, 18th century fabric
factory workers were often poisoned,
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and women in green dresses
reportedly collapsed
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from exposure to arsenic on their skin.
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Bed bugs were rumored not to live
in green rooms,
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and it's even been speculated that
Napoleon died from slow arsenic poisoning
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from sleeping in his green
wallpapered bedroom.
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The intense toxicity of these green
stayed under wraps
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until the arsenic recipe was published
in 1822.
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And a century later, it was repurposed
as an insecticide.
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Synthetic green was probably the most
dangerous color in widespread use,
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but at least it didn't share radium's
property of radioactivity.
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Another color did, though - orange.
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Before World War II, it was common
for manufacturers of ceramic dinnerware
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to use uranium oxide in colored glazes.
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The compound produced brilliant
reds and oranges,
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which were appealing attributes,
if not for the radiation they emitted.
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Of course, radiation was something
we were unaware of until the late 1800s,
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let alone the associated cancer risks,
which we discovered much later.
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During World War II,
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the US Government confiscated all uranium
for use in bomb development.
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However, the atomic energy commission
relaxed these restrictions in 1959,
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and depleted uranium returned to ceramics
and glass factory floors.
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Orange dishes made during
the next decade
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may still have some hazardous qualities
on their surfaces to this day.
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Most notably, vintage fiestaware
reads positive for radioactivity.
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And while the levels are low enough that
they don't officially pose a health risk
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if they're on a shelf,
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the US EPA warns against eating food
off of them.
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Though we still occasionally run
into issues with synthetic food dyes,
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our scientific understanding has helped us
prune hazardous colors out of our lives.