David Hambling at Danger Room:
Over 90 million rounds of the “green” training ammunition has been used in the United States, since its introduction. It relies on a blend of tungsten and nylon, or tungsten and tin. That gives the bullets the same density and firing properties as the original, but without using lead. Tungsten was considered non-toxic. And, besides, it was believed that it was “non-mobile”, unlikely to dissolve and travel, so it wouldn’t get into the groundwater.
But new research by University of Arizona Research Professor of Pediatrics Mark Witten points to a different conclusion: that tungsten may elevate the risk for cancer.
Screw the bullets! What about my darts? How many hours have I spent in pubs rubbing cancer all over my fingers?
as someone currently wearing a tungsten wedding ring, I am not happy about this news.
i too have a tungsten wedding ring, and aside from the realization that if I ever hurt my finger and it swells, that the EMTs will not be able to cut the ring off and I will likely lose my finger…this adds to the possibility that I may have made a mistake in my choice of metals for my ring.
Bullets designed to train people to kill people may kill people?
Another tungsten ring wearer here.
From the article i gather that it’s ingesting dissolved tungsten and dust inhalation that creates the danger.
I’m no expert on such things but I’d guess that due to the strength of the ring the absorption through the skin would be minimal.
Gee, I’d hate to get cancer after being shot to death with one of these bullets.
“there’s no cure, there’s no answer, everything gives you cancer”
HAHAHA! BULLETS THAT GIVE YOU CANCER.
/what? It’s funny.
Metal poisoning is more or less equal. Certainly the treatment is:
http://en.wikipedia.org/Chelation_therapy.html
I imagine the ability to spread in the environment varies little, if at all, and even then probably by weight and/or “rubbing off”
RE: swelling/medical emergencies with tungsten rings
Tungsten carbide, while highly scratch-resistant, is also a brittle metal. Properly trained medical personnel know that all it takes to remove a tungsten ring stuck on a swollen finger is a pair of vice-grips. Used correctly, they safely remove the ring without causing further injury. In addition, many tungsten rings are designed with weak points to make this breaking easier if necessary.
Finally, the fact that the metal will not bend but rather break if subjected to force makes it safer in many respects to traditional metals, which can easily bend and restrict blood flow and cause extraneous damage to a finger when subjected to pressure. For example, hitting a traditional ring with a hammer could conceivably result in a lost finger due to the damage caused by the ring bending, while hitting a tungsten ring with a hammer will result in a broken ring and a sore finger.
oh!! take it lightly… there is something new everyday they discovers…i am tungsten ring follower… i have some good collection of tungsten ring . for more information you can follow following
http://www.tungstenring-shop.com/
regards
sam
The only danger with tungsten rings causing cancer is if the manufacturer uses a cobalt binder instead of nickel, otherwise it is safe.
i think if you buy tungsten ring with reliable brand then there is nothing serious abt that matter.. you can take confirmation letter or memo from shop… that it is a pure tungsten made…
regards
cleon dann