Welding galvanized steel creates zinc oxide fumes. If these fumes are inhaled in sufficient quantity, a condition called "metal fume fever" can develop. This is the result of irritation of the airways and the release of damaged proteins into the blood provoking an immune reaction. Symptoms are much like the flu. It will not kill you but you may wish you were dead for 24 to 48 hours or so.
Milk will NOT prevent the condition from developing. (You aren't eating the zinc, you are inhaling it.) Milk may be helpful in settling the stomach and reducing the nausea that is one component of the fever.
Zinc is NOT a carcinogen. It is an essential nutrient. You can buy it in the vitamin section of any supermarket or pharmacy. You can spread zinc oxide on your lips and face to ward off high alpine sunburn. As with any substance, ingesting too much zinc can lead to high blood concentrations, which MAY contribute to some of the misery of metal fume fever. But the main cause of metal fume fever is irritation of the airways.
Metal fume fever can develop from other metals besides zinc. Some of these really are carcinogens and can cause lasting damage beyond the acute sickness. Chromium, lead, and beryllium are examples.
Do a google search on "metal fume fever" and read the material for yourself.
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Today's Featured Article - Third Brush Generators - by Chris Pratt. While I love straightening sheet metal, cleaning, and painting old tractors, I use every excuse to avoid working on the on the electrics. I find the whole process sheer mystery. I have picked up and attempted to read every auto and farm electrics book with no improvement in the situation. They all seem to start with a chapter entitled "Theory of Electricity". After a few paragraphs I usually close the book and go back to banging out dents. A good friend and I were recently discussing our tractor electrical systems when he stated "I figure it all comes back to applying Ohms Law". At this point
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