LSAT 142 – Section 1 – Question 09

LSAT 142 - Section 1 - Question 09

December 2014

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT142 S1 Q09
+LR
Resolve reconcile or explain +RRE
Causal Reasoning +CausR
Net Effect +NetEff
A
0%
148
B
1%
153
C
1%
155
D
4%
157
E
93%
164
128
138
147
 +Easier 145.991 +SubsectionMedium

Many calcium supplements contain lead, a potentially dangerous substance even in small amounts. The body can safely store in bones trace amounts of lead from food, but high levels of lead in the blood are a major public health concern, associated with anemia and nerve damage. Despite this, many doctors contend that for some people calcium supplements containing lead are preferable to no calcium supplements at all.

"Surprising" Phenomenon
Why do doctors argue that, for some people, calcium supplements with lead are better than no calcium supplements, even though even small amounts of lead can be harmful?

Objective
The correct answer will be a hypothesis that explains a key difference between taking calcium supplements with lead and not taking calcium at all. That difference must show that, for some people, not taking calcium at all has even worse consequences than taking calcium supplements that may contain lead.

A
Some fruits and vegetables contain trace amounts of lead derived from the soil in which they are grown.
This doesn’t explain why not taking calcium at all might have even worse consequences than taking calcium supplements that may contain lead. Also, the stimulus tells us that the body can safely store trace amounts of lead from food anyway.
B
It is difficult to ensure that one has completely eliminated trace amounts of lead from one’s diet.
Again, this does not provide an explanation that might resolve the discrepancy. We need a reason why doctors support taking calcium supplements with lead rather than not taking calcium at all. We aren’t concerned with whether someone can completely eliminate lead from their diet.
C
Lead is only one of the common public health concerns that are associated with anemia and nerve damage.
There may be many other public health concerns that cause anemia and nerve damage, but we are only concerned with lead. We still need an explanation for why not taking calcium is worse for some people than taking calcium that contains lead.
D
A high-calcium diet decreases the amount of lead that the body is able to tolerate safely.
This increases the discrepancy by suggesting that calcium might actually reduce people’s ability to tolerate lead. We need a reason why calcium supplements are so essential for some people that it’s better to take ones with lead than to not take them at all.
E
When calcium intake is insufficient, the body draws calcium from bones, releasing stored lead into the bloodstream.
This explains why, for some people, not taking calcium at all is worse than taking calcium supplements with lead. Without enough calcium, the body pulls calcium from the bones, releasing stored lead into the bloodstream, which can lead to anemia and nerve damage.

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LSAT PrepTest 142 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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