Lead Poisoning Facts

Lead, the toxic metal known to be harmful to man, has been sneaking unoticed into the bloodstreams of millions of Americans over many years. It seeps insidiously into our water risking the lives of our unborn and our children, often going unnoticed until it's too late. It enters our homes on the feet of every occupant, picked up from the soil outside. It can cover the work clothes of mechanics, plumbers, lead smelter workers, and other high risk occupations. The same clothes that we wash along with our children's clothes, unknowingly endangering them.

Childhood lead poisoning is the number one environmental health risk for children today. In the United States, more than three million children age six and younger -- that's one out of six -- already have toxic levels of lead in their bodies.

Lead interferes with the development and functioning of almost all body organs, and retards the development of the central nervous system and brain. Lead is sometimes called, "brain poison."

Even tiny amounts of lead can cause reduced IQ, reading and learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder and behavioral problems. As a result, lead poisoning is associated with lower educational achievement, higher school drop-out rates, and increased delinquency. It is estimated that lead poisoning has tripled the number of children needing special education.

80% of childhood lead poisoning occurs at home. Many homeowners are not aware of the hazards associated with lead-based paint and unknowingly poison their own children by not following safe work practices during renovation or by not attending to deteriorating and/or chipping paint.

While it is true that many kids get poisoned by eating paint chips -- they taste sweet -- most children are poisoned by invisible lead dust created when lead paint deteriorates from age, is exposed to the elements, is damaged by water, is exposed by friction (such as the opening and closing of a door or window), or during home renovation.

In Adults -- Most adults are poisoned at work. There are laws that seek to prevent this, but many are not yet widely enforced. Any employee who may be exposed to lead in any amount, should have personal air sampling done. (For more information about the OSHA Lead in Construction standard, go to UPDATE.)

How big is the problem? According to the Centers for Disease Control, childhood lead poisoning is the number one environmental health risk facing children in industrialized countries today. In the United States, more than three million children age six and younger-- that's one out of every six children -- already have toxic levels of lead in their bodies.

Lead is an invisible enemy, often in the form of simple dust that enters our home. Dust that can be both inhaled or ingested especially by young children who tend to put everything in their mouths.

In other words lead poisoning is still a very real threat present in our environment, damaging the brains and nervous system of many of it's victims, the majority of which are children.

Of great concern is our water supply. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) estimates that about forty two million Americans use household water that contains unsafe levels of lead. Precisely, levels in excess of 15 ppb (parts per billion), which is the highest recommended safety level. However, there is no truly safe level of lead, because it does not belong in the human body, and it does not leave our bodies once it has entered. Instead, it is stored just like calcium and other minerals in the bone matter where it continues to build up over our lifetime.

It's no wonder that as many as one out of eleven children in the United States have dangerously high levels of lead in their bloodstream according to the EPA. Some other sources suggest this number is as great as one in eight children!

As hard as this is to believe, the facts are very real. Lead is decreasing the I.Q.'s of many young victims, creating learning disabilities, such as speech and behavior problems, not to mention hearing loss, muscular coordination problems, and much more.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that regular lead screening should be done on children up to age six, with the first test done between six to twelve months of age. However, it has been my personal experience that Pediatricians are not routinely checking for lead in children. Certainly none have ever suggested it to me, and my children have seen a dozen different Pediatrician's over the years.

It appears that few people really believe their families are at risk and feel their homes are safe. The reality is however, that your home's water probably does contain lead in some amount, and in fact, an estimated 10 million children receive significantly high amounts of lead in their drinking water in our country every day.