" Lead is Harmful to your Health
and especially Children "
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About
1 in 11 children in America have
elevated levels of lead in their blood according to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. You may have lead in and around your
house without knowing it because you can't see, smell, or taste, lead.
You may have lead in the dust, paint, soil or in your drinking water
and food. Because it does not break down naturally, lead can
remain a problem until it is removed.
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The
long term effects of lead in a child can be severe. They include
learning disabilities, decreased growth, hyperactivity, impaired
hearing, and brain damage. If caught early, these effects
can be limited by reducing exposure or by medical treatment.
If you are pregnant, avoid exposing yourself to lead. Lead can
pass through your body to your baby .
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In previous discussions with Gary Jones
(former Director Indoor Air Lead Branch Division of Community
Environmental Protection, State of Alabama Department of Public Health)
it was stated that on the average, FIVE lead poisoning incidents are reported to the State Department of Public Health each month and this is just in the state of Alabama.
Paint used in homes prior to 1960 could have been painted with paint containing concentrations of lead up to 50% by weight. Lead was removed from paint in 1978; it had been removed in France and many
other countries before 1920. Before
31 December 1995 it was legal to sell for use in on-road vehicles
gasoline which contained lead or lead additives which also found its way into our environment (to included soil).
If lead is ingested, adults will absorb approximately 10% and pass on
the rest. CHILDREN on the other hand, will absorb up to 50% and
since their body mass is much less than an adult the same amount
absorbed will have a greater impact on children. Remember
that a crawling infant will have a far greater exposure to any dust
(lead or otherwise) then an adult wearing shoes and socks who
spends less time on the carpet.
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How Much Lead Does It Take?
Not very much ... The generally accepted definition of lead poisoning is:
No greater than 10 micro grams per deciliter of blood in children under 6.
Here's an easy way to visualize it.
- A deciliter is about 1/2 of a cup. (an infant has beetween 4-5 deciliters of blood)
- A packet of low calorie sweetener (pink or blue stuff) is 1 gram.
- There are one million micro grams in a gram.
- So, divide the contents of just one packet into a million piles.
- Now, discard them all but 10 "piles" of remaining dust.
- Mix the 10 micro grams into that half cup.
That's roughly how much lead it takes to poison a child. It is
not a question of paint chips but rather paint dust. Obviously,
body size and age play a role, but - as you can see - it doesn't take much!
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Sites with information on Lead and Lead Poisoning
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