Lead Screening and Health Risks

Lead poisoning is the number one environmental danger facing children today... and it’s entirely preventable. When lead is absorbed into the body, it is highly toxic to many organs and systems. U.S. lead can be found in paint, dust, soil, water, air, and food. More commonly in the U.S., children are poisoned through chronic, low-level exposure. For children at risk for lead exposure, a simple blood test can prevent a lifetime spoiled by the irreversible damage caused by lead poisoning.

Symptoms of chronic exposure to lead include:

One of the most important risk factors for lead exposure is the age of housing. Over 80 percent of all homes built before 1978 in the U.S. have lead-based paint in them. The older the house, the more likely it is to contain lead-based paint, and a higher concentration of lead in the paint.

Lead is most harmful to children under age six because lead is easily absorbed into their growing bodies, and interferes with the developing brain and other organs and systems. Children between 12 and 36 months of age have a lot of hand to mouth activity, so if there is lead in their homes, they are more likely to take it in than are older children.

Pregnant women and women of childbearing age are also at increased risk, because lead ingested by the mother can cross the placenta and affect the unborn fetus.

According to recent Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates, 890,000 U.S. children age 1-5 have elevated blood lead levels, and more than one-fifth of African-American children living in housing built before 1946 have elevated blood lead levels. These figures reflect the major sources of lead exposure: deteriorated paint in older housing, and dust and soil that are contaminated with lead from old paint and from past emissions of leaded gasoline.

Lead poisoning can cause learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and at very high levels, seizures, coma, and even death.

To reduce risks, keep your home clean and eat a well-balanced diet. In addition, a home risk assessment will tell you where the lead hazards are and what to do about them. Local health departments provide information and/or services in this regard.

For more information on lead screening, call: CCCC Nurse Consultant 1-800-676-2805 or your local health department.

For a listing of local public health departments, refer to the Public Health Departments page.