£EPA
United States 800-B-92-0002
Environmental September 1992
Protection Agency
ead Poisoning
And Your
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Lead awareness and your children
About one in six children in Amenca have high
levels of lead in their blood, according to the Agen-
cy for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry You
may have lead around your building without know-
ing it because you can ‘t see, taste, or smell lead.
You may have lead in the dust, paint, or soil in and
around your home, or in your dnnking water or
food. Because it does not break down naturally, lead
can remain a problem until it is removed
Before we knew how harmful it could be, lead
was used in paint, gasoline, water pipes, and many
other products. Now that we know the dangers of
lead, house paint is almost lead-free, leaded gasoline
is being phased out, and household plumbing is no
longer made with lead matenals.
How lead affects your child’s health
The long term effects of lead in a child can be
severe. They include learning disabilities, decreased
growth, hyperactivity, impaired hewing, and even
brain damage If caught early, these effects can be
limited by reducing exposure to lead or by medical
treatment. If you are pregnant, avoid exposing your-
self to lead. Lead can pass through your body to
your baby. The good news is that there are simple
things you can do to help protect your family
1. Get your child tested.
Even ch,kfren who appear healthy may have high
levels of lead You can t tell if a child has lead poi-
soning unless you have him or her tested A blood
test takes only ten minutes, and results should be ready
within a week.
/ The Centers for Disease Control recommend
that children be tested for the first time when
they are a year old, or at six months if you think
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your home has lead in it or if you live in an
older building.
/ Children older than one year should have a blood
test every couple of years—every year if your
house or apartment contains lead paint, or if you
use lead in your job or hobby.
/ To find out where to have your child tested, call
your doctor or local health clinic.
2* Keep it clean.
Ordinary dust and dirt may contain lead.
Children can swallow lead or breathe lead contami-
nated dust if they play in dust or dirt and then put
their fingers or toys in their mouths, or if they eat
without washing their hands first.
/ Keep the areas where your children play as dust-
free and clean as possible.
/ Wash pacifiers and bottles after they fall on the
floor. Keep extras handy.
/ Mop floors and wipe window ledges and
chewable surfaces such as cribs with a
solution of powdered automatic dishwasher
detergent in warm water. Do this twice each
week. Wear gloves to avoid possible skin
irritation. (Dishwasher detergents are recom-
mended because of their high-phosphate con-
tent. Most multi-purpose cleaners do not
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contain phosphates and are not effective in
cleaning lead dust)
/ Wash toys and stuffed animals regularly
/ Make sure your children wash their hands before
meals, nap time, and bed time
3. Reduce the risk from lead paint.
Most homes built before 1960 contain heavily
leaded paint Some homes built as recently as 1978
may also contain lead paint This paint could be on
window frames, walls, the outside of your house, or
other surfaces Tiny pieces of peeling or chipping
lead paint are dangerous if eaten Lead paint in
good condition is not usually a problem except in
places where painted surfaces rub against each other
and create dust (For example, when you open a
window, the painted surfaces rub against each other)
/ Make sure your child does not chew on anything
covered with lead paint, such as painted window
sills, cribs, or playpens
/ Don’t burn painted wood. It may contain lead
4. Don’t remove lead paint yourself.
Families have been poisoned by scraping or
sanding lead paint because these activities generate
large amounts of lead dust. Lead dust from repairs
or renovations of older buildings can remain in the
building long after the work is completed Heating
lead paint may release lead into the air.
/ Ask your local or state health department if they
will test your home for lead paint. Some will
test for free Home test kits cannot detect small
amounts of lead under some conditions
/ Hire a person with special training for correcting
lead paint problems to remove lead paint from
your home, someone who knows how to do this
work safely and has the proper equipment to
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clean up thoroughly Don’t try to remove lead
paint yourself
/ All occupants, especially children and pregnant
women, should leave the building until all work
is finished and a thorough cleanup is done
5. Don’t bring lead dust into your
home.
If you work in construction, demolition or
painting, with batteries, or in a radiator repair shop or
lead factory, or if your hobby involves lead, you may
unknowingly bnng lead into your home on your
hands or clothes You may also be tracking in lead
from the soil around your home Soil very close to
homes may be contaminated from lead paint on the
outside of the building Soil by roads or highways
may be contaminated from years of exhaust fumes
from cars and trucks that used leaded gas
/ If you work with lead in your job or a hobby,
change your clothes before you go home
/ Encourage your children to play in sand or grassy
areas instead of dirt which sticks to fingers and
toys Try to keep your children from eating dirt,
and make sure they wash their hands when they
come inside.
6. Get lead out of your drinking
water.
Most well or city water does not naturally
contain lead Water usually picks up lead inside
your home from household plumbing that is made
with lead materials Boiling the water will not
reduce the amount of lead. Bathing is not a problem
because lead does not enter the body through the
skin
/ The only way to know if you have lead in your
water is to have it tested Call your local health
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department or your water supplier to see how
to get it tested. Testing your water is easy and
cheap ($l5-S25).
/ Household water will contain more lead if it
has sat for a long time in the pipes. is hot, or
is naturally acidic.
/ If your water has not been tested or has high
levels of lead:
1) do not drink, cook. or make baby forniula
with water from the hot water tap.
2) if the cold water hasn ’t been used for more
than two hours. run it for 30 to 60 seconds
before drinking ii or using it for cooking.
3 consider buying a filter certified for lead
removal. Call EPA ’s Safe Drinking Water
Hoti inc for iii re information.
7. Eat right.
A child who nets enout li iron and calcium
will absorb less lead. Foods rich in iron include
eggs, lean red meat, and hean . Dairy products are
high in calcium.
I Don’t shire food or liquid in lead crystal glass-
ware or imported or old pottery.
/ It you reuse plastic bags to store or carry food,
keep the printing on the outside of the hag.
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Don’t bring lead
dust into your
home from work
or a hobby.
Have your water
tested. If the cold
water hasn’t been
used for more
than 2 hours, let it
run for 30-60 sec-
onds before drink-
ing it or using it
for cooking.
Eat right and
don’ t store food
in high-lead
pottery.
children the younger the child, the greater the risk.
For More Information
EP%s Safc Drinking ;i1 r hot line
for i nforniation on laboratories certi lied to test
for lead in water and for filter information
1-800-426-4791
atioi.aiI lead 1,iforuii;.lio.i (euilei’
(funded by the Environmental Protection Agency. Centers tor Disease
Control, Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, and 1)ept. of l)cfense
I -800-LE%i)IYl
nited States Finv ironmental Protection Agciic I ( )l fee of Pollution Prevention and Toxics I Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water
11
7
Lead poisoning is a serious problem for young
br local ilIbor.llal loll. con la( l:
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