|
|
 |
Don’t play around, get the lead out
Last year, American consumers experienced a flood of recalls – toy after toy pulled from the shelves for safety reasons. Most of those toys had unsafe lead levels in their paint, and recalls involved major manufacturers as well as deep-discount retailers selling cheap knock-offs. Alarmed parents invaded playrooms, trash bags in hand and ready for action – not a bad idea, really. But how do you know what’s dangerous? And how dangerous is it? |
What’s the fuss?
First, what is lead poisoning, and how does it happen?
Clinically, lead poisoning is a blood lead level at or over 10 micrograms per deciliter – about 28 millionths of an ounce for every five pints of blood. The average two-year-old only has two and a half pints of blood, give or take a couple of ounces, so lead dust equal to just one grain of salt will cause a small child to register an elevated lead level.
Children under six are most vulnerable to the effects of lead poisoning because their brains and central nervous systems are still forming, and one- to two-year-olds have the greatest risk. Lead is usually ingested by hand-to-mouth activity, which is unavoidable with toddlers. It also can be inhaled as lead-contaminated dust.
Lead can cross from a pregnant woman’s bloodstream into the placenta, where it’s absorbed by the baby. In fact, lead can be stored for years in bone marrow, and just being pregnant can cause lead to be released into the mother’s – and baby’s – system.
Even low levels of lead exposure can cause serious developmental problems, including:
- Hearing difficulties
- Kidney damage
- Stunted growth
- Learning disabilities
- Attention deficit disorder and behavior problems
- Lowered IQ
Exposure to higher lead levels can result in mental retardation and even coma and death. And by the time a child shows any symptoms, the damage has begun. The only prevention is to identify and remove the source.
Where’s it coming from?
It’s true that toys may be risky. Lead has been banned since 1978 in American-made house paint, dishes, cookware, and anything marketed to children, but it’s still used in other countries, so imported toys may have lead-based paint. Old toys like the ones in Grandma’s attic may also contain lead.
Lead is the ingredient in plastic that softens it and makes it more pliable. Because lead bonds with the other molecules, it’s not ordinarily a hazard, but as plastic is exposed to sunlight, detergents, and even air, the chemical bond breaks down and the lead is released in a fine dust. For that reason, you should throw plastic out when it shows the first signs of age.
The obvious sources aren’t the only ones, though. Parents should also be aware of these dangers:
- Paint in houses built before 1978 – the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that 25 percent of U.S. housing contains significant quantities of deteriorating lead paint or lead-contaminated dust
- Bare soil that’s close to those houses
- Hot tap water, which may run through old lead pipes, copper pipes joined with lead solder, or brass faucets
- Old cookware, crystal, and china
- Work and hobbies that involve using lead, like welding, handling lead fishing weights, or working with stained glass
- Common household objects like curtain weights, which contain enough lead to be fatal if they’re swallowed
Taking charge
If you’re concerned about the possibility of lead in toys or other household items, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says you should remove them from your child’s reach immediately. Have them professionally tested if you want to check lead content. Home test kits are available, but they don’t show the amount of lead in the item you’re testing, and they’re generally considered unreliable. If you think your child has been exposed to lead, call your doctor to help decide if the child needs to be tested.
Of course, prevention is the best solution, and the following suggestions can help:
- If you live in a house built before 1978, have your paint tested. If you’re remodeling, make sure to protect kids, pets, and pregnant women from exposure to the paint and dust. They shouldn’t be close to the area, let alone in it!
- Use cold tap water as much as possible for cooking, drinking, and baby formula, since it doesn’t retain lead like hot water.
- Use lead-free cookware, dishes, and storage containers, and don’t let children use crystal glasses.
- Wash children’s hands and toys frequently.
- Shower and change clothes immediately after doing anything that involves possible lead exposure, like fishing, going to a firing range, or working on a remodeling project.
- Regularly check the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Website
 – for recalls.
Well-nourished kids are less likely to absorb lead into their bloodstreams. Nutrients that can help protect your kids from lead poisoning include:
- Calcium – dairy products, leafy greens, sardines, salmon, tofu, peanuts
- Iron – lean meat and poultry, oatmeal, split peas, beans, raisins, dates, prunes, collard greens, kale
- Vitamin C – kiwi and citrus fruits, fruit juice, strawberries, tomatoes, bell peppers, collard greens, broccoli
- Zinc – beef, oysters, clams, cashews, sunflower seeds
The bottom line
Lead exposure is tremendously dangerous, especially to children, but you can prevent it. The keys are to keep little ones away from places where lead dust might be, watch carefully for deteriorating paint and plastic, wash often, and feed well!
For more information:
CDC National Center for Environmental Health Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program:
NSC:
Health Canada:
|
|
Humana.com Home
Explore MyHumana
