09/03/99

Lead Poisoning

Q: My grandsons were lead poisoned in a house we rented two years ago, and the house is the same today as it was the day we left it. Now the landlord just had a new baby and it lives in this horrendous environment. It is a small farm, and when I had the buildings tested for lead, they all registered very high. My grandsons' blood levels for lead were 54 and 58, so they required treatment. I know a woman who gives riding lessons on a nearby farm where the soil is also contaminated with lead. Both my grandsons have been badly affected by this, and I don't want other children to go through it. I've reported the owners of these properties, but so far the cases against them have gone on for many months, and nothing has been done to correct the situation. Can you help?

A: In addition to encouraging you to badger the prosecutor to press on with the case and hold the landowners legally responsible to remove the contaminants, I can and will try to educate readers of this column to the dangers of lead poisoning, its continued threat to people's health in this country, and to preventative measures everyone can take to reduce the possibilities of health risks from lead to themselves and their families.

I collected the following information about lead use, lead poisoning and prevention from various Internet sites, listed at the end of this article.

First, some facts you should know about lead poisoning:

• Lead was banned in residential paint in 1978, but about 60 million homes still contain lead paint. Most houses and apartments built before 1978 contain lead-based paint.
• Three-quarters of the nation's housing contains lead paint
• Lead poisoning is a serious disease

• Children under six are most at risk
• Lead poisoning is preventable
• Most lead poisoning happens at home

• The primary cause is tiny particles of lead dust from deteriorated paint or when paint is disturbed during renovation
• Children from every region, race and socioeconomic level are at risk
• Lead poisoning causes learning and developmental disabilities

• There are usually no symptoms
• Even children who appear healthy can have dangerous levels of lead in their blood
• Lead poisoning affects adults as well as kids

In the US, more than three million children aged six and under already have toxic levels of lead in their bodies (that's one our of every six children in this age group.) Lead is a powerful neurotoxin that interferes with the development and functioning of almost all body organs, particularly the kidneys, red blood cells and central nervous system. In young children, lead retards the development of the central nervous system and brain. Exposure over a long period of time can cause weakness and loss of coordination and mental powers. Lead can also be injurious to bone marrow.

Even tiny amounts of lead can cause reduced IQ, reading and learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder and behavioral problems. Lead poisoning is associated with lower educational achievement and higher rates of school dropouts.

Invisible lead dust is just as hazardous as paint chips. The lead dust is created when lead paint deteriorates from age, exposure to the elements, from water damage, friction (from opening and closing painted windows) or during home renovation. Even small repair and renovation jobs, including repainting projects, can create enough lead dust and chips to harm you. If proper precautions are not taken, renovation, remodeling and maintenance, including repainting, can generate large amounts of lead-contaminated dust and soil.

Drinking water can also contain lead, especially in homes with faucets or fittings made of brass (which contains lead) or homes having pipes with lead-soldered joints. It is estimated that lead in drinking water contributes between ten and twenty percent of total lead exposure in young children. If your water source is a well with a submerged pump, you should stop using the water and have it tested. In 1986, President Reagan signed amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act that require the use of lead-free pipe, solder and flux in the installation or repair of plumbing systems connected to public water systems. Prior to that time, most solder contained about 50% lead.

PREVENTION:

Home test kits are available but their accuracy has not yet been proven, so it's best to have professional testing done (of lead in paint, soil, dust and water.)

To minimize lead in drinking water, flush your pipes with cold water and don't use water that has been sitting in the pipes for over six hours. Once flushed, fill a container and put it in the refrigerator for later use. Use only cold water for drinking, and especially for making baby formula. Never cook with or consume water from the hot-water tap. (Hot water dissolves lead more easily and is therefore more likely to contain higher levels of lead.) Always use the cold water tap for drinking and cooking.

Scientific data indicates that the newer the home, the greater the risk of lead contamination from pipe solder, because lead levels decrease as a building ages. As time passes mineral deposits form a coating on the inside of the pipes (if the water is not corrosive), a coating that insulates water from the solder. The risk of lead in drinking water is also high in very old homes (plumbing installed before 1930 most likely contains lead.)

If you suspect that you have lead-based paint, avoid dry scraping, sanding or using a heat gun on painted surfaces before repainting; avoid making holes in walls to get at pipes or tearing out walls; guard against furniture or other objects bumping up against painted surfaces or unnecessarily opening and closing windows and doors with painted frames and sills.

If you do repairs or renovations in areas you know or suspect have lead-based paint, move children and pregnant women to another apartment or house until the work is completed and the area is properly cleaned; seal off the work area with heavy plastic and duct tape and cover AC/heating ducts, furniture, carpets, rugs and floors. To keep dust down, lightly mist painted surfaces with water before you work on them. Clean up thoroughly with mops or rags soaked in a solution of TSP or phosphate containing dishwasher detergent (while wearing rubber gloves.) Avoid dry sweeping or regular vacuuming that spreads the dust around.

The safest time to remove lead paint is when the home is unoccupied.

If you have already done such repairs or renovations and have not taken the above precautions, clean the area thoroughly and have children under six years of age tested for lead contamination (by doctor or local health department.)

The Environmental Protection Agency monitors lead levels in the drinking water in thousands of communities in the US, requiring corrective action if lead levels or other contaminants exceed established safety limits. State and local monitoring programs are also in place. Federal standards limit the amount of lead in water to 50 parts per billion. The EPA has proposed tightening this standard to 20 parts per billion.

Regulatory agencies need to continue their vigilance, of course. Childhood lead poisoning prevention programs need to work closely with other relevant agencies, such as housing and environmental agencies, to ensure that the quickest and most effective approach is taken to remediate the environments that contain dangerous contaminants. But individuals also need to protect themselves and their families from lead poisoning by taking action based on the best information they can gather on their own.

LINKS:

Preventing Lead Poisoning in Children

Lead Facts

Environmental Health Center: Lead Poisoning and Prevention

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.