| Lead is a highly toxic metal and it is all around us. Lead was used for many years in paints and other products found in and around our homes. Lead-based paint and lead contaminated dust are the main sources of exposure for lead in U.S. children. Lead-based paints were banned for use in housing in 1978. There is a good chance that any home, building, school or day care center built before 1978 contains some lead paint. According to the US EPA (www.epa.gov/lead), lead dust/lead poisoning is the #1 environmental health hazard to pregnant women and children under 7 years old. Although lead is toxic to everyone, it is especially toxic to children. Even low levels of lead can cause problems with a child’s growth, behavior, and ability to learn. If you have a home or structure built prior to 1978 you likely have a problem with lead dust and lead based paint. Don’t be fooled, there is NO product on the market that destroys lead; however, you CAN help protect your family by sealing and treating lead dust and lead in lead paint with LeadDefender®. |
Affects of Lead Poisoning
Children
One million children are affected by lead poisoning, but when you know what to look for and what to do, lead poisoning is entirely preventable. If not detected early, children with high levels of lead in their bodies can suffer from:
- Damage to the brain and nervous system
- Behavior and learning problems, such as hyperactivity
- Slowed growth
- Hearing problems
- Headaches
- Anemia
- In rare cases of acute lead poisoning from ingestion of lead, seizures, coma and even death.
Pregnant Women
Lead can accumulate in our bodies over time, where it is stores in bones along with calcium. During pregnancy, lead is released from bones as maternal calcium is used to help form the bones of the fetus. This is particularly true if a woman does not have enough dietary calcium. Lead can also be easily circulated from the mother's blood stream through the placenta to the fetus. Mothers with high levels of lead in their bodies can expose their developing fetuses, resulting in serious and developmental problems including:
- Miscarriages
- Premature births or low birth weight
- Brain damage, decreased mental abilities and learning difficulties
- Reduced growth in young children
Find out more about lead's effects on pregnancy:
March of Dimes Healthy Pregnancy
Effects of Workplace Hazards on Female Reproductive Health,National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Adults
Lead is also harmful to adults. Adults can suffer from:
- Hearing and vision impairment
- Reproductive problems (in both men and women)
- High blood pressure and hypertension
- Nerve disorders
- Memory and concentration problems
- Poor muscle coordination
- Muscle and joint pain