National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week Encourages Testing and Safe Home Repairs to Protect Children’s Health

(October 23, 2013 - Seattle) The E.P.A. acknowledges National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week October 20-26, 2013, to raise awareness of lead poisoning in children. Approximately one million children today are affected by lead poisoning, but when you know what to look for and what to do, lead poisoning is 100% preventable.

Major source of lead exposure among children is lead-based paint, including lead-contaminated dust and paint chips, found in deteriorating buildings. Lead most commonly occurs in the environment as a result of improper repair or renovation of pre-1978 homes. Despite the continued presence of lead in the environment, lead poisoning is preventable.

National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week gives us the opportunity to strengthen our awareness and prevention efforts and ensure parents have the tools they need to protect their children against lead exposure every day of the year. Its theme, Lead-Free Kids for a Healthy Future, underscores the importance of testing your home and your child, and getting the facts about how to prevent serious health effects. Here are some simple things you can do to help protect your children:

Lead poisoning can have life-altering health effects, especially on children. For children, even low levels of exposure to lead can cause a host of developmental effects such as learning disabilities, decreased intelligence and speech, language, and behavioral problems. Lead is particularly dangerous to children because their growing bodies absorb more lead than adults do and their brains and nervous systems are more sensitive to the damaging effects of lead. Babies and young children can be more highly exposed to lead because they often put their hands and other objects that can have lead from dust or soil on them into their mouths.

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