Childhood Lead Poisoning

Each year on average, several children in Jackson County are determined to have elevated blood lead levels and lead poisoning. This condition is usually discovered when testing is done at well child visits to the doctor or at screenings that take place at WIC clinics. It is recommended that children be screened for blood lead at one year and again at two years.

By far the biggest source of concern is the lead paint that is found in much of our county’s older housing. Until 1978, lead paint was commonly used on the interiors and exteriors of our homes. While lead paint that is in intact condition does not pose an immediate concern, lead paint that is allowed to deteriorate creates a lead-based paint hazard. A child who comes into contact with lead-contaminated dust, soil or paint chips is easily poisoned. All it takes is hand-to-mouth activity, which is perfectly normal for young children to engage in. Just the lead dust equivalent of a single grain of salt is enough for a child to register an elevated blood lead level.

Young children under the age of six are especially vulnerable to lead's harmful health effects, because their brains and central nervous system are still being formed. For them, even very low levels of exposure can result in reduced IQ, learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, behavioral problems, stunted growth, impaired hearing, and kidney damage.

If you think your home may have a lead dust problem, The National Safety Council has lead dust testing kits available. The cost is $29.95. Kits include instructions, tools to take two dust samples, and a postage-paid mailer to send samples to an EPA-certified lab for analysis. You can download an order form for a test kit at the following link:

http://nsc.org/resources/issues/lead.aspx

For more information contact Jackson County Public Health. The phone number is 715-284-4301 ext. 375.

Here is a link to the Wisconsin State Lead Program Website: http://www.dhfs.wisconsin.gov/lead/Protect.HTM