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Archive for the ‘Lead’ Category
Lead in Our Drinking Water: Lead Pipes and the Health Risk from Contaminated Water - Part 2 of 2
Friday, February 3rd, 2012The Environmental Protection agency estimates that lead in drinking water accounts for 20 percent of lead exposure in children, on average. Unfortunately for kids most at risk for lead poisoning, older homes with lead paint are also more likely to be served by lead water lines.
The U.S. Safe Drinking Water Act has very specific requirements about testing for lead and what happens when lead levels rise above “actionable levels,” but even low levels of lead exposure are not considered safe. What’s more, SDWA depends on hundreds of small and sometimes cash-strapped water authorities to monitor water quality and report and address problems.
Washington DC Lead Crisis Alerts Nation to Health Risks
In one high profile public health failure that in 2004, The Washington Post revealed that the city water authority had been aware of dangerous levels of lead in the water of many District homes for more than 2 years without warning residents. DC health officials responded to the revelation by warning residents to flush their water pipes and filter water for drinking and cooking. Unfortunately for many kids, the damage may already have been done.
“In some high-risk neighborhoods, the number of toddlers and infants with blood-lead concentrations that can cause irreversible IQ loss and developmental delays more than doubled after harmful levels of lead began leaching into the city’s drinking water in 2001,” reported the Post.
Subsequent investigations determined that a change in city water treatment the prior year had caused lead levels in homes served by lead pipes to skyrocket as the new disinfectant corroded old pipes. By failing to adequately assess the risk and inform the public of the danger, the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority had needlessly exposed DC citizens to unsafe levels of lead, including thousands of children and pregnant women for whom exposure is most dangerous.
Risk from Lead Water Pipes Around The United States
Dozens of U.S. cities have lead pipes running throughout their aging drinking water systems. A change in water chemistry, partial replacement of lead pipes, or general wear and tear can cause lead levels to spike. Overall the EPA has estimates that 40 million Americans are exposed to drinking water lead concentrations that it considers to be a health risk. And the Centers for Disease Control has found a correlation between lead in drinking water and the blood lead levels of affected household members.
What to Do if You Suspect Lead in Your Water
Your water utility may be able to test your household lead level for you. If not, there are many tests available from mail-order labs and test kits are often sold at local hardware stores. If you suspect you or your child has been exposed to lead, either from water or other sources, your doctor or child’s doctor can screen for lead with a blood test.
In the mean time, the EPA recommends the following steps for reducing lead exposure:
- “Use cold water for drinking or cooking. Never cook or mix infant formula using hot water from the tap.
- “Make it a practice to run the water at each tap before use.
- “Do not consume water that has sat in your home’s plumbing for more than six hours. First, make sure to run the water until you feel the temperature change before cooking, drinking, or brushing your teeth, unless otherwise instructed by your utility.”
Additionally, EPA recommends only filters that reduce lead according to NSF testing standards. The black berkey water filters meet that standard, and then some.
Lead in Our Drinking Water: Poisoning Standards - Part 1 of 2
Monday, January 30th, 2012Are U.S. Lead Poisoning Standards Effectively Protecting Kids?
Hundreds of thousands more children may be diagnosed with and treated for lead poisoning this year, compared to last year, if the Centers for Disease Control accepts a new recommendation by the Advisory Committee on Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention. The government-convened panel reviewed the available science on lead and children’s health and determined lead is more dangerous than previously thought at levels currently considered safe.
Health Impacts of Lead Exposure
Lead is a naturally-occurring metal whose high density and resistance to corrosion means it has hundreds of possible industrial and other applications. But unlike iron and copper, metals that are also nutritionally important, no amount of lead is safe for humans to consume. Even at very low levels of exposure, lead is harmful to human health.
“In adults, lead can increase blood pressure and cause infertility, nerve disorders and muscle and joint pain. It can also make you irritable and affect your ability to concentrate and remember.”
“Lead is especially dangerous for children. A child who swallows large amounts of lead may develop anemia, severe stomach ache, muscle weakness and brain damage. Even low levels of lead are linked to lower IQ scores.”
- National Institutes of Health
Children at Risk From Lead Poisoning
Since lead was phased out of use in gasoline and house paint, the number of children annually diagnosed with lead poisoning has dropped dramatically. In 1988, researchers estimated that 9 percent of U.S. children had elevated lead levels. By 2004, that figure was only 1.4 percent.
Today, most of the children affected by lead live in older houses with crumbling paint or dust from renovations. Children might also be exposed by contaminated soil near roadways where lead emissions from gasoline fell decades ago or from industrial sites. In raw numbers, researchers think about 250,000 children would be diagnosed today under the current standard. If the standard is halved from 10 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood to 5 micrograms, as the CDC advisory committee recommends, that quickly becomes 450,000 children.
Effectiveness of New Lead Standards Reduced by Budget Cuts
While the Centers for Disease Control has historically adopted the recommendations of its advisory panel, the Associated Press reports that this recommendation might be difficult to implement.
“In many places, it’s up to city and county health departments to provide many of the services for lead poisoned kids, and those departments have lost more than 34,000 jobs in the last three years because of budget cuts. Meanwhile, Congress just slashed the CDC’s lead program from more than $30 million to $2 million.
“‘The CDC should accept the recommendation,’ said Robert Pestronk, executive director of the National Association of County and City Health Officials.
“‘(But) the grim reality is that local health departments and other community agencies don’t have the person-power to identify and follow up on all these children,’ he said.”
More Information About Lead
Many hardware stores carry paint and soil test kits that will identify lead contamination. Although some kits require the tester to mail samples to a lab for analysis, they are often simple to use and the lab results often include easy-to-understand instructions for interpreting your test results.
If you suspect you or your child has been exposed to lead, either from water or other sources, your doctor or child’s doctor can screen for lead with a blood test.
If you know or suspect you have a lead problem, your local health department will know what resources are available to you.
A discussion of lead in drinking water and the Berkeys effectiveness at removing lead is forthcoming in part 2 of this series.
Lead in Our Drinking Water
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009While we should all be aware of the dangers of lead poisoning; Let’s recap:
- Lead affects every organ and system in the body causing permanent brain, kidney, liver, spleen, and nervous system damage.
- Children and infants are at a significantly higher risk to lead poisoning at smaller doses.
- High lead levels damages the male reproductive system and can cause a blood disorder called Anemia.
- Even at relatively low exposures, decreased intelligence, short-term memory loss, reading under-achievement, impairment of visual-motor function, loss of auditory memory, poor perceptual integration, and impaired reaction time occurs.
Beyond lead paint, one of our primary exposures to lead poisoning comes from our drinking water. Lead pipes and/or lead soldering is still prevalent in many older homes, bldgs, and distribution systems. Water filters are required for protection in such circumstances. Dr. Marc Edwards of Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech spoke this past summer at the Yale University Drinking Water Symposium. Following up on Dr. Oz’s water filter segment, this is a great clip of Dr. Edward’s presentation on the dangers of lead in our municipal water and school buildings.
