What Is Lead? 

Lead is metal that is highly toxic when taken into the body through breathing, eating or drinking. Lead was commonly used in paint until it was banned for residential use in 1978. As old lead-based paint flakes, chips, or turns to dust, lead can contaminate surfaces throughout your home.

Lead is especially dangerous to children under six years old because their growing bodies absorb more lead than adults do, and their brains and nervous systems are more sensitive to its damaging effects. Young children can become lead poisoned by breathing in lead dust or putting contaminated objects like toys and paint chips in their mouth.

According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, lead poisoning is the primary environmental hazard faced by children in Texas today. Children from all social and economic levels can be affected by lead poisoning, although children living in poverty and who live in older housing are at greatest risk.

Source: Texas Department of State Health Services, “Toward a Lead-Safe Texas: Texas Strategic plan to Eliminate Child Poisoning by 2010,” March 2007.

Where is Lead Found?

Lead is found in most homes built before 1978 in the form of:

• Lead-based paint — Lead-based paint is a hazard if it’s peeling, chipping, chalking, or cracking. Both inside and outside the home, deteriorated lead-based paint releases its lead, which then mixes with household dust and soil. Even lead-based paint that appears to be undisturbed can be a problem if it covers surfaces that children may chew or that get a lot of wear and tear such as windows, windowsills, doors, stairs, railings, banisters, porches, and fences.
• Dust — Dust can become contaminated with lead when lead-based paint is dry-scraped or sanded. Dust can also become contaminated when older painted surfaces bump or rub together. Lead chips and dust can gather on surfaces and objects that people touch or that children put into their mouths.
• Soil — Soil can become contaminated by flaking or peeling lead-based paint on older buildings. Soil near roadways may also be contaminated by past use of leaded gasoline in cars. Avoid these areas when planting vegetable gardens.
• Water — Lead can leach into the water at any temperature, but the amount of lead can be much greater when the water is hot or warm. Don’t drink or cook with water from a “hot” faucet if you live in an older home or think you have lead plumbing fixtures.

Other known sources of lead include, but are not limited to:

• Home remedies like azarcon and greta, which are used for upset stomach or indigestion
• Lead found in wrappers of some candies that have been imported from Mexico
• Lead glazes on pottery

Source: Adapted from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Runs better unleaded. How to Protect Your Children From Lead Poisoning.” August 1999.

Why is Lead Dangerous?

When ingested or inhaled as dust, lead poses a serious health risk to young children. Exposure to lead is associated with a range of serious health effects, including:

• brain, nervous system and kidney damage
• learning disabilities
• poor muscle coordination
• slower growth
• hearing losses
• speech, language, and behavior problems.

While low-level exposure is most common, exposure to high levels can have devastating effects including seizures, unconsciousness, and even death.

Some symptoms of lead poisoning may include headaches, stomachaches, nausea, tiredness and irritability. Lead can also harm children without causing any obvious symptoms.

Source: Adapted from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Runs better unleaded. How to Protect Your Children From Lead Poisoning.” August 1999.

Lead Safety Tips

  Follow these steps to protect your children’s health. If your home was built before 1978:

• Keep your children away from peeling, chipping, or flaking paint.
• Do not allow your children to chew on painted surfaces, such as windowsills.
• Get your children’s blood lead level tested. Children who have high blood levels of lead may appear healthy.
• Keep your home clean by washing floors and windowsills weekly. Clean up paint chips using a wet sponge or rag. Completely rinse sponges and mop heads after cleaning dirty or dusty areas.
• Frequently wash your child’s hands, toys, bottles, pacifiers, clothes, and stuffed animals to reduce exposure.
• Clean or remove shoes before entering home to avoid tracking in lead form soil.
• Have children play in grassy areas instead of bare soil.
• Avoid using home remedies that contain lead, such as Azarcon and Greta
• Use cold tap water for drinking and preparing meals since lead is more likely to leach into warm or hot water. Let the tap water run for 15-30 seconds before drinking it.
• Make sure your family eats a well-balanced diet low in fat and high in calcium and iron (fish, green, vegetables, milk and cheese) to reduce absorption of lead into the body.