Lead Poisoning

Keeping young children's toys and belongings clean, especially since young children will chew on things or suck on their fingers can help keep lead out of their body. If you rent a property you should notify your landlord of any peeling or chipping paint. Until the problem is taken care of the paint chips should be cleaned up immediately. Wiping your shoes before entering the house can prevent any soil containing lead or dust from being tracked through. Surfaces, like the floors, window frames and sills, and other counter areas should be continually cleaned.

To permanently remove any lead hazards from your home you must hire a lead abatement contractor. This professional service will remove, seal, or enclose a lead-based paint. Simply painting over the lead hazard will not suffice. Improper removal of lead can increase the hazard by spreading it around the house even more, so it is important to hire someone with special training in correcting lead problems.

Checking for lead is performed through a simple blood test. Currently, approximately two million children in the U.S. suffer from lead poisoning. Blood tests should be administered for children who are six months to one year old and for family members that suspect a high level of lead exposure.

Repeat blood testing may be necessary, as a blood test reflects only the last 90 days exposure. In many locations, your local health department will provide blood lead tests for free.

Lead Poisoning Treatment

There are different treatment methods for exposure to lead ranging from a diet adjustment to hospital stays. Chelation therapy is the most common treatment when lead poisoning levels have reached an elevated level. Chelation therapy works by prescribing a drug to the lead poisoned individual and the chealting agent drug binds to the lead in the soft tissue of the body and that reduces the toxicity level. Chealting agents can reduce the lead burden in the bones, but to a limited capacity. This particular lead poisoning treatment can be very uncomfortable and unpleasant and requires a hospital stay.

Chelation can also be performed with an oral chelating agent. When being treated for lead poisoning with an oral chelating technique the child should not live in a leaded environment because the individual's body resistance will be lowered and make them more susceptible to lead hazards. After being treated for lead poisoning it is mandatory that children not be discharged unless they are returning to a lead-free surrounding. In many cases the children return to the lead infested area that subjected them to the lead poisoning to begin with, and they are more likely to have to go through chelation again because of their lowered resistance and continual exposure to lead.

To prevent, as well as to treat lead poisoning a diet low in fat and high in calcium and iron can help. It is known that certain deficiencies can magnify lead's toxicity. Individuals low in iron, calcium, zinc, and protein increases the amount of lead absorbed. High fat content foods act to attract lead in a child's body. By optimizing a child's nutritional intake can help minimize any potential harm.