Causes

Infants and very young children learn about the world in part by putting things in their mouths. They may even eat or chew the bars of their crib or pieces of flaking paint. Many items in their environment may be contaminated by lead dust.

Lead is harmful to body tissues and enzymes. It gets into your body when you eat, drink, or breathe something that has lead in it. Drinking water or other liquids from a cup or bowl that has been painted with lead or that had lead in the clay that made it can give you lead poisoning.

Lead accumulates in the body. Children who regularly take in small amounts of lead can be poisoned and become extremely ill—or even die. More often, though, lead poisoning causes serious health problems, including brain damage.

Symptoms

Lead poisoning is hard to detect at first, because the symptoms are not obvious. Even children who seem to be healthy can have high levels of lead in their bodies. Usually, lead builds up in the body gradually.

Symptoms of lead poisoning can also be symptoms of other conditions. Symptoms include:

• Loss of appetite and weight loss
• Irritability
• Tired, lethargic behavior
• Vomiting
• Abdominal pain
• Constipation
• Joint pain
• Headaches
• Trouble sleeping
• Confusion

When the level of lead in the body becomes greater, more extreme symptoms may be seen, including:

• Twitching and shaking
• Convulsions
• Paralysis
• Hallucinations
• Coma

Prevention

• Have your home checked by a professional to see where there may be lead hazards.
• If you have lead in your home, lead abatement experts can recommend cleaning products that will help get rid of the lead in dust.
• Make sure your child’s hands are washed after he or she plays outside (there may be lead contamination in the soil), before eating, and before going to bed.
• If you have lead paint, carefully paint over it with lead-free paint.
• Be careful about canned food products from other countries. Lead is not allowed in cans made in the United States but can still be found in some cans from other countries.
• If you use older toys or cribs, make sure you have the paint on them tested for lead.

Self-Care

Lead poisoning usually happens over time, not in one incident. If you think there is a possibility that your child has lead poisoning, see your doctor as soon as possible. If the lead poisoning continues, your child may suffer permanent damage.

There is medication to help remove lead from the body, but the most important thing you can do is to stop your child’s exposure to lead by following the prevention steps.