Household dust can contain lead from the paint on the walls, but if you are diligent about dusting and vacuuming and maintaining the paint in high-traffic areas such as windows and window sills, doors and door frames, and stairs , the lead-based paint should not be a problem. If you have a child or multiple children in your home, though, watch carefully to be sure they are not chewing on railings or other paint-covered surfaces, or touching walls and then putting their hands in their mouths.
To be completely safe, you may want to consider treating any lead paint—covered surfaces, if you have children living in your home or visiting frequently. Lead-based paint is most dangerous when it is deteriorating—peeling, chipping, chalking, cracking, etc. And if you plan to disturb the paint at all, perhaps for a big renovation, a repair, or simply a new coat of paint, you need to take extreme caution, as these activities can create toxic lead dust.
To avoid contact with toxic lead dust, painters must wear filtered masks, specialized suits, and gloves, Lambert says. If lead paint is present, contractors are legally obligated to follow these steps and other lead-safe work practices governed by the Renovation, Repair, and Painting, or RPR, Rule to reduce risk to employees, residents of the home, and the surrounding environment. Failure to follow these rules can lead to a hefty fine.
It sounds like scary stuff, but as the old saying goes, knowledge is power. Consuming even small amounts of lead can be harmful. Lead poisoning from folk remedies can cause serious and irreversible illness. Visit the CDC for more information on lead in folk remedies.
Skip to main content. Contact Us. Protect Your Family from Sources of Lead. For example: In , the threat of lead poisoning from toy jewelry led the CPSC to conduct a voluntary recall of million pieces of metal toy jewelry sold widely in vending machines. Toy jewelry containing unsafe levels of lead has continued to be sold even after CPSC issued guidance to prevent the sale of these products.
Learn from CDC what to do if you suspect your child has swallowed toy jewelry. CPSC has evaluated whether commercially available lead test kits reliably and accurately detect the presence or absence of lead in consumer products, such as toy jewelry and children's vinyl toys. Based on this evaluation, CPSC does not recommend that these test kits be used for consumer products.
Drinking Water Lead can enter drinking water through corrosion of plumbing materials, especially where the water has high acidity or low mineral content that corrodes pipes and fixtures. Get more basic information about lead in drinking water. Get information on your local drinking water system's water quality for lead through your drinking water quality report called a Consumer Confidence Report.
If you have a job or hobby where you may come into contact with lead: Never put leaded materials for example, fishing sinkers, lead came or solder for stained glass or leaded pottery clay or glaze in your mouth.
Use proper ventilation and equipment when melting lead to cast your own bullets, sinker, decoys or other metal items. Avoid handling food or touching your mouth or face while engaged in working with lead materials, and wash hands before eating or drinking following such activities. The solder or fittings of some older pipes may contain lead which can dissolve into water that may be sitting in these pipes traditional and alternative medicines , usually sourced overseas, have been found to contain high levels of lead — cases of lead poisoning as a result of taking Ayurvedic treatments imported from India have been reported in Victoria some imported traditional cosmetics and applications, including eye liner manufactured in Pakistan and some other Asian, African or Middle-Eastern countries, have been found to contain high levels of lead illicit opium has been found to contain high levels of lead — cases of lead poisoning as a result of smoking or swallowing illicit opium originating from overseas have been reported in Victoria old toys for example, painted items or metal cars and toy soldiers may contain high levels of lead — Australian standards restrict the amount of lead in painted toys.
However, some imported toys have presented a risk. Also, very old cots or second-hand painted cots may contain unsafe levels of lead in the paintwork foods stored in pewter, lead crystal glassware or pottery containing lead-based glazing may become contaminated with lead. Imported cans from specialty stores with irregularly soldered side seams may contain high levels of lead. Legislation restricts lead levels in Australian foods.
Eating animals hunted using lead shot may also cause lead exposure metal objects such as jewellery, old coins, medals and curtain weights may contain lead. Young children and lead exposure Lead exposure can permanently damage the brain and impair intellectual development. Children under five years of age are especially vulnerable to lead exposure because: they frequently put their hands, and held objects, to their mouth they absorb and retain more lead from their gut and airways than adults do their developing brains are more sensitive to the effects of lead.
Symptoms of lead exposure Lead exposure can affect people differently, and symptoms often depend on the type of exposure. The symptoms may include: muscle pains fatigue abdominal pains headache nausea and vomiting seizures coma. If a person is exposed to smaller amounts of lead over a longer time period, chronic long-term or ongoing lead exposure may produce symptoms such as: irritability lack of energy loss of appetite learning disabilities behavioural problems poor school performance poor coordination impaired growth.
Getting tested for lead exposure If you suspect that you or a member of your family has been exposed to lead, visit your doctor for further advice. Preventing exposure to lead If you think you or someone else may be in a situation where you are exposed to lead at home or work, you can reduce this exposure by: following appropriate safety regulations and practices at work and home if your job or hobby involves the use of lead.
This includes using proper personal protective equipment and washing your hands with hot soapy water before eating or smoking. Do not bring home lead-contaminated clothing to wash with the household laundry taking care when redecorating or renovating your home to reduce the amount of lead dust and reduce disturbance to old paint surfaces. Pregnant or breastfeeding women and children under five should not be present in work areas during renovation activities seeking professional advice if you are unsure whether your home may contain lead paint.
Use wet cleaning methods for dusty floors, ledges, window sills and other flat surfaces to minimise the risk of lead-containing dust getting into the air consulting with your water supplier or council environmental health officer if you suspect your drinking water may contain lead avoiding storing food or drink in pewter, lead crystal or glazed pottery containers. Managing individual exposure to lead in Australia — a guide for health practitioners pdf , , National Health and Medical Research Council, Australian Government.
Give feedback about this page. Was this page helpful? Yes No. Toddlers and children can ingest lead because of their frequent hand-to-mouth activity and tendency to mouth or chew objects. Children absorb and retain more lead into their bodies compared to adults. For pregnant women, even low levels of lead can affect the growth of the developing baby.
Lead-based paint was commonly used in homes built before Both exterior and interior paint produced between and may also contain lead in smaller amounts. All post consumer paint produced in Canada or the United States for indoor use is virtually lead-free.
Since , paint in Canada containing more than 0. When painting your home, make sure that the paint you use for the interior is lead-free.
Exterior paints used for the outside of a house may contain lead. If it contains lead, the paint will have a warning label. You can check painted surfaces for lead by using a home lead test kit or sending a paint chip sample to a certified laboratory. A licensed contractor, who has the proper x-ray equipment to detect lead on painted surfaces, can also tell you if your house has leaded paint. Contact your local health authority environmental health officer for more information. Sometimes leaving lead-based paint alone is safer than removing it, as long as it is not chipping or within the reach of children.
Whenever you disturb surfaces with lead paint, you risk creating hazardous lead dust even if the lead paint is covered with new paint. To reduce the chance of exposure to lead-based paint, surfaces in good condition can be covered with non-lead paint, vinyl wallpaper, wallboard or paneling. Certain precautions can help minimize the risk. Follow these safety tips when removing lead-based paint from walls, ceilings and other structures, or when sanding or knocking down a wall.
Depending on the difficulty of the work involved, it might be a good idea to hire a trained professional. Children are more sensitive to the effects of lead than adults.
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