Hyderabad: The twelfth International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week (ILPPW) organised by World Health Organization will take place from 20-26 October 2024.
Lead is a bluish-white lustrous metal. It is very soft, highly malleable, ductile, and a relatively poor conductor of electricity. It is very resistant to corrosion but tarnishes upon exposure to air. Lead isotopes are the end products of each of the three series of naturally occurring radioactive elements.
Lead poisoning occurs when lead builds up in the body, often over months or years. Even small amounts of lead can cause serious health problems. Children younger than 6 years are especially vulnerable to lead poisoning, which can severely affect mental and physical development.
Key facts
Exposure to lead can affect multiple body systems and is particularly harmful to young children and women of child-bearing age.
- Lead is distributed to the brain, liver, kidney and bones. It is stored in the teeth and bones, where it can accumulate over time. Human exposure is assessed through the measurement of lead in blood.
- Lead exposure was attributed to more than 1.5 million deaths globally in 2021, primarily due to cardiovascular effects.
- Lead in bone is released into blood during pregnancy and becomes a source of exposure to the developing fetus.
- There is no level of exposure to lead that is known to be without harmful effects. The harmful impacts on health from lead exposure are entirely preventable.
Objectives of International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week
Raise awareness about health effects of lead exposure;
- Highlight the efforts of countries and partners to prevent lead exposure, particularly in children; and
- Urge further action to eliminate lead paint through regulatory action at country level.
Bright futures begin lead-free
The 2024 theme is "Bright futures begin lead-free” because we all want bright futures for our children and communities. NLPPW raises awareness about lead since every child in every community deserves a bright, lead-free future.
Common Sources of Lead Poisoning
Lead-Based Paint: Lead-based paint and lead-contaminated dust are the most common sources of lead poisoning.
- Contaminated Soil: Children may be exposed to lead through contaminated soil when they play outside. Lead in dirt clings to fingers, toys, and other objects children normally put in their mouths. Lead can get in soil from:
- Children's Toys and Jewelry: Some toys and toy jewelry contain levels of lead that may have a serious health risk to children. Parents should check with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to see if their child's toys and jewelry are recalled
- Drinking Water: Lead in drinking water is not a common source of lead poisoning, it usually comes from water distribution lines or household plumbing rather than lakes, wells or streams.
- Workplace and Hobby Hazards: Parents may unknowingly bring lead home on their hands, clothing, and shoes. Jobs that expose people to lead include: Painting, Construction or home remodeling, Radiator repair, Battery or scrap metal recycling.,Pottery manufacturing. Working with guns and ammunition, Industries using lead solder, Roadwork, Shipbuilding.
- Traditional Home Remedies and Cosmetics: Some families use home remedies to treat illnesses. Some remedies may contain up to 100 percent lead and are very dangerous to children. Home remedies that may contain lead
- Lead Glazed Ceramic Ware, Pottery, and Leaded Crystal: Lead can be used to make ceramic glazes with deep and brilliant color. Imported, old, handmade, or poorly glazed ceramic dishes and pottery are especially at risk for having lead in the glaze. Lead may also be found in leaded crystal, pewter and brass dishware.
Imported Candy: Lead has been found in certain candies imported from Mexico. Certain candy ingredients such as tamarind or chili powder may be a source of lead exposure. Lead can get into candy when processes such as drying, storing, and grinding the ingredients are done improperly.
- Mini-Blinds: Mini-blinds that are old or imported may contain lead. Sunlight and heat can cause the vinyl surface to break down and release lead dust. Lead dust can get into the air and collect near or below the blinds.
Global health burden and cost of lead exposure in children and adults
Lead exposure causes a significant burden of disease. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) estimates that more than 1.5 million deaths globally were attributed to lead exposure in 2021, primarily due to cardiovascular effects. Additionally, lead exposure was estimated to account for more than 33 million years lost to disability (disability-adjusted life years, or DALYs) worldwide in 2021.
Young children are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning as they may absorb up to 4–5 times as much lead as adults from an ingested dose. Once lead enters the body, it is distributed to organs including the brain, kidneys, liver and bones. Lead exposure can have serious consequences for the health of children. Exposure to very high levels of lead can severely damage the brain and central nervous system causing coma, convulsions and even death. Children who survive severe lead poisoning may be left with permanent intellectual disability and behavioural disorders. At lower levels of exposure that may have no obvious symptoms, lead can lead to a spectrum of injury across multiple body systems. Lead exposure also causes anaemia, hypertension, renal impairment, immunotoxicity and toxicity to the reproductive organs.
Many countries have eliminated lead from paint
The main source of lead used to be leaded gasoline. But fortunately leaded gasoline in road vehicles is now banned in every country in the world. The US first grappled with federal policies to address lead exposure in the 1950s. But it was only in the 1970s that the country largely banned leaded gasoline and lead-based paint — two of the most ubiquitous sources. The bans resulted in a dramatic decline in blood lead levels (BLLs) among Americans.
Mexico also faced an epidemic of lead poisoning, which went unrecognised for a long time. A major source of exposure in Mexico was traditional lead-glazed ceramic-ware — which continues to be widely used to cook and serve food across the country.
Prevention of lead poisoning
In 2021, WHO published Guidelines on clinical management exposure to lead. The guidelines recommend that for individuals with blood lead concentration equal to or greater than 5 µg/dL, the source of lead exposure should be identified, and appropriate action taken to terminate exposure.
Lead paint is a major source of exposure globally. WHO and UNEP lead the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint. It aims to encourage all countries to develop legally binding laws to control the use of lead in paint. As of January 2024, 48% of countries have legally-binding controls on lead paint.
WHO is preparing guidelines on prevention of lead exposure, which will provide policy-makers, public health authorities and health professionals with evidence-based guidance on the measures to protect the health of children and adults from lead exposure.
India is one of the worst affected countries of lead poisoning
In India 275 million children under 19 years of age have blood Lead levels (BLLs) that are abnormally high i.e., greater than 5 micrograms per decilitre (µg/dl). Lead’s adverse effects in India were being studied beginning in the 1970s according to an analysis done by NITI Aayog and CSIR-NEERI in 2022.
A collaborative study between American and Indian universities in 2005 demonstrated that school children with higher blood lead levels achieved lower IQ scores. It was also one of the earliest studies in the world to look at genetic susceptibility factors of children to the adverse impacts of lead. Fortunately, India can learn from the experiences of all countries which have tackled the lead problem. It is unfortunate that 1 in 2 Indian children exposed to high levels of lead in our country.
Steps taken by India government to prevent lead exposure
“Regulation on Lead contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules, 2016
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC), Government of India has passed a notification in November 2016 as “Regulation on Lead contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules, 2016" and has prohibited manufacture, trade, import as well as export of household and decorative paints containing lead or lead
compounds in excess of 90 parts per million (ppm). Under National Health Mission (NHM), Information Education Communication (IEC)/ Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) has carried out for healthy survival of population
especially for children.
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