Impact on Health

What Happens to a Child Who is Poisoned by Lead

Lead poisoning and lead contamination often are difficult to detect especially in the early years while the brain is developing. Lead poisoning hurts the brain and the nervous system. Some effects NEVER GO AWAY. Lead in a child’s body can slow down growth and development, damage hearing and speech, and make it hard for a child to pay attention and learn.

Children are especially at risk for lead poisoning. Lead in the body is distributed to the brain, liver, kidney and bones. It is stored in the teeth and bones, where it accumulates over time. Human exposure is usually assessed through the measurement of lead in blood.

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.

Lead exposure is preventable.