Childhood Lead Toxicity: a Paradox of Modern Technology

Lead toxicity, a man-made disease of young children, has only recently come to the focus of professional and public awareness. Lead has become increasingly bioavailable to humans as a direct result of industrial processing and manufacturing. While lead-based paint in older dwellings is the primary cause of lead toxicity among young children, airborne lead from gasoline fumes and factory emissions, plus dirt and dust into which high concentrations of lead have settled, are also significant sources of undue exposure. A variety of consumer products, including kitchen utensils, newsprint, and cosmetics are likewise potentially hazardous because of their high lead content. Exposure to excessive amounts of lead is especially harmful for young children: they are biologically and developmentally more vulnerable to its toxic effects. Even at levels of absorption that produce no medical symptoms, lead may impede children's overall developmental progress by interfering with their performance in several crucial areas. Although the United States has been reluctant to assume an aggressive regulatory position toward lead, the federal government currently supports comprehensive lead poisoning control programs in 60 American cities. The future of these programs is jeopardized by the shift from categorical to block grants. Unless continued funding is made available for lead management programs and a strong regulatory stance is assumed toward lead, young children will continue to become afflicted with this debilitating, yet preventable, illness.