Lead poisoning has been termed the "stealth disease"
because of the way it occurs and the devastating neurologic damage
it causes in children at doses that do not cause outward physical
signs of poisoning.
Poisoning occurs when children eat tiny paint chips or inhale
harmful leaded dust. Chalking lead paint creates dust that settles
on toys and other objects. The dust is ingested by the young child
in normal hand-to-mouth activity. Leaded house dust that is inhaled
even in the smallest amounts is just as lethal as that which is
ingested. One paint chip the size of a thumbnail, ingested by
a young child, can cause permanent brain damage.
Dr. John Rosen, a pediatrician responsible for treating lead
poisoned children at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, states:
"Lead at remarkably low concentrations has the unique capability
of robbing kids of such skills as reading, writing, concentration
and abstract thinking. The set of things that are required for
academic success and employment success can be lost forever, and
all of that comes at a remarkable societal cost."
The difficulty of detecting lead poisoning means that blood lead
levels are used to identify children with dangerous amounts of
lead. In October, 1991, concluding a lengthy study, the federal
government's Centers for Disease Control (CDC) redefined
toxicity as blood lead levels at or above 10 micrograms per deciliter
(mg/dL), the level at which some adverse health effects
have been observed. No lowest threshold has been identified for
the harmful effects of lead, although some studies have suggested
harmful effects at levels even lower than 10 mg/dL.
Many experts believe that when a child's blood lead level exceeds
10 mg/dL, there is a high probability of permanent neurological
damage. Even at these relatively low exposures, decreased intelligence,
short-term memory loss, reading under-achievement, impairment
of visual-motor function, loss of auditory memory, poor perceptual
integration, poor classroom behavior, and impaired reaction time
occur in children.
Virtually every part of the body is affected by lead. Lead has
no biological value and competes with metals that are essential
to the body, such as zinc, iron and calcium. For example, lead
interferes with bone formation by blocking absorption of calcium,
which affects memory storage and the differentiation of cells
in the nervous system. Lead is stored in the bone, matrix, and
in pregnant women, this lead can be passed on to the unborn child.
Lead's effect on the brain results in less ability to store information
and draw upon past information and less ability to inhibit responses
to environmental stimuli. Lead also attacks the peripheral nervous
system, which controls the muscles and organs outside the brain,
causes decrease in muscle strength and at high doses, the syndromes
of the wrist-drop and the foot-drop.
Lead accumulates in the kidneys, causing kidney disease and having
far-reaching endocrinologic effects. There is a major impact
on the enzymatic functions of the liver and on the immune system
function of the spleen. It results in anemia by interfering
with the synthesis of hemoglobin. Lead affects the reproductive
functions of both men and women by interference with enzymes
that process testosterone and other androgens.
Your Legal Rights
If your child or your family member has been exposed to lead-based products such as chipping lead paint, or you have experienced lead poisoning symptoms, you may be eligible to file a claim.
