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Lead poisoning and child development essay
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1. State the name of your community. At what time in your life did you live in this community? (I.e. were you raised there during childhood, do you live there now, or was it during another time in your life?). The name of the community I will be discussing in this paper is Newark, New Jersey. I was not raised in this community but I spent the early stage of my young adulthood there. I lived in Newark from year 2005 – 2010. Currently, I am not living in this community. 2. Identify a specific environmental public health issue in the community. The specific environmental public health issue in this community is childhood lead poisoning. The most obvious source of lead poisoning is through paint, especially paint that is used on the interior and exterior surfaces of ancient houses in this area. Lead poisoning affects mostly young children of age range of 1 year old to 6 years old. Lead poisoning occurs due to increase in concentration of lead in the blood (Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention, 2014). The standardized measure to diagnose a child …show more content…
Exposure to lead can be in the form of lead dust ingestion, swallowing of lead paint chips, inhalation of lead contaminated air, and eating food or drinking water that is contaminated with lead (Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention, 2014). Also, high concentration of lead in the human’s blood can have adverse effect on one’s health and wellness. Examples of these adverse effects are developmental disabilities, interruption of human growth and development, and depletion of the central nervous system in a child (Overview, n.d.). As noted by Overview (n.d.), “When absorbed into the human body, lead affects the blood, kidneys and nervous system. Lead’s effects on the nervous system are particularly serious and can cause learning disabilities, hyperactivity, decreased hearing, mental retardation and possible death” ( p.
They are concerned that their kids are getting too much lead in the bloodstream because they have been drinking the tap water.
Lead is a metal found virtually everywhere even today. Sources of lead include auto body shops, electric storage batteries, glazes for china dishes, crockery, insecticides, electric cable insulation, hose, pipe, sheet and floor coverings. Lead is associated with stain glass work, jewelry making and antique ceramic doll painting. Although lead in paint was outlawed, there are still many homes that have lead paint (White et al, 1990). Lead found in gasoline was found in one study to account for 23--27% of the lead blood levels in the people tested (Wagner, 1991). This exposure to lead sources is more of a concern for children due to the characteristic habit of children to taste everything they touch; this characteristic is known as pica. Children are also in closer contact with their lead polluted environment during play. They are more active and exposed to outdoor contaminates and they inhale dust and dirt that are lead contaminated. Furthermore, the adsorption rate of lead in the digestive tract is up to 10 times greater in chil...
When lead enters the environment, it starts to become a problem. After a period of about ten days, depending on the weather, it falls to the surface. Here lead builds up in the soil particles. Where it may make its way into underground water or drinking water due to the fact the grounds acidic or if it's soft enough. Either way it stays a long time on the soil or in water. Months or years down the road after the lead has built up it starts to become a problem for children that play outside of their homes . This lead containing soil particles get on the child's hands or clothing and end up in the child's mouth. After the build up of so much lead it leads to lead poison. Lead poisoning has been an issue since the early 1900s, when the use of lead started being banned from the manufacturing of paint in foreign countries such as Australia. Unfortunately, the United States did not start banning it until 1978, when it finally became illegal in our nation. Today 90% of the lead in the atmosphere comes from the burning of gasoline. This problem has been a large issue since the 1920s, when the Environmental Protection Agency started making laws on the amount of lead allowed in gasoline.
People can’t stress this enough: Toys with lead can harm children’s brain development and their future. In wooden toys sold on the local market, lots contained lead higher than 10 mg/dL.
The health effects that exposure of inorganic arsenic are such as isolation on the stomach, and intestines, also causes decreased production of red and white blood cells, skin changes, and lug irritation. Is also suggested that taking amounts of arsenic can intensify the chances of developing cancer, especially in the skin, lung, liver, and lymph. In woman arsenic can cause infertility and abortion. Another effects that it can cause are damage in the DNA, disruption of the skin, disturbance in the heart, and brain damage in both, men and women.
There are differences in the primary routes of exposure, Babies and children can swallow lead through breast feeding. They can be exposed to lead in the womb if their mothers have lead in their bodies. In children ingestion is the major route of exposure. Lead paint is the major source. In older houses as the lead paint deteriorates, peels, chips or is...
It has provided us with many tools in order to help us live, but it has caused lots of health related incidents. People who have been exposed to lead products within their environment risk the chance of having developmental problems, along with causing organs within the body to become infected. Young children are especially vulnerable to the effects of lead because they absorb as much as 5 times more ingested lead than adults. They can suffer “profound and permanent adverse health effects” that can affect the development of their brains and nervous system.
Researchers at Virginia Tech sampled the lead in homes in Flint and found that 40% of homes had over 5 ppb of lead, and 16% of homes had over 15ppb6 which is the level at which the EPA recommends children and pregnant women avoid drinking the water. According to our textbooks, children exposed to lead can exhibit decreased intelligence, behavioral problems, and gastrointestinal issues.7Lead poisoning, leading to seizures and comas, can occur as well with very high exposures. Lead exposure can have terrible consequences, and for government agencies to ignore it for as long as they did is
... environmental quality leading health indicators are air quality index exceeding 100 and children of ages 3 to 11 exposed to secondhand smoke. Poor water quality can lead to gastrointestinal illness, neurological problems and cancer. Poor air quality can cause cardiovascular disease, cancers, and asthma. Certain chemicals found in homes and workplaces can contribute to severe poisonings and other toxic serious effects.
While it has some beneficial uses, it can be toxic to humans and animals causing of health effects” (EPA, 2014). Lead can also be found in all parts of our environment such as the air, the soil, the water, and even in our homes. The general public encounters lead in everyday resources such as fossil fuels, leaded gasoline, some types of industrial facilities, and lead-based paint. There is a wide variety of products that contains lead such as our homes, including paint, ceramics, pipes and plumbing materials, solders, gasoline, batteries, ammunition, and cosmetics. Lead is a hazardous element that is used in many goods. Most people should be aware of becoming infected with lead poisoning derived from everyday items like paint, water, and
This water crisis effects are unhealthy water sources. Also, there are lead-filled water fountains that can build up in your blood. This water crisis is directly affecting school attending students. The lead that builds up in students blood causes abdominal pain, abdominal cramps, aggressive behavior, constipation, sleep problems,
Recently, the environment impacts on our health have become a large concern of our societies worldwide. Lead is a pervasive and persistent environmental pollutant and recognized to be a major public health problem; therefore it has been paid attention by researchers in probing further into its toxicity. Lead poisoning is an insidious disease which is often detected late after being confused with other disorders such as digestive, hepatic, hematologic and behavioural disorders where it decreases the activity of certain enzymes by binding their sulfhydryl groups, or even to replace other metal ions
Metals, such as Lead (Pb), Copper (Cu), Silver (Ag), Manganese (Mn), and Iron (Fe), in excess over a prolong period of time, can cause health issues. The presence of metals such as Copper can cause pipes and showers to turn green. Manganese causes dark spots on fixtures. According to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “Lead is toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around homes. Even at low levels, Lead may cause a range of health effects including behavioral problems and learning disabilities.” (EPA.gov Retrieved Sep. 11 2015 from
Heavy metals may enter the body in food, water, or air, or by absorption through the skin. Once in the body, they compete with and displace essential minerals such as zinc, copper, magnesium, and calcium, and interfere with organ system functions. People may come into contact with heavy metals in industrial work, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and agriculture. Its even possible that children can be poisoned as a result of playing in contaminated soil.
Another major cause of pollution is deposition of heavy metals, trace metals which is very harmful due to its high toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation in nature (Tam and Wong, 2000). These pollutions are mainly caused by mining and processing of ores and metals from the industries.