August 22nd, 2007

"Federal Government Has Sided with the Lead Industry"

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) consider blood levels of lead under 10 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dl) in children as being below the "level of concern," but many scientists criticize this standard as too lax. Medical evidence shows that even 5 mcg/dl of lead can do damage to a child's IQ.

Lead Poisoning Issues

The recent recall of lead-painted toys by Mattel has brought renewed concern and attention to the issue of children's health and lead poisoning. An examination of the federal government's actions in the past 25 years reveals that the government has been extremely slow in accepting and applying limits to lead exposure in the U.S., repeatedly caving in to pressure from the lead industry to remove or not implement limitations.

Gasoline, House Paint, Toys

Lead is widely present in the atmosphere (in part because of the lead additives used in gasoline) and in house paint manufactured before 1978. In the 1960s, the CDC considered 60 mcg/dl to be a safe lead blood level because seizures didn't occur at that level. As medical evidence of lead's toxicity mounted, the acceptable level was dropped to 40 mcg/dl in the 1970s. In the 1970s, the largest two makers of lead additives, DuPont and Ethyl, sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to get the tighter lead emissions standards repealed.

In 1982, lobbyists for the lead industry persuaded Vice President George Bush to recommend removing limitations on leaded gasoline. The effort eventually failed, but the lead industry's friendly relationship with Republican presidential administrations was strengthened.

Lower IQs Correlate with Lead Exposure

In the mid-'80s, the CDC reduced the safe blood level for lead to 25 mcg/dl, after reports in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) showed that children's lead levels once considered safe by the CDC correlated with lower IQs.

In the 1980s, President Reagan's administration barred the CDC from gathering nationwide data on lead levels in children. Scientists such as Dr. Herbert Needleman who were researching the detrimental effects of low levels of lead were harassed.

The CDC finally lowered the "safe" limit to 10 mcg/dl in 1991.

Rejection of Lead Safety Advocates

Even as recently as 2003, the government's resistance to lead safety advocacy was still apparent. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson rejected the CDC appointments of scientists who found toxicity of lead at lower-than-10 mcg/dl levels. Instead, Thompson appointed a scientist who had worked for two lead companies, and another scientist who states that 70 mcg/dl of lead is safe for children (a standard not accepted by any other expert in the field).

Zero-Tolerance for Lead

Also in 2003, an NEJM study showed that children with lead levels lower than 10 mcg/dl lost approximately 7 IQ points. This finding has been confirmed repeatedly, and it should be the focal point of a drive to ensure a zero-tolerance policy for lead in paint, toys, gasoline, and wherever else it is poisoning our children.

(Source: Slate.com)

Does your child have a measurable level of lead in his or her blood? Seek an experienced lead poisoning attorney's counsel to discuss your legal options.