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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffFactors that may increase your risk of lead poisoning include:
- Age. Infants and young children are more likely to be exposed to lead than are older children. They may chew paint chips, and their hands may be contaminated with lead dust. Young children also absorb lead more easily and sustain more harm from it than do adults and older children.
- Living in an older home. Although the use of lead-based paints has been banned since the 1970s, older homes and buildings often retain remnants of this paint. People renovating an older home are at even higher risk.
- Certain hobbies. Making stained glass requires the use of lead solder. Refinishing old furniture may put you in contact with layers of lead paint.
- Country of origin. People who live in developing countries are at higher risk of lead poisoning because those countries usually have less strict rules regarding exposure to lead. American families who adopt a child from another country may want to have the child's blood tested for lead poisoning.
Because lead can harm an unborn child, pregnant women or women likely to become pregnant should be especially careful to avoid exposure to lead.
References
- Markowitz M. Lead poisoning. In: Kliegman RM. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/208746819-6/0/1608/0.html. Accessed Jan. 14, 2011.
- Hurwitz RL. Childhood lead poisoning: Clinical manifestations and diagnosis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Jan. 14, 2011.
- McGuigan MA. Chronic poisoning: Trace metals and others. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/191371208-2/0/1492/0.html#. Accessed Jan. 14, 2011.
- At-risk populations: Pregnant women. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/pregnant.htm. Accessed Jan. 14, 2011.
- Goldman RH, et al. Adult lead poisoning. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Jan. 14, 2011.
- Folk medicine. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/folkmedicine.htm. Accessed Jan. 17, 2011.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, et al. Lead poisoning associated with use of litargirio: Rhode Island, 2003. MMWR. 2005:54;227. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5409a5.htm. Accessed Jan. 17, 2011.
- Lee DA, et al. Childhood lead poisoning: Exposure and prevention. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Jan. 17, 2011.
- Lead in paint, dust and soil. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/lead/pubs/leadinfo.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2011.
- International adoption and prevention of lead poisoning. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/adoption.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2011.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, et al. Recommendations for blood lead screening of Medicaid-eligible children aged 1-5 years: An updated approach to targeting a group at high risk. MMWR. 2009;58:1. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5809a1.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2011.
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