Does your Home contain Lead Paint? Is it making your Children sick?

Until recently I always thought of lead paint poisoning  as a plot by people in plush carpeted rooms in a high rise building with nothing better to do then scare the rest of us into a cave where we could find safety from the world. For those of you reading this you know what I mean,  there is something  new every day that seems to threaten our health. I always reflect back to my childhood and say we all did that or ate that way and it never seemed to hurt us. Well I still stand by that for the most part but after taking some training this week on the effects of lead paint on children under six I began to think they may be onto something here.

Every so often I get calls from frantic homeowners asking if I can help them discover what may be making their children sick. They claim it must be inside their home as they are mostly sick at home and it has been prolonged sicknesses that medications don’t seem to help.  More often then not the problem turns out to be mold related and thankfully I have been able to help them discover the problem and point them towards the path to correcting it. Then there are the times that I cannot pinpoint any triggers and air quality testing indicates the air is clean. From now on I will be asking more questions as they relate to Lead Paint.

If you are like I was you are likely saying it is not likely lead paint. Truth is I will always recommend that the parents of sick toddlers and children under six have their LBL or Lead Blood Level tested. It is worth a shot and it may just be the problem.  It is said that a few chips of lead paint are enough to cause lead poisoning in a child. It is hard to believe but I guess it is a fact and who am I to argue.

Lead paint was widely used up until 1978 when it was banned from use.  So if you live in a home built in 1978 or earlier chances are that your home may have lead based paint.  If you have small children living in the home you will want to consider this a potential hazard to their health. Of particular concern is the possibility of lead poisoning when you decide to renovate this home. In the U.S. lawmakers have passed laws requiring special training for renovators who work on pre-1978 homes where children may be present. It is taken very seriously and if a renovator fails to become trained or follow the proper containment, cleanup and documentation procedures they will be prosecuted.  For more information and brochures online about lead paint go to: www.epa.gov/lead If you have more to add please comment!