Prevention
The prevention of lead poisoning seems very simple when you
realize that all you have to do is avoid eating lead or breathing in
lead dust. However, if you are living in a home that has lead in the
water, soil, paint or other sources this can be more difficult. The
following list contains just some of the ways to prevent lead
poisoning. If you know or suspect that you are living in a home with
lead hazards, please contact the Jasper County Health Departments'
Childhood Lead Prevention team for more information on precautions
you can take.
- Personal Hygiene
- Diet
- Soil and Dust
- Water
- Paint
- Remodeling
Personal Hygiene -
One of the simplest ways to keep yourself and your family safe from
lead is to practice proper hand washing techniques. If there is lead
on your property, chances are there is lead dust in your home from
friction surfaces or from
contaminated soil. To prevent this dust from being swallowed it is a
good idea to wash your own and your children's hands frequently,
especially before preparing or eating food , after playing outside,
after playing in or around windows or doorways, after crawling on
the floor, after handling outdoor toys or anytime they look dirty.
Another thing to be cautious of is letting children put a dropped
bottle or pacifier back in their mouth before it has been cleaned
well. If you have a job or hobby that brings you into contact with
lead, lead can be carried into your home on your skin and hair,
clothing and shoes. If shower facilities are offered at work, use
them and put on clean clothing before coming home to your family. If
not, try to remove your work clothing in a laundry room and place
the clothing directly into the washing machine to be washed
separately from children's clothing. It is also a good idea to
remove shoes before entering your house. Shower before you make
physical contact with the rest of the family.
Diet - To help children avoid
lead poisoning, make sure they get at least three meals a day. Full
stomachs are less likely to
absorb
lead. Providing a diet high in iron, protein, vitamin C, calcium,
and low in fats/oils will also help the body to absorb less
lead. Avoid allowing your child to eat food that has fallen onto
the ground because it may be contaminated with lead particles.
Ensure you store and serve foods properly. Avoid storing/serving
food in open metal cans, pottery, ceramics or lead crystal. Provide
a daily vitamin supplement to ensure that the child is getting all
the proper nutrients needed.
Soil and Dust - To help
reduce the potential for getting lead poisoning from contaminated
soil and dust, try to minimize contact with these sources. Plant
bushes or use mulch or rock to cover contaminated soil in the drip
zone of the home to make the soil
inaccessible. Plant grass seed in bare soil areas, avoid walking on
bare soil areas, keep children from playing in these areas and from
digging in the dirt. Use welcome mats at entryways to the home to
reduce the amount of soil brought in on your shoes. Wash hands after
contact with pets that may have lead dust in their coats from being
in contaminated soil. Inside the home, frequently clean the
entryways and window sills using a wet cleaning method. Dry dusting
or sweeping can spread lead dust and introduce it into the air
causing more of a hazard. Using mops or wet clothes and rinsing them
out thoroughly and frequently during use will actually pick up and
remove lead dust rather than spreading it around. Use a HEPA filter
vacuum if one is available. If you are cleaning an area known to
contain lead dust and do not have a HEPA filter vacuum, one is
available for loan at no cost at the Jasper County Health
Department.
Follow these tips anytime you are visiting a place that you do not
know to be free of lead such as the home of a relative or a
community park or at home when you know or suspect that there may be
lead hazards. This will greatly reduce the likelihood of getting
lead poisoning.
Water- If your water is found
to contain lead, do not drink or cook with your water until you
receive test results
showing
that the lead level is within the recommended limits for lead in
water. You may be able to find a filtration system that is
specifically designed to remove this type of contamination, but be
careful not to spend your money on a system that will not do what
you need. Many filters and water softeners are available that will
do nothing at all to remove lead from your water. If the problem is
found to be in the plumbing, an option would be to replace the old
plumbing. If the problem is from well water it may be necessary to
have a new well put in. It is safe to use this water for washing
clothes, bathing and showering, but be careful to ensure bathing
children do not drink the water.
Paint - If paint inside or
outside your home contains lead, it is important to monitor the
paint to make sure there is no chipping or peeling. As long as there
is an intact layer of a non-lead based paint covering a surface, it
is not considered a lead hazard. If
paint is chipping, it is important to pick up and dispose of any
loose paint chips. Stabilize the damaged paint without creating dust
(no sanding!) and re-paint with a non-lead based paint. Remove and
dispose of any loose paint chips. If lead based paint is present on
a friction surface (any surface which rubs against another surface
creating friction and possibly lead paint dust) painting over the
paint will not remove the hazard. On door and window components the
easiest thing to do is to not use the door or window. Paint or nail
windows shut. Remove doors from hinges. This is not always possible
and the problem can be remediated by removing and replacing the door
or window and the frame. A less expensive solution is to install
plastic tracks along the friction surfaces to prevent the painted
surfaces from touching. For windows, it is sometimes effective to
cover them with plastic sheeting and/or arrange furniture in the
house in a way that blocks access to the window by children.
Remodeling - When
performing any remodeling activities in a home built before 1978, it
is best to take precautions to limit exposure to lead paint or dust.
The Health Department recommends that licensed lead abatement
workers perform remodeling
or
remediation work done on a home built before 1978. This is
especially true when there is known or suspected lead paint or when
children are present. If you must do the work yourself, take
precautions. Keep children away from remodeling activities!
Completely out of the home is best. Work on one room at a time and
keep that room blocked off from the rest of the home with plastic
sheeting. Be careful not to track lead dust into the rest of the
home on feet or clothing. Remove furniture and other objects from
the room that may not be easily cleaned when the remodeling is
complete. If sanding or scraping must be done, use a misting bottle
to wet the paint first to reduce the amount of dust created. Always
wear a mask. The most common way for an adult to get lead poisoning
is through breathing in lead dust during remodeling. Clean each room
thoroughly before taking down the plastic and moving to another room
in the house. Be sure that all traces of dust have been removed
using a wet cleaning method and/or a HEPA filter vacuum. Call the
Jasper County Health Department Childhood Lead Prevention team with
any questions or for more information on safely remodeling or
removing lead from your home.