Childhood Lead Poisoning

Lead exposure causes harm in numerous ways. It interferes with the body's ability to produce hemoglobin, leading to anemia. It damages kidneys, which lack the ability to filter lead. Finally, it acts as a neurotoxin, damaging the brain and causing developmental delays even at low levels of exposure.

The CDC has taken an unequivocal position that there is no identifiable safe blood lead level in children. Children are exquisitely sensitive to the effects of lead poisoning, and children six years of age or younger are especially vulnerable:

SOURCE: CDC National Center for Environmental Health

Lead poisoning not only interrupts a child's brain development during critical stages of growth, it also leads to health problems that persist well into adulthood. Lead that enters the body during childhood is absorbed by bones and re-released into the bloodstream later in life, causing further damage to the brain and other vital organs. Lead poisoned children are thus at higher risk of cancer, stroke, anemia, and kidney problems during adulthood.

Lead poisoning has no cure. While chelation can accelerate a reduction in blood lead levels, it does not undo the damage cause by even short-term exposure. The permanent nature of lead poisoning only heightens the importance of preventing childhood lead exposure in the first place, and of providing educational and emotional support to children disabled by exposure to lead.

If your child was lead-poisoned, it is critical for you to document their exposure through blood testing. To speak with one of our experienced lead poisoning attorneys, please call 1-866-516-0823 or submit an email inquiry through this page.