The CDC recently put up on their website two new videos designed to educate the public about the dangers of childhood lead exposure. The first video, “Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention,” is written for a general audience. The second video, “Childhood Lead Exposure Prevention Education,” is for high schoolers.
A naturally occurring metal, lead has been used in a wide variety of consumer and industrial products. Lead poisoning can cause health problems in people of any age, but children under the age of 6 are most vulnerable. Despite long-standing bans on lead paint and leaded gas, lead exposure remains a common hazard.
The two CDC videos overlap on many of the topics they cover. Both videos provide an overview of what lead is. Both describe how lead exposure happens. Lead paint and pipes, contaminated spices and cosmetics, and battery and ammunition manufacturing are some of the sources of lead exposure.
Both videos discuss the health effects of lead poisoning. At high doses, lead poisoning can be fatal. More typically, smaller doses of lead can result in developmental delays in children and behavioral problems in teens and adults. Also, the two videos also discuss lead-safe behaviors. Performing these actions helps avoid or minimize lead exposure.
The first video covers requirements for landlords and home sellers to disclose the presence of lead in housing. And it has resources for parents, including services that help children exposed to lead. While the second video, written for a high school audience, spends more time on the sources of lead exposure, particularly those in the home, and lead-safe behaviors that reduce the risk of lead poisoning.
To learn more about lead poisoning, its health effects, how to minimize exposure and how doctor’s test for it, visit the CDC’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention website.
