Recently in Chemical pollutants Category

Lead-based Paint Dangerous for Children

Young children are particularly susceptible to lead poisoning since they are more likely to ingest lead paint chips, flakes, or dust and are more sensitive to the adverse health effects of lead. Elevated lead levels in young children can trigger

• learning disabilities
• decreased growth
• hyperactivity
• impaired hearing
• brain damage

Lead can be found in a number of places inside and outside the home. For example, lead can be found in household dust from deteriorating lead-based paint or from soil tracked into the house. It can also be found in drinking water coming from old lead pipes, fixtures and solder.

"Childhood lead poisoning is easily preventable with the right information and awareness. This grant will help Arizona tribal communities raise awareness about preventing lead's adverse health effects," said Administrator Jackson. "This project is an important example of the efforts happening across the country to protect our children from a major health threat."

Lead-based Paint Outreach to Native American Tribes

The Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona is developing culturally specific outreach materials to educate tribal families, especially parents of young children, and tribal staff on the health risks to children from exposure to lead-based paint.

Lead Awareness for Facility Maintenance Personnel

The program specifically reaches out to facility maintenance personnel to stress the importance of using lead-safe work practices when renovating buildings.

The use of lead-based paint in U.S. residential housing was banned in 1978.

Approximately 75% of the U.S. housing stock built before 1978, or 64 million homes, contain some lead-based paint.

For information on EPA's lead paint program, go to: http://www.epa.gov/region09/toxic/lead

For information on lead in paint, dust and soil, visit: http://www.epa.gov/lead

For information on protecting your family from lead hazards, visit: http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/leadinfo.htm#where

Lead Disclosure Required for Rental & Sale Properties

Property owners are required to disclose whether reports about lead-based paint or lead hazards existed for apartments prior to tenants signing lease agreements. Violations are subject to hefty fines via the federally regulated Toxic Substances Control Act.

Childhood lead poisoning from exposure to lead-based paint chips or dust continues to be an environmental challenge. Without adequate information about lead hazards, tenants and home owners cannot protect themselves and their families from the significant risks that these hazards present.

Many homes built before 1978 have lead-based paint.

The federal government banned lead-based paint from housing in 1978.

When you are home hunting, be sure to ask:

• When was this property built?
• Has it been tested for lead?  For mold?
• Do you have the required EPA disclosure information? 

Hazardous substances affect children, in particular.

Children with high levels of lead in their bodies can suffer from damage to the brain and nervous system, behavior and learning problems, such as hyperactivity, slowed growth, or hearing problems.

Federal law requires that persons and entities who sell or rent housing built before 1978 must

• provide an EPA-approved lead hazard information pamphlet;
  
• include lead notification language in sales and rental forms;
• disclose any known lead-based paint hazards and provide reports to buyers or renters;
• allow a lead inspection or risk assessment by home buyers;
• and maintain records certifying compliance with applicable federal requirements for three years.

Lead hazards may be controlled through specific maintenance practices or eliminated through abatement. For additional information on lead in paint, dust and soil, see: http://www.epa.gov/lead/.

Bisphenol A (BPA) Is Found in Canned Food Lining, Water Pipes, Plastic Items

Daughters of women exposed to a common chemical found in some plastics while they were pregnant are more likely to have unusually aggressive and hyperactive behaviors as 2-year-olds, according to a new study by researchers at Simon Fraser University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Cincinnati Children's Hospital.

UNC-Chapel Hill measured the BPA levels in the urine of 249 Ohio women at three stages--during pregnancy at 16 weeks and 26 weeks and following birth. When the children turned two, their behavior was evaluated using the Behavioral Assessment System for Children-2 (BASC-2).

BPA is commonly used in the production of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins that can be found in some types of plastic bottles, canned food linings, water supply pipes and medical tubing. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, some 93% of U.S. residents have detectable levels of BPA in their urine.

This study--published October 6, 2009, in Environmental Health Perspectives, was the first to look at the link between prenatal BPA exposure and childhood behavior.

Early exposure to BPA during pregnancy looks like it may negatively impact the baby's developing nervous system--and have a particularly behavior-altering impact on growing girls.

BPA has been used in products for decades, and concerns about its safety have been growing in recent years, Braun said. Previous studies in mice have shown that the offspring of mothers with high BPA exposure during pregnancy were more aggressive than offspring not exposed to high prenatal levels of BPA.

"We wanted to know if there was a risk in humans for neurodevelopment problems," he said. "Study results indicate that exposure to BPA early in the pregnancy seems to be the most critical issue. The most damaging exposure might happen before a woman even knows she's pregnant."

The researchers do not know why boys seem so much less affected by exposure to the chemical.

SOURCES:

The study was funded in part by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

For more information on the study, visit: www.ehponline.org.

"Sick building syndrome" is a terms used to describe homes and workplaces that have indoor contaminants that are not properly vented for healthful air quality maintenance.  Off-gasing is when paints, glues, finishes and manmade materials leach chemicals into the air.  These chemicals can accumulate in poorly ventilated spaces and cause human sickness -- sometimes minor irritation, and sometimes accumulating in the body to cause severe illnesses.

A recent concern is contaminated drywall that was manufactured with unhealthful levels of chemicals that are harmful to humans.

Contaminated Drywall

Since early 2009, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has been contacted by more than 1,000 residents of 27 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia about possible chemical emissions from imported drywall that was used when their homes were built or remodeled. Most calls were from persons in Florida, Louisiana, and Virginia.

At this time, experts believe that defective drywall imported from China was installed in homes built or remodeled after 2003.

The number and location of all affected or potentially affected homes are not yet known.

CPSC is leading the federal investigation into complaints about imported drywall. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are providing technical support to CPSC and several state health departments. CDC and ATSDR are working with other federal and state agencies to identify what chemicals are in the drywall and if these chemicals are a health risk to persons living in homes containing this drywall.

How can I find out if my home has imported drywall?

Corrosion: Are any of your home's copper pipes, plumbing fixtures, or uninsulated electrical wires at light switches or receptacles corroded? Have your air conditioner evaporator coils failed early? Metal or copper corrosion of these types may mean there is defective drywall in your home.

Odor: Does your home have an odor that smells like rotten eggs, matches, or fireworks? A sulfur odor in the home might mean defective drywall is present.

Label: Can you see the back side of your drywall? Some drywall from China is stamped with "Made in China" on the back. However, some Chinese drywall does not have a label or markings.

The Florida Department of Health developed a guide for residents to help them identify drywall problems.

What has been found in the air of homes that contain imported drywall?

State and federal agencies are testing the air inside some homes in Florida, Louisiana, Virginia, Alabama, and Mississippi. They are testing homes in which homeowners suspect they have contaminated drywall and, for comparison, other homes in which no problems have been reported. State and federal agencies will evaluate these results to determine whether there is a health problem. This evaluation is expected in the fall of 2009.

How can Chinese drywall affect my health?

Some persons are more sensitive than others to possible chemical exposures. An exposure that causes no problems for some people can make other people sick or uncomfortable. Persons most likely to get sick from breathing contaminated air include the elderly, children, and people with asthma, allergies, lung disease, and heart problems. Until federal agencies get more information from the indoor air testing, it is not possible to determine if the symptoms people are experiencing are possibly from drywall.

What else should I do if I may be having health problems from imported drywall?

See or call a doctor if you are experiencing health problems and say that you are concerned your illness might be related to imported drywall. Tell your doctor about the health care provider fact sheet for imported drywall. A fact sheet from CDC tells your health care provider how to get more information.

• Go outdoors to get fresh air. Scientists do not know what, if any, benefit there is to opening windows to allow fresh air to come into the home.

Are there other problems I should watch for in my home that may be related to imported drywall?

• Some homes with imported drywall have had damage to exposed wiring. We do not know of any house fires that have occurred related to the drywall. If you experience unusual electrical problems in your home (such as appliances or light switches not working), ask a licensed electrician to check out the problem.

Where can I get additional information?

You can report a drywall problem to CPSC  by calling them at 1-800-638-2772.

Children absorb lead at a much higher rate than adults and toddlers put EVERYTHING in their mouths... so lead in the soil and wall paint, and even their toys becomes a danger to their health that lasts up to 30 years.

SOLUTIONS: To reduce lead content in the environment, old pipes should be replaced, as should old, flaky paint. Any toys used in the yard, park or garden, such as buggies and bikes that come into contact with soil should be washed regularly. Have a child's lead level checked if you live (or lived during their toddler years) in an old house that used lead-based paint on walls or window sills... or even outdoor painted walls.

The campaign for car drivers to make the switch from leaded to unleaded gasoline has been hailed as a major environmental success story in recent years. But despite the dramatic change in our driving habits lead pollution in the environment remains a health hazard and, according to the latest research from Children of the 90s, one to which children are particularly vulnerable.

The research published this week in the online edition of the Archives of Diseases in Childhood, reveals that raised levels of lead in blood - at even quite modest levels - adversely affect behavior and educational attainment.

Children of the 90s measured the levels of lead in the blood samples of nearly 500 youngsters at age two years eight months and linked these levels to the SATS results of the children at age seven years. After adjusting for the many factors, which can affect educational attainment, the analysis showed a clear link between levels of lead in the blood and exam results.

Lead researcher, Professor Alan Emond, Head of the Centre for Child and Adolescent Health at the University of Bristol, said his results demonstrated that those children with lower levels of lead in their blood (between two - five microg/dl) were found to perform significantly better in their SATS that those with blood lead above five microg/dl.

Currently, the World Health Organisation has set the international acceptable level of lead in blood - known as the 'threshold of concern' - at ten microg/dl, but Professor Emond is now calling for this figure to be halved to just five microg/dl based on these results.

"Exposure to lead early in childhood has effects on subsequent educational attainment, even at low blood levels (five-ten microg/dl). Our results suggest that the threshold for clinical concern should be reduced to five microg/dl."

He adds, "We also talked to teachers as part of this research and found that children with lead levels above ten microg/dl were nearly three times as likely to show hyperactivity and anti-social behaviour."

Children are at the greatest risk because lead is more easily absorbed by their growing bodies and because their tissues are especially sensitive to damage. The main sources of environmental lead include water supplies (lead pipes), old lead paint and soil. Blood lead levels appear to peak between the ages of two and three years - the ages when toddlers tend to put most items (including toys) in their mouths.

"While adults absorb around 10-15 per cent of an ingested quantity of lead, this amount can increase to 50 per cent in infants and young children. This lead is then absorbed into the bone where it can remain for up to 30 years," he said.

"Lead gets incorporated into the bones and is gradually released into the blood and circulates throughout the body. It interferes with enzymes and affects many systems - including the central nervous system."