home. Some will test your home free. Home test kits are available, but they don't detect small amounts of lead. Keep your home clean Something as ordinary as dust and dirt can contain lead. Children
can ingest lead or breathe lead-con-taminated dust if they play in it. Often, they put their fingers and toys in their mouths before they wash their hands to eat. Keep floors mopped and window sills wiped; keep chewable surfaces such as crib railings wiped clean. Use a solution of powered automatic dish-washer detergent in warm water twice a week. Keep toys and other items clean Wash pacifiers and bottles after they fall on the floor. Wash toys and
stuffed animals regularly. Also en-sure your children wash their hands before meals, nap time and bed time. Minimize the risk of lead paint Lead paint on homes built before 1978 could be on window frames,
walls, the outside of the house or other surfaces. Pieces of peeling or chipping lead paint can be danger-ous if eaten. Paint considered in good condition usually is not a problem, but if surfaces rub against another surface, it can create dust that could become airborne and easily inhaled.
Never remove lead paint yourself Hire a qualified contractor to re-move the lead from your home. Ev-eryone
in the family should stay out of the building, especially children and pregnant women, until all work has been completed and a thorough cleanup is done. Don't bring lead dust into your home If you or your spouse works with batteries or in construction, demoli-tion,
painting, a radiator repair shop or lead factory or if your job involves working with lead, change your clothes before you get home.
Eat nutritious foods When children get lots of iron and calcium, they will absorb less
lead. For iron eat eggs, lean red meat and beans and for calcium, eat dairy products such as cheese and milk. Eliminate lead from drinking water Well water and city water nor-mally do not naturally contain lead.
The water can pick up lead inside your home if your pipes are lead-based.
If your water has not been tested or you know it has high levels of lead, don't drink, cook or make a child's formula with water from the hot tap. If the cold water has not been used for more than two hours, let it run 30 to 60 seconds before drinking or cooking with it. You can purchase a water filter certified for lead removal. If you have further questions, con-tact the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791 or the National Lead Information Center at 800-LEADFYI (800-424-5323).
Harmful effects of lead poisoning by Lisa Stafford American Forces Press Service N lead in their blood. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Pre-vention in Atlanta, you might have this killer around without knowing it. You can't see, taste or smell lead. Dust, paint, soil in and around your home, drinking water or even your food could contain lead. Lead poisoning can cause learn-ing disabilities, decreased growth, hy-peractivity, impaired hearing, brain damage, and headaches in young chil-dren and babies. Lead also can pass through the mother's body to her unborn child. Although children ap-pear healthy, they can still have high levels of lead in their blood. Exposure to high levels of lead can also harm adults. The effects include difficulties during pregnancy, other reproductive problems for both men and women, high blood pres-sure, digestive problems, nerve disor-ders, memory loss, difficulty concen-trating and muscle and joint pain. "Pediatric lead screening is also part of the TRICARE health benefits package as well as part of the pediat-ric health benefits survey especially geared toward lead screening," said Norma Rumbaugh, senior analyst for the Office of the Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. Protect your family by following these suggestions: Get your family tested The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests testing chil-dren
for the first time at age one. Test them at age six months if you
think your home has lead in it or if your home was built before 1978.
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