BOX 2

Twenty-two children from Kingston, Jamaica. were hospitalized for lead poisoning between January 1986 and March 1987. The effects vary with the quantities of lead present, but include damage to the kidney, liver, nervous system and reproductive system. As well, growth is impaired and blood synthesis interfered with. An epidemiological investigation revealed that the most likely source of exposure was through ingestion of contaminated soil. (Matte et al. 1989). Soil contamination resulted from lead fumes generated during the repair process of smelting of scrap lead along with lead dust being blown from scrap piles, from scrap being dragged or carted through yards, or from lead dust being tracked on the shoes of workers.

Blood samples were taken from children living near repair shops as well as in the neighborhood and hospital, the latter two serving as an epidemiological control. In all age groups, blood lead levels were significantly higher among subjects who lived in households where repair shops existed. Blood lead levels were higher in children less than 12 years of age than in those 12 or older. Children living in households where workers lived, but where no repairs were actually carried out, also had higher lead levels.

source Matte et al(1989).