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Lead-Safe Roanoke II
Frequently Asked Questions
Why should residents in the City of Roanoke be concerned about lead?
Communities affected by lead often do not know of the potential hazards. Lead poisoning is a serious threat to the health of America’s children. Lead was a common ingredient in household paint until it was banned in 1978.
86.7% of the houses in Roanoke were built before the ban of lead paint; meaning that the majority of houses in Roanoke contain some lead paint.
Roanoke has the 2nd highest percentage of elevated blood lead level (EBLL) cases in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Through our educational efforts, we hope to increase every resident's knowledge, awareness and concern of the dangers associated with lead poisoning.
We want to make every home in the City of Roanoke, Lead-Safe, so that all children have the chance to enjoy healthy and productive lives.
Source: Virginia Department of Health, http://www.vahealth.org/leadsafe/data.htm
What is lead poisoning?
Lead poisoning is a serious and preventable illness caused by swallowing or breathing lead. People are exposed to lead by breathing air, drinking water, eating food, or swallowing or touching dust or dirt that contains lead. The most common source of lead poisoning is lead-based paint and paint dust. Older homes may contain lead-based paint on inside and outside surfaces. When lead-based paint chips, peels or flakes, it can become a lead hazard. The lead in the paint can turn to lead dust, which may enter the body through inhalation (breathing in) or hand-to-mouth contact. Lead dust is the biggest threat of lead paint and is created when doors, windows or other painted surfaces rub against each other and is often difficult to see.
What are some common sources of lead?
Lead can be hard to detect because you cannot see, taste or smell lead. Some of the most common sources of lead are:
- Chipped or peeling lead-based paint and dust
- Soil contaminated with lead paint chips
- Certain home hobbies and jobs in which one would come into contact with or use lead-based products (stained glass, target practice)
- Water that has passed through lead lined pipes
- Pottery that has been improperly glazed
- Imported window blinds and imported children’s toy jewelry
- Car batteries
- Bullets
- Artist paint
- Folk medicine
- Curtain weights
- Stained glass
- Antique pewter
- Leaded crystal
- Fishing sinkers
What are the symptoms of lead poisoning?
Symptoms of lead poisoning vary and can include any combination of the following:
- Headaches
- Stomach aches
- Tiredness (loss of energy) or hyperactivity
- Constipation
- Poor appetite
- Nausea and/or vomiting
- Dizziness
- Muscle and joint weakness or pain
- Reduced attention span
- Metallic taste in mouth
- Irritability or crankiness
- Loss of weight
- Loss of interest in playing
Parents often don’t notice these signs because they usually go away quickly or look like other illnesses like the flu. Many times there are NO SIGNS of lead poisoning and often the signs are mistaken for other illnesses such as the flu. Only through testing can we tell for sure if a child has an elevated blood lead level (EBLL).
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