Lead Poisoning In Children

As stated in a recent appellate court published opinion upholding a $1.1 billion verdict against a lead paint manufacturer, lead is a toxin and causes irreversible brain damage. “Children are exceptionally vulnerable” to lead because “they explore their environment with typical hand-to-mouth contact behavior.” Lead paint chips “taste sweet,” which may explain why children ingest them.

Young children are at especially high risk from residential lead paint because they spend the vast majority of their time in their homes. Infants and young children also absorb much more lead than older children and adults. Because children are smaller, lead intake has a proportionally larger impact on their bodies, and children absorb lead more easily. Children are also more vulnerable to the toxic effects of lead because their biological systems are still developing.

The appellate court further commented that the “brain effects [of lead exposure] in children are irreversible,” so the “only option is to prevent the exposure in the first place.” There is “no safe exposure level” for lead “[b]ecause no measurable level of lead in blood is known to be without deleterious effects, and because once engendered the effects appear to be irreversible.” Blood lead levels less than 5 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dL) can cause children to suffer impaired intellect and behavioral problems.

“[E]ven among children with the lowest levels of lead exposure,” studies suggest that “there is ongoing harm down to the lowest measurable levels.” “[B]lood lead levels below 5 micrograms per deciliter are associated with decreased academic achievement, diminished IQ scores, or intellectual abilities, cognitive abilities, attention-related behavior problems and antisocial behaviors . . . .” Lead exposure as a child continues to impact the body when the child becomes an adult. It “has reproductive effects, it has impacts on things like birth weight, and even fertility, delays fertility,” and it can be associated with cardiovascular disease.

There is no safe level of lead exposure—any amount will be potentially dangerous to children or anyone else.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to determine if symptoms a child experiences actually have anything to do with lead exposure. Symptoms may include headaches, abdominal pain, constipation or loss of appetite. Children may also show signs of drowsiness, decreased activity, clumsiness or agitation, eventually proceeding to vomiting, convulsions or stupor. Long-term exposure can result in serious developmental and behavioral problems. This is because lead alters some of the most basic nervous system functions in very young children.

If you have a child who has been exposed to lead and suffered from lead poisoning as a result, contact an experienced Los Angeles personal injury lawyer at the Law Offices of Christopher Montes de Oca to learn more about your legal options and how you can demonstrate liability on the part of the defendant in your case.