Listed among the 10 chemical substances of most concern for public health by the WHO (World Health Organization), lead is a natural metal, but has been classified as carcinogenic to humans since the 1980s. Lead ? What are its effects on the body of adults and children? What legislation governs the use of lead? MEDADOM answers all your questions.
What is lead?
Lead is a metal found in the natural state on our planet, and more particularly in the earth’s crust. Its properties were discovered several tens of thousands of years ago: archaeologists have found traces of it in pigments covering tombs as well as on objects. Lead was then widely worked in the Bronze Age because of its high malleability and low melting point (327°).
Although lead is natural, it is nonetheless toxic to humans. Indeed, this metal is classified as carcinogenic since 1980. Today, it remains widely used in many sectors, including metallurgy, construction or crafts. Lead is also present in traces in drinking water when it passes through lead pipes.
Where do you find lead?
The use of lead is common in many sectors of activity, including:
- The BTP : paints, pipes, welds…
- L’industry : recycling, ceramics, metallurgy, glass and crystal manufacturing
- L’arts and crafts : production and redesign of stained glass, pottery, jewellery, etc.
Workers working in these sectors of activity are permanently exposed to lead, mainly by inhaling particles containing it or by ingesting water, food or dust.
But lead concerns the whole population, and this, at all agessince it is present even in small quantities in tap water, in everyday consumer products, in the air and in the soil.
Why is it used?
Upon its discovery, lead demonstrated many useful properties for many applications. Lead, naturally gray in color, turns white when it oxidizes. In addition, lead is an easily malleable substance. Compared to other metals, it is impermeable to liquids and conducts electricity less well. Its use for making pipes comes from the fact that it is resistant to corrosion. It is also used as protection against radiation in nuclear power plants and is used in the manufacture of firearm ammunition and automotive batteries.
What are the regulations regarding lead?
Since it was classified as a carcinogen by the health authorities, lead has been subject to specific regulations in all sectors where it is present:
Exposure to lead in paint
The orientation law against exclusion published in 1998 as well as the law of August 9, 2004 frame the prevention of risk of lead poisoning related to lead exposure. These laws provide for a number of measures to be observed, including:
- The obligation for the owners of buildings built before January 1, 1949 to carry out a statement of risk of exposure to lead (CREP) by identifying the coatings containing it.
- The obligation to send a report to the prefect concerned in the event of deterioration of the building (risk of collapse, presence of humidity or mould, etc.).
- Taking emergency measures when a case of lead poisoning is detected and setting up a diagnosis to assess the risk of lead poisoning in paints.
Exposure to lead in drinking water
Drinking water passes through a network of pipes that have been largely made from lead into the 1950s. If the metal is present in trace amounts in the water, the contamination is real. A European directive implemented in 1998 regulates the maximum concentration of lead in tap water. Since the end of 2013, it has been set at 10 micrograms per litre.
Exposure to lead in the workplace
Since exposure to lead is significant in the professional sectors concerned, the regulations have become stricter over the years. This aims to prevent exposure in several ways. On the one hand, by choosing other products that do not contain it. On the other hand, by precisely identifying and characterizing the risk of exposure. The regulations also aim to prevent workers from ingesting and inhaling lead as much as possible by putting in place appropriate devices and measures.
Of the hygiene rules are also indicated to employees, which they must follow for their own health:
- Do not drink, eat or smoke in the workplace;
- Wash hands and face before meals;
- Shower after work;
- Change clothes before going home.
In addition to these essential measures, the provision ofbreathing apparatus can also intervene in the event that exposure to lead cannot be avoided.
Does lead cause disease?
Exposure to lead is by inhalation or ingestion. The metal then diffuses into the blood and reaches the organs. If the lead is then filtered by the organs responsible for the elimination of toxins and waste, a small quantity remains present in the body and accumulates over time.
Lead is a substance harmful to health, regardless of age category. Nevertheless, some people are at higher risk of lead-related illnesses.
This is the case of:
- Children and babies;
- Pregnant women ;
- The elderly ;
- Regular consumers of products containing lead;
- Workers exposed to lead;
- People who regularly visit shooting ranges;
- Persons in the close entourage of workers, who may be exposed to lead via work equipment (equipment, clothing, etc.).
What are the health effects of lead on adults?
Once in the body, the lead remains there for a long time: it is estimated that it is necessary about 25 years old so that the amount of lead accumulated in the body is reduced by half. The effects of lead are multiple. For example, he is responsible for:
- The appearance of nervous system disorders, particularly in terms of mood and cognitive abilities such as memory and concentration;
- D’renal failure chronic;
- D’anemia (decreased red blood cells in the blood);
- Abdominal pain
- Miscellaneous disorders affecting the hormonal or hepatic system
- Reproductive disorders, both in men and women.
What are the effects of lead on children?
In children, lead is responsible for illnesses that can be serious. This is the case from conception: a pregnant woman exposed to lead increases the risk that the baby will present a low birth weight and the mother giving birth prematurely.
When a child is exposed to intense concentrations of lead, the metal can cause serious consequences that can go as far as mental retardation, behavioral problems, or even death. At lower doses, the symptoms of lead poisoning may go unnoticed, but affect the body at different levels. For example, the child may present:
- A delay in brain development, with difficulty following in class or cognitive impairment
- Anemia
- Of the’hypertension ;
- Kidney failure
- Immune system disorders
- Problems with the reproductive system.
The longer and longer lead exposure increases, the more serious the health effects in children become. Even at very low doses, lead has consequences that may prove to be irreversible.
Lead poisoning, a dangerous disease for the health of children
Lead poisoning is the name given to a lead poisoning. In a child or adolescent, we speak of lead poisoning when the lead concentration reaches 50 micrograms per liter of blood. Lead poisoning is particularly risky in children under the age of six. It causes language and behavioral disorders, delayed learning and slowed growth, motor difficulties or a decrease in hearing acuity.
According to Health Insurance, in 2018, 620 new cases of lead poisoning were detected on national territory. A figure in constant decline thanks to the various measures implemented in recent years to significantly reduce exposure to lead in the population.
Recognizing lead poisoning is sometimes tricky at the start of the disease. The symptoms are indeed benign (headache, stomach aches, nervousness, fatigue…) before getting worse over time. The diagnosis is made by lead blood test. It should be noted that lead poisoning must be declared to the health authorities if the child or adolescent concerned is under 18 years old.
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