Effect of Season of the Year on Lead Levels in Young Children

Lead poisoning is a serious health concern for child care providers of young children. This study examined blood lead levels in 1,190 children residing in Mississippi. Children ranged in age from six to 81 months, mean age was 32.9 months. Mean lead level was 5.2 micrograms per decaliter (mcg/dl). B...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Early child development and care 2000-01, Vol.160 (1), p.67-76
Main Authors: Tidwell, Diane K., Bomba, Anne K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Blood lead level
Child Health
children
Comparative Analysis
Lead
Lead Poisoning
Mississippi
Physical Health
poisoning
Seasonal variations
Seasons
Special Health Problems
toxicity
USA
Young Children
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Summary:Lead poisoning is a serious health concern for child care providers of young children. This study examined blood lead levels in 1,190 children residing in Mississippi. Children ranged in age from six to 81 months, mean age was 32.9 months. Mean lead level was 5.2 micrograms per decaliter (mcg/dl). Boys had a higher lead level than girls, and Black children had a higher lead level than White children. The percentage of children with lead toxicity, or lead levels of 10 mcg/dl or higher was 8.5%. The winter season (December 21 to March 19) had a significantly lower (p = .03) lead level than Autumn (September 23 to December 22), 4.9 mcg/dl and 5.5 mcg/dl, respectively. The Summer season (June 21 to September 22) and Spring (March 20 to June 20) had lead levels of 5.2 mcg/dl, which was not significantly different from the other seasons of the year.
ISSN:0300-4430
1476-8275
DOI:10.1080/0030443001600106