So, the county health department came to the house today. They were coming to inspect the house for lead. The guy walked into the house, and said ….”When was this built?” I told him that it was built in 1987. He then said “I can tell you I probably won’t find any sources of lead, just by walking in here, but I’ll definitely look.” He’s been doing lead testing for 14 years…pretty sure he knows what he’s talking about!! He then asked about our blinds. I guess some vinyl blinds had lead in them until 1997. Well, what blinds we have are aluminum, so they’re not the source.
I asked about the water system. He said that they stopped making lead pipes for houses in the 1910’s. Same goes for city systems. So, even though I have a water sample pending…it’s not going to be the source.
I then asked how reliable the home test strips are for lead detection; because I had heard that they weren’t reliable. He said that the ones they make now days are the same ones that the health department uses. The only thing that might happen would be to have a false positive. They wouldn’t cause a false negative. Okay…that means that all the toys I tested are definitely negative. He also said that all the panic about lead in toys wasn’t all that necessary. When they found lead in the toys…they pretty much had to melt the toy down to release the lead that was present. So, unless the child drank the melted toy, they wouldn’t be able to take in the lead or digest it into their systems.
He found absolutely NOTHING in the house that could have caused Abby to ingest lead. That leaves the daycare or church. The church is new…that eliminates that. Now, we’re back to the daycare. Now, I’ve been to the daycare (obviously) and there wasn’t any chipping paint, etc. that I could see. They did all new carpet, and repainted everything before they moved. The house is definitely old enough. However…he also said that even with lead based paint, if it’s not chipping, the child would have to be continually chewing/sucking on it. Abby really doesn’t chew on things…toys yes, but nothing else.
So, I asked the inspector about what needs to be done if lead is found. He said it was actually a simple process….and there wouldn’t necessarily be a need to switch daycares unless the house is covered in lead. Wiping off window sills once a week would take care of lead dust on windows/furniture. Using baby wipes is the easiest way to wipe off the windows…or using a cleaner with phosphorus in it (he suggested Cascade dishwasher detergent). Replacing the sash in the window, covering the sash in the window, washing kids’ hands before they eat and before nap time would be all that it would take (again…unless high levels are all over). He also said that if the siding has lead based paint, it would be in the dirt around the house, and that the play area would need to be away from the house. I guess for sidings…if lead based paint is used…it sheds…which means that the siding “cleans” itself, but the lead goes into the ground. If the kids are digging in it, or eating the dirt, they’d get it into their systems.
I asked again, how long it would take for the lead level to increase in a kid’s system. He said…it could be a little bit over a long time, or it could have been a one or two time occurrence….if Abby somehow ate one or two pieces of lead paint, especially if it was right before the test was done, it could explain the level she’s at. He also said that they just recently decreased the level for which the health department is required to investigate. They used to only investigate levels of 20 or more…then decreased it to 15, which is what most big cities go by. In the last 10 years, they decreased it to 10 in Dane County. In the last 5 years, they went even lower to a 5. Which is why Abby’s level triggered the call….she’s just over the 5. I also asked how long it takes lead to leave the body. He said if the child is anemic, it will take longer because iron pulls lead from your system. If they have a low fat, low sugar, high fiber diet, it will decrease faster (given that the source is found). Luckily, Abby will eat whatever I give her, so that wouldn’t be difficult…plus we don’t eat high fat, high sugar stuff… So I guess the end of the “story” is, that we still don’t know the source…but I feel better about how to remedy the situation if we do find it. We have a little more time to figure out the daycare thing….our provider ended up having a c-section, so she’ll be taking off a bit more time…more time to figure out the inspection, etc.
ps...my doctor's office called and the lead level that I had them draw is barely detectable. (definitely NOT our house!)
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