Lead dangers stun parents
Schools should have told them of tainted water, they say
Friday, July 2, 2004
By DEBORAH BACH
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
When Kimberly and Corey Brown’s son was a toddler, people would often
comment on what a good-natured, perfectly behaved little boy he was.
CONTAMINATION MAP
View a map (PDF, 344K) showing the locations and results of Seattle
schools tested for lead contamination in drinking water
<http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/dayart/20040702/leadschools.pdf>.
That changed a couple of months after Forrest Allison-Brown started
kindergarten classes at north Seattle’s Alternative Elementary No. 2
three years ago. He began talking back and flying into rages. Teachers
said he had difficulty paying attention in class. He complained of
headaches and started having sleeping problems.
“These issues came up two years ago out of the blue,” said Corey Brown,
a local contractor. “It was like, what’s going on?”
The Browns became concerned enough to take their son to a psychiatrist,
who put him on anti-anxiety medication and diagnosed him with a mild
case of Asberger syndrome, a neurobiological disorder characterized by
autistic like behaviors.
But after learning that the drinking fountain in the room where Forrest
attended kindergarten and first grade has what may be the highest
levels
of lead contamination of any school in the district, his parents are
wondering if the 8-year-old’s problems might be linked to heavy metal
exposure.
The fountain in Room 5 at AE2, which Forrest drank from regularly,
showed lead levels of 1,600 parts per billion — 80 times over the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency limit of 20 parts per billion.
Like other parents around the district, the Browns were shocked to
learn
that recent districtwide water tests found high levels of lead in
drinking water at public schools throughout Seattle. They want to know
why they weren’t told about the possibility of contamination, after
district tests more than a decade ago showed that lead levels in
numerous fountains at the school exceeded EPA limits.
“I think I’m still in the concerned stage,” Kimberly Brown said
yesterday. “I don’t really feel the anger yet. I know I will.”
Lead exposure poses a serious health threat to children 5 or younger.
Excessive levels can lead to learning disabilities, behavioral problems
and mental retardation. It can also damage the nervous and reproductive
systems, as well as the kidneys.
Seattle physician Ralph Golan, who has been studying heavy metal
contamination for the past 15 years, said the symptoms experienced by
the Browns’ son are consistent with high levels of lead exposure.
“That’s very suspicious, particularly at a school where the (lead)
levels have been found to be in the toxic range,” he said.
Other warning signs, Golan said, may include depression, unusual
abdominal pain, anemia, learning disabilities, poor memory and
unexplained tremors or twitches in the body, and in adults, repeated
miscarriages or infertility.
Parents whose children are exhibiting those symptoms should check for
lead poisoning by asking a pediatrician for a blood test. Golan goes
further, intravenously or orally administering a substance that draws
toxic metals from the body, then testing the patient’s urine for heavy
metals.
article continues at link
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/180495_leadwater02.html
Re: Lead dangers stun parents
Dad
I just saw this post, I don’t know how i missed it!!
I just got the results back from my son’s heavy metal toxicity test, and was SHOCKED to find he is in the very elevated range in LEAD!
Went over the list of where he could have got it and nothing adds up.
We are in the process of eliminating it ( chelating) out of his body.
Of course, I researched the effects of lead in the body as well. I was shocked to see the same characteristics/symptoms as ADHD. And in the 60’s or 70’s when lead paint chip ingestion was common, people who brought their kids into the doctors office with these ADHD symptoms automatically were tested for lead exposure.
I’m not saying that all my sons issues are from the lead, but it could exacerbate them. It will be interesting to see what happens after it’s eliminated.
Since I don’t know the source of his lead exposure. I am having the rest of the family tested, before I look at the school, he always takes bottled water, but you know kids.
Do you have a personal experience with lead? I was wondering why you posted the article, was it just FYI?
Thanks!
Re: Lead dangers stun parents
http://www.danasview.net/cheltest.htm
This is my boy’s experience with elevated lead as of round 5 (we have done 8 complete rounds of chelation to date, all with marked improvements).
It is erroneous to think of lead as being a problem from yesterday. Lead is still in a great many houses that will flake paint, it is a number of city’s water supply lines (as the recent debacle in DC highlighted) and it still shows up in unusual places, like the toy jewelry that just got recalled, some other toys manufactured in China, in the dirt outside homes that are within 2 miles of busy roads, in the fishing tackle box, cheap ceramics, pewter ware, candles with wire reinforced wicks, etc.
A recent study involving nearly 100,000 children found elevated lead associated with both MR and JD (75% concordance for each) and came to the conclusion that 10 was too high to be considered safe.
So while I post articles like this for the “FYI” factor, my interest in the topic is just a bit more than just academic ;)
Re: Lead dangers stun parents
Hi Dad
Went to your web site. Wow, your family has been through alot!!! It sounds like your son is having positve effects from the Chelating, any improvment is worth noting!! Your son is very lucky he has such supportive parents who won’t stop until they have answers! I’m very happy for you and your family, and wish you continued success with his treatment.
My sons level was almost as high as your sons. We are chelating with Proalgen right now (a natural conpound) See if this works before we go to DMSA.
I have heard and read about the positve effects of L-Carnosine with Autistic and ADHD spectrum kids. You can find this by just searching L-Carnosine. It’s pretty amazing!
Please keep me posted on your sons progress.
Re: Lead dangers stun parents
Hi Dad.
I found the web site with the L-carnosine research. Maybe you’ve tried this.Let me know.
www.geocities.com/fishstep/carnosine
State ignores law requiring lead testing for all Medicaid children
Saturday, July 10, 2004
By PHUONG CAT LE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/181604_medicaid10.html
Federal law requires all children insured under Medicaid to be screened for lead poisoning, but Washington state has been ignoring the rule for years.
While some states such as Massachusetts screen all children, state officials and physicians here say blanket or even targeted screening isn’t necessary given the low prevalence of lead poisoning in the state.
Children enrolled in Medicaid are considered at risk for lead poisoning and must be screened at 12 and 24 months, according to Medicaid rules adopted in 1989.
article continues at link
School board rejects inquiry into why tainted water problem wasn’t
fixed
Saturday, July 10, 2004
By DEBORAH BACH
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/181609_leadboard10.html
The Seattle School Board will not conduct a formal investigation into why thousands of children were permitted to drink contaminated water for more than a decade after tests showed elevated lead levels in schools’ drinking water.
President Mary Bass said yesterday that after discussions over the past week, the board has decided that a potentially costly and lengthy investigation wasn’t the best use of resources, particularly since most employees involved in water testing in the early 1990s have since left the district.
article continues at link