Elevated levels of lead have been detected in playgrounds in Houston, Texas, new research reports. On average, lead levels were four times higher in these play areas than they are in Texas overall.
Heavy metals such as lead occur naturally in most soils. But thanks to industrial pollution, levels of these metals are often higher than they should be.
“Heavy metals and metalloids have been studied and regulated extensively over the past 50 years, but evidence is growing that exposure is more common than previously thought,” Garett Sansom, with the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Texas A&M School of Public Health and a corresponding author to the study, said in a statement.
In a new study, published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, Sansom and his colleagues, in collaboration with the Houston-based environmental action groups Coalition of Community Organizations and IMPACT GFW, collected 193 samples from residential yards and playgrounds around the Greater Fifth Ward.
The Greater Fifth Ward is a neighborhood two miles northeast of Downtown Houston. It is known as a “cancer cluster” due to high rates of cancer diagnoses occurring in this area, and the majority of residents belong to socioeconomically disadvantaged racial and ethnic minorities.
The samples were analyzed for eight heavy metals and compared to average levels in other urban areas around Texas. While most heavy metals were not higher than those in other areas, lead levels were significantly elevated in seven of the samples.
“The median levels of lead detected in seven samples from playgrounds (400 mg/kg) and three samples from residential areas (1200 mg/kg) were four times higher than the levels for Texas overall,” Sansom said. “And these were likely underestimates because they did not take lead-based paint or motor fuel into account.”
But why is this a problem?
Lead can replace calcium in our bones and teeth. Because of this, the heavy metal can be stored in our bodies for decades after the initial exposure. Over time, this lead can accumulate and can be released back into our blood.
The metal has been linked to a range of neurological and cardiovascular conditions, as well as problems with our kidneys, blood, immune system and reproductive health. Children are particularly vulnerable to these health effects, especially when it comes to brain development, and many studies have shown that even low exposure to lead is associated with impaired attention, memory and learning.
Unaihuiziphotography/Getty
Is there a health problem that worries you? Let us know via health@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story can be featured Newsweek.
