Is Time Spent Outside the Family Home a Risk Factor for Lead Exposure in Pre-School Children Living in Broken Hill?

David M. Lyle, Frances T. Boreland, Najeebullah Soomro and Melinda Glisson-Gladman
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David M. Lyle: Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health, Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Broken Hill, NSW 2880, Australia
Frances T. Boreland: Broken Hill Environmental Lead Program, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Broken Hill, NSW 2880, Australia
Najeebullah Soomro: Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health, Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Broken Hill, NSW 2880, Australia
Melinda Glisson-Gladman: Broken Hill University Department of Rural Health, Sydney Medical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Broken Hill, NSW 2880, Australia

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-9

Abstract: Broken Hill is amongst a group of communities internationally that are at greater risk from lead due to active or historical lead industries. Current evidence suggests there is no safe level of lead for young children. This paper describes places outside the family home where young Broken Hill children spend time and considers the potential for this to contribute to lead risk. We interviewed 65 families of children 3 years old or younger and detailed the top five places children spent time at outside the family home. Exposure to private residences outside the family home was recorded for most (88%) young children. Nearly two thirds stayed there five or more hours per week. Most children went there on a weekly basis over many months (median, 12 months), increasing the likelihood of exposure to lead hazards. Further investigation of the lead hazard and risk behaviour of children at these residences would assist in developing guidelines for remediation of the lead hazard for all private residences in Broken Hill. This approach to elucidating the potential sources and pathways of lead and other heavy metal exposures for young children may have merit in other settings where comprehensive zonal remediation is not feasible or may not be warranted.

Keywords: child and adolescent health; lead and health; rural health; program evaluation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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