Lead Results

Dr.Anderson called and said that Jonathan's lead came back 9.2. That's below their threshold of 10, but still some, so he said to be careful, make sure we wash his toys and keep the rugs vacuumed and watch out where he plays. Jon isn't really satisfied with that and said he'd call him to see what he'd recommend if Jonathan's levels were over 10.
Posted by Heather Daley on September 20, 2004, 4:36 pm | Read 2740 times
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Right- I'm not really satisfied with that either. Seems like it needs some more checking out.
Posted by Mom on September 20, 2004, 7:49 pm
Dr. Anderson called today and we had a good conversation. He said mostly the same that he said to Heather, but explained what he would say if the results were 10-20 milligrams per deciliter, and above 20mg/dl.
He thought I could try calling the county, and see if they would come and do their tests, which is normal if the results are over 20mg/dl and see what they say. Maybe they are bored this week, and wouldn't mind stopping by.
He said most parents are so concerned... He did say that it is quite common in our area for kids to be in the 4-8mg/dl range, and they all do fine Below 3mg/dl is his target goal, although of course 0 would be best.
He said the main culprit is dust. Dust from old paint and whatever else in the house. So, it is especially bad when you do construction stuff, but in old houses, dust is just around everywhere. He said renting a steam cleaner would be a good idea, so maybe I should do that next week when Heather and Jonathan are gone.
He also said the biggest concern is over a period of time, although of course higher exposure matters over a shorter period of time. There hasn't been a lot of research into "how bad" lower doses of lead are.
Posted by jondaley on September 24, 2004, 11:25 am
When we bought our house we hired someone to come and do a lead test - it wasn't too expensive and we felt much better (ours tested lower than most). The tester indicated that one of the best things to do was to make sure that the paint that is on top of the lead-paint stays intact. The more layers of new paint on top, the better. The Hartford Courant had recent articles talking about how bad the lead situation is in Hartford and how a level of 10 can lead to problems learning - something Jonathan doesn't seem to have.
Posted by DSTB on October 28, 2004, 8:41 pm
I guess we never posted about the water test. The results came back basically zero. There were a couple (out of the four bottles tested) that were non-zero, but the the tester said it wasn't anything to even think about, that it wasn't enough to actually do anything. Heather probably knows the numbers better than I do. The numbers were in the 1 to 3 range. I don't even know the units.
Posted by jondaley on October 29, 2004, 9:39 am
Regarding paint and other "normal" places to find lead, that is something we haven't been able to figure out.
The only exposed paint in the entire house is the floor of our basement, which we know the top layer doesn't have lead, but there is at least one place where the paint has chipped away. Other than that, everything is wood paneling, so unless it came out when I have done various construction projects, I don't know where it can be coming from.
We don't have any soil, another common place for lead. I think the concerns for lead are in the long term, so we will see in 6 months or so if the levels have changed.
Posted by jondaley on October 29, 2004, 9:42 am
When the person checked our house, he concentrated on the window sills and the doorways. Windows in particular because opening and closing them creates the dust.
Posted by DSTB on October 30, 2004, 9:16 am
DSTB - how did you find the person to do your test? Would you give us a price range? Did he say anything about carpets?
Posted by SursumCorda on October 30, 2004, 11:06 am
Our realtor, though obviously not a lead expert, was quite happy to see new windows that are metal, instead of older ones that would shed off the paint when you open and close them.
Doorways are an interesting thought, I hadn't thought about that before.
Posted by jondaley on November 1, 2004, 10:05 am
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