Ill Effects of Lead Poisoning and How to Avoid It

Heavy metals in water can cause various health issues and diseases such as cancer, organ damage and many other serious health issues. The level of water pollution has only risen over the years. Heavy metals enter into the supply of water through the various waste that comes through industries and urban as well as domestic waste. Not only this, the acid rain releases heavy metals that are toxic, into the water bodies and enters the water supply. Rapid industrialization could also be one cause of heavy metals found in water. These metals are not visible to naked eyes but can be detected by a water test. Getting rid of these heavy metals is necessary as they are like slow poison, and have immediate effects in your body.

Lead poisoning can have various effects on your health; hence, it has become very important for us to be aware of it. The blood-brain barrier in children is underdeveloped. They are more sensitive to lead exposure; they also have an underdeveloped hand to mouth behaviours and higher gastrointestinal absorption rates.

Lead is as harmful to adults as they are for children. Exposure to lead can cause a weaker immune system, they can also be prone to cold and influenza attacks. If the lead exposure is prolonged, it causes fertility dysfunction, hypertension and foetus neurodevelopment at the time of pregnancy has raised by studies that are conducted in the field. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that inorganic lead is most likely carcinogenic for humans.

The lead amount is quite high in tap water. It is used in the plumbing materials and solder; they get in contact with drinking water while it’s transported from source to homes. Corrosion of these plumbing materials takes place and lead leaches into tap water. The exposure to lead increases along with an increase in the concentration of lead in drinking water.

• How to avoid Lead in Water?

1. Run your tap for 30 seconds to 2 minutes until it gets colder before using it for either drinking or cooking. This will result in the water that contains lead from pipes to flush out. By doing this the lead in water levels will reduce up to 90%
2. Avoid drinking water from the hot water tap; do not even use it for cooking because lead dissolves n hot water more easily. Lead is very harmful to children; do not use hot water for preparing baby formula as well.
3. Do not boil your water; this will not help in reducing lead.
4. Buy a water filter or water purifier that reduces lead, not all filters do that. Purification of water will lead to good quality pure water.
5. Make sure you clean your faucet aerator regularly. Certain particles that contain lead from solder or household plumbing might be trapped in your faucet aerator. If you clean them regularly, i.e. every few months, these particles will be gone and your exposure to lead will reduce.
6. The best way to avoid lead in your water is by buying low-lead fixtures. Since 2014, all the pipes, fittings or fixtures must contain less than 0.5% lead. While you are buying any kind of fixtures, see to it that they have low lead content.
7. One can get purified water through reverse osmosis water purifiers. Now, RO filtration has been widely accepted and is said to be the best commercial water filtration technique that is available today. This is a very cost-effective measure for obtaining clean water to drink and cook. The process of reverse osmosis uses a fine membrane, this helps in removing all inorganic impurities such as lead and arsenic from the water.

Lead poisoning has said to be on the most critical and serious health concerns in India, as the consumption of this heavy metal can have a serious impact on the mental development of young children and mothers.