State health officials say an increase in childhood lead poisoning cases in Iowa could be tied to the economic downturn.
Kevin Officer, with the Iowa Department of Public Health’s Bureau of Lead Poisoning Prevention, says many people living in older homes are choosing to do their own repairs and they’re not always following lead-safe practices.
“Homeowners or landlords are doing scraping or sanding of the existing lead pain on the homes,” Officer said.
Removing lead-based paint can be dangerous if it’s not done correctly. “One of the primary things they can do when they’re removing the paint is keeping it moist or wet with a mister, basically a bottle mister to mist the area before scraping or painting it. That will keep the dust down and keep paint chips from getting all over the place,” Officer said.
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