Early childhood exposure to lead in drinking water associated with increased teen delinquency risk

 

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/941985

 

 News Release 1-Feb-2022
Peer-Reviewed Publication
Indiana University

 

Exposure to lead in drinking water, especially from private wells, during early childhood is associated with an increased risk of being reported for delinquency during teenage years, according to a new study by Indiana University researchers.

The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that children who get their water from private wells before age 6 have higher blood lead levels and, as a result, have a 21% higher risk of being reported for any delinquency after age 14, and a 38% increased risk of having a record for a serious complaint, such as felony property or weapons offenses and misdemeanor assault.

"We know that lead exposure early in life has been linked to lower IQ, reduced lifetime earnings and an increased risk for behavioral problems and criminal activity," said Jackie MacDonald Gibson, author of the study and chair of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington. "This research highlights the need for recognition of the risks to children relying on private well water and for new programs to ensure they have access to clean drinking water. Failing to do so imposes burdens not just on the affected children and their families but also on society at large."

----- 

In addition to finding a correlation between lead exposure and behavioral problems in teens, the study also found that blood lead levels were approximately 11% higher in children relying on private wells, compared to children provided with community water service.

The Biden administration recently announced a federal action plan to replace lead pipes that connect some 10 million homes to community water systems. But Gibson said that while this plan is an essential step forward in decreasing children's risk of exposure to lead in drinking water, it does not solve the problem of children's exposure to lead from private well water.

Currently, 13% of U.S. households rely on private wells. Domestic wells are not regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act and are therefore rarely tested for lead or treated to prevent lead dissolution from household plumbing and fixtures, Gibson said.

She noted that lead in water from any source causes equal harm, but children with private well water are more susceptible to being exposed to lead in water because most private well owners do not have corrosion control systems in place to prevent leaching of lead from well components, plumbing and fixtures into household water. In contrast, community water systems are required to monitor their water for lead and to establish corrosion control systems if elevated levels of lead are detected.

-----