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Lead Poisoning Prevention in Jasper & Dale

Lead poisoning is one of the most frustrating health problems in the U.S. and abroad, and for one primary reason:  it is 100% preventable.

Lead poisoning is not genetic or hereditary.  It’s not a virus or bacteria.  It has to be physically ingested to be contracted.  Unfortunately, that’s still far too easy to do despite worldwide attempts to educate the public on how to avoid lead consumption and numerous regulations to restrict the use of lead in the manufacturing of consumer products.

Even though lead poisoning is a much bigger problem in Third World Countries, more than 600,000 new cases are diagnosed every year among U.S. children alone, most of them living in older homes and/or from lower income families.  Children’s bodies absorb lead at 4-5 times the rate of adults, making them especially vulnerable to potentially lethal poisoning. 

The most common source of lead poisoning is from lead-based paint, which was banned from production in 1978.  But there are still plenty of homes built before that date with lead paint on walls and ceilings, inside and out.

If you have kids, you know that there’s very little they won’t put in their mouths until they learn what and why they shouldn’t.  That goes for lead paint chips.

Lead dust is another leading cause of poisoning and that stems primarily from home remodeling projects conducted without proper safety precautions for both remodelers and residents alike.  While Congress passed a law in 1992 requiring the EPA to write a regulation requiring mandatory training for home renovation contractors, that regulation has not yet been written.

Lead also is often found in home drinking water, especially in well water systems.  That’s because lead is a naturally occurring metal found in the earth’s surface here and all over the world.

Lead can also leach into your water supply from older, corroding lead water pipes.

If you have any concerns at all about the quality of your water, contact Messmer Mechanical today, your local water filtration specialists.  We’ll test your water for unacceptable levels of lead and other contaminants like chlorine, radon, pesticides, and industrial waste.  We also can recommend and install a water filtration that will give you the kind of quality you simply won’t have to worry about any longer.  Contact us today to schedule a free in-home consultation and water test.

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