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Children Susceptible to Environmental Hazards
By
Carol L. Spence
LEXINGTON, Ky., (Oct. 17, 2007) – October is Children’s
Environmental Health Month, and it’s a good time to assess
environmental dangers in the home.
Children are small and not fully developed, so it doesn’t take
much to wreak havoc on their systems. Ashley Osborne, University
of Kentucky Cooperative Extension associate for environmental
and natural resource issues, said that’s one of the reasons for
the focus on young ones.
“Young children are not able to process contaminants as well as
adults,” she said. “Also, children take in more air, water and
food per pound of body weight than an average adult. So that
means they take in larger doses of harmful substances. That’s
why it’s a good idea to follow some safety tips.”
Osborne said keeping your home free of dust and mold helps
children breathe easier. Secondhand cigarette smoke can also
impair a child’s breathing, so she advises restricting smoking
in the home and the car.
Invisible, tasteless, odorless lead is a pervasive problem in
many homes. Houses built before 1978 might contain lead paint.
Pipes and plumbing fixtures bought before 1998 might also
contain lead. Lead can be found on toys, in dust or soil.
Long-term exposure to the substance can, among other things,
limit a child’s IQ, damage hearing and slow growth. A certified
lead inspector can check your home for evidence of the element,
and specially trained contractors can remove it from the
premises. However, Osborne said there are inexpensive things
parents can do to reduce their children’s exposure.
“You can do some simple things to make sure that you prevent
your child from getting lead poisoning, such as washing their
hands before they eat,” Osborne said. “That way, if there’s been
any paint that’s chipped off (from walls or toys) and created
some dust, it will wash all that lead off their hands.”
She also recommended washing toys and pacifiers frequently since
“everything goes into a child’s mouth.” Keeping those items
clean and free of any type of lead dust or other types of
environmental pollutants reduces a child’s exposure.
Adair County Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agent Kelli
Bonifer took part in the Community Baby Shower in Columbia, an
annual event that targets expectant mothers and mothers of
infants up to six months old. Bonifer’s presentation educated
the women on the dangers of common household look-alikes,
poisons that resemble other products.
“Honey and motor oil look alike, as well as apple juice and Pine
Sol,” she said. “Glass cleaner and mouthwash look alike, as well
as the little Kool-Aids the little kids drink. The color can
confuse them. Mountain Dew and antifreeze, those look alike.”
Other look-alikes are the containers for Comet cleansing powder
and parmesan cheese. Vegetable sprays and bug sprays could be
mistaken for each other. A chocolate bar is very similar in
appearance to certain types of laxative.
Bonifer urged mothers to keep medicines and chemicals such as
cleaning and automotive supplies locked up.
“Don’t store food with chemicals. And never call medicine
‘candy,’” she said.
She also recommended keeping all medicines out of reach and in
their original containers. Never store chemicals or medicines in
food containers.
In case of a poisoning emergency, the Kentucky Regional Poison
Center has a toll-free hotline, 1-800-222-1222.
Not only are environmental hazards dangerous for children in the
short term, but many of these substances can have long-term
effects or lie unnoticed in their bodies until they cause
disease decades later.
“Your attention to protecting your children from environmental
hazards when they are young will protect them throughout their
entire lives,” Osborne said.
For more information about other environmental health risks and
methods for avoiding them, visit
http://www.ca.uky.ed/enri/CEH.
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Contact: Ashley Osborne, 859-257-2505
Kelli Bonifer, 270-384-2317
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