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NAIROBI, KENYA: There are growing health concerns about rising exposure to lead poisoning in Kenya originating from household paints, sparking calls for elimination of such substances in paints.
The concerns come as Kenya prepares to join the world to mark the International Lead Poisoning Week set from 19th to 26th of this month of October 2014.
Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute (KIRDI) has since carried out collaborative research on lead poisoning in the country. The institute consequently organised a series of events next week to raise awareness about lead poisoning and how Kenyans can protect themselves from it.
Faridah Were, the Senior Researcher at KIRDI, cautioned that lead in paint poses serious risks to the health of Kenyans, including impeding the mental development of children and causing learning disorders.
Dr Were, who is one of the leading researchers of lead poisoning in the country is recommending to all paint manufacturers to voluntarily eliminate the use of lead in their products, in line with calls by United Nations to eliminate it in paints.
"It is possible to formulate good cost-effective substitutes for lead paints. There is therefore no compelling reason to continue with the formulation of lead paint that has adverse health effects to humans particularly women and children," she said yesterday in Nairobi.
Lead compounds are often added to paint to give bright yellow, red, blue and green colours. They also make the paint to dry faster and more evenly. In most cases water based paints do not contain added lead.
A recent report by Kenyan NGO, iLima, showed that most of the oil-based paints manufactured in Kenya have high levels of lead. One of the paints sampled had lead concentration that is 750 times higher than the maximum lead content that would be allowed in a house paint sold in the United States. Although the use of lead paint was restricted in the US in the 1970s.
Dr Faridah Were said that freshly processed or applied lead paints are not immediate source of lead exposure. However over time, the painted surfaces usually age and peel off, and become airborne. Airborne lead is persistent in the environment and settles down as dust. It is easily inhaled and can contaminate the soil or water or get into human beings indirectly through the food chain.
"Lead dust is also emitted in very large amounts when lead painted surfaces are disturbed during demolitions and renovations. Painters sand or dry scrap the old lead painted surfaces generating large quantities of lead dust," she warned.
In addition, Children under 6 years of age absorb lead five times more than adults. This is due to increased hand to mouth activities, extended outdoor activities, hygienic habits that are not fully developed, active metabolism and brain barrier and other systems that is not fully developed.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has therefore identified lead as one of the ten chemicals of major public health concern that need to be dealt with to protect the health of vulnerable groups (children, women and workers).
Lead has successfully been eliminated from motor vehicle fuel by the government, due to these health concerns.
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