If you own or live in a home built or painted before 1978, you and your family may be at risk of lead poisoning from paint chips and dust.

Lead poisoning can occur from a single high exposure to lead or prolonged exposure to lower levels. It affects both children and adults and can result in a wide range of problems, from high blood pressure to kidney damage to death.

Because lead accumulates in the body, even small amounts can cause severe and lasting harm to children. Children ranging in ages from six months to six years are at the highest risk for developmental problems from lead poisoning.

National studies demonstrate that blood lead levels dropped dramatically as the use of leaded gasoline declined. Today, the number one source for lead poisoning in Tennessee is lead-based paint.

According to the 1990 census, approximately 70 percent of Tennessee homes contain lead-based paint. Many of these homes are now deteriorating and, as a result, the paint has cracked, chipped and flaked. During renovation or remodeling, children as well as adults may likely be exposed to extremely high levels of lead through paint chips and dust. Also, small children are at risk for exposure through ingestion.

In 1992, the Tennessee Department of Health began a Prevention of Childhood Lead Poisoning Program. Testing data from the Memphis-Shelby County Health Department and the West Tennessee region indicate that these areas may have the highest concentrations of lead-poisoned children.

Children enrolled in the state's TennCare (formerly Medicaid) program are routinely tested for elevated blood lead levels. However, lead poisoning can happen to anyone. Unfortunately, many parents do not know that their children are at risk. That's why it is important that parents ask their child's doctor for blood lead screening.

Symptoms of lead poisoning, such as stomach pain, poor appetite and headaches, are often mistaken for other illnesses. Children absorb about 50 percent of the lead they ingest or inhale, while adults absorb about 10 percent. Lead in the body travels through the blood and is stored in the bones, where it can be later released. Lead can also affect the ability of both women and men to have healthy children.

Primary prevention is the key to eliminating lead poisoning. It is clear that eliminating harmful lead sources is necessary to ensure that children are no longer at risk for lead poisoning. There is no need to use our children as markers for lead. We have the technology and information to remove lead-based paint from homes in a safe way before it poisons our families.

For more information, call the National Lead Information Center Clearinghouse at 1(800) 424-LEAD.