Lead can present a danger to Hoosiers. Here's how to reduce your exposure

Indianapolis Star

30-07-2025

Lead poisoning can affect any Hoosier, but children are most at risk of exposure because there is no safe amount of lead that can enter a child's body. Experts say there are ways to reduce exposure.
Michelle Del Rio, professor at Indiana University, is working to prevent low-level chronic lead exposure in children and her work has led her to understand how people can avoid lead.
'Indianapolis has historically been impacted by smelting operations and industry and some vulnerable populations can still be at very high risk of exposure,' Del Rio said.
Del Rio is researching how to better categorize non-traditional sources of lead in Indianapolis, especially in high-risk neighborhoods, and says the most effective way to reduce exposure is knowing where the sources are and covering or removing it from the environment.
When someone ingests or inhales lead particles, the body confuses them with other minerals, Del Rio said. This can mean lead will follow calcium being sent to bones or zinc to red blood cells and invade important biologic functions in the body.
'In very young children, when lead binds to zinc and goes into red blood cells, it circulates throughout the body and literally passes through the barrier meant to protect the brain from toxicants,' Del Rio said. 'Lead in the brain can be confused with calcium, which can then interfere with normal development of the brain.'
Gabe Filippelli, also at IU, has worked on lead issues and exposures for more than two decades and said poisoning in children can inhibit impulse control and show up as behavioral symptoms as a lack of focus and poor language.
Getting ahead of those issues by working to reduce exposure is why Filipelli and Del Rio do their work.
The good news is that the U.S. has worked to remove lead from a variety of sources including paint and gasoline, Filippelli said. There also are stronger controls on lead emissions from factories and this all leads to national blood-lead levels plummeting.
While this is a public health success, there are still pockets of underserved neighborhoods in cities like Indy where Del Rio and Filippelli's work is needed.
The main source of lead exposure today, Del Rio said, is through contaminated dust and soil. Household dust is contaminated by unmaintained lead-based paints, typically in homes build before 1978. Soil can be contaminated from exterior paints as well as emissions from different industries — like the American Lead facility in the historic Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood.
Contaminated dust and soil sticks to clothing and can settle on a home's floors and furniture.
Karla Johnson, administrator of an environmental health department at Marion County Public Health, said children are usually at higher risk because they are crawling on the floor and putting things in their mouths.
'So, a lot of people think about lead in the water, but that's not really the issue,' Johnson said. 'The home is really where the child is going to be exposed more often.'
One of the first things Del Rio recommends for people who might be exposed to lead is to clean their home regularly. She said using wet wipes on hard surfaces and mopping hard floors once a week is a good start. Using a HEPA filter to vacuum rugs and carpets can help pick up any contaminated soils tracked in from outside.
That cleanliness mentality can also be used to monitor for lead paint. This source of lead is really only a problem when it starts shipping or cracking. Del Rio said this is usually a small area and can be fixed by covering it with lead-encapsulating paint found in most hardware stores.
'If there are big visible chunks of paint, I recommend picking those up with a wet disposable towel first and let the area dry before using that lead-encapsulating paint,' Del Rio said.
Lead paint becomes a larger issue during renovations and large projects in the home.
If a homeowner is contracting that work out, Johnson with the health department said they need to follow training and licensing requirements. These include practices like using plastic to cover a room or having wet or damp towels outside the area so workers can wipe their feet, she said.
If homeowners find lead in the yard, Johnson said it's best to make the soil inaccessible to children so they're not tracking it in. This can mean covering it in a think layer of mulch or gravel.
Indiana law currently says that any children ages 1 and 2 need to have a blood-lead level test. Those results are sent to Johnson and her department at Marion Health who will work with families that have lead exposure above certain levels.
'We work with the family to make sure the child is receiving services and provide developmental and nutritional screens to find any vulnerabilities,' Johnson said.
While the program typically deals with very young children, Johnson said her department will not turn anyone away.
The health department, in partnership with Del Rio at IU and other groups are kicking off the Lead-Free Indy Road Show this year. Residents can bring in household items to be scanned for lead.
The group will offer small take home test kits for residents to collect water, soil or dust and also offer blood screening for any children under the age of 12, Del Rio said.
The Marion County Public Health Department's Facebook page and other social media accounts will post updates on upcoming locations for the event.
IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.