Toddler Possibly Poisoned By Lead Paint From Plates
11/15/2007
What’s on your child’s Christmas list this year? Many parents say with all the recent recalls of toys due to lead paint, they’ll be extra careful, and that’s exactly what one Utah family is hoping for.
They say their child is sick because of a lead exposure from a most unlikely source and now they’re speaking out so others won’t have to go through what they did.
We’re flooded with recalls about lead products on the market. But do you really know what all these warnings mean?
Jen and Joe McBride had no idea lead was in their home.
It never crossed their minds, even when their 16-month-old daughter Chloe started getting sick.
Jen says, “We noticed in the beginning she was having trouble going to the bathroom.”
She had severe constipation and because of the pain, Chloe became afraid to go to the bathroom.
“She would hold off going to the bathroom for days and she would cry,” says Jen.
Chloe’s pediatrician recommended the usuals: stool softeners and juices but nothing helped.
When she was nine months old, her doctor ordered a routine screening for lead. The results came back with a blood lead reading above normal.
Jacob Varghese, M.D. Chole’s Pediatrician says, “It was 15 when we checked it the first time. Less than 10 is considered normal.”
The family was referred to the local Health Department to see if the source of the lead could be detected.
Frank Carlsen is an environmental health scientist for the Weber-Morgan Health Department which covers the McBride’s city.
He searched the home from top to bottom, using a gun-like device called an XRF which can detect lead, even through layers of paint or brick.
Carlsen says, “We did the standard, wall ceilings, bed, bathrooms, front porch, which had decorative tiles, we checked that. “
He couldn’t find any trace of lead until…
“We zeroed in onto the dinner plates,” says Carlsen.
The gun detected positive traces of lead in the McBride’s dinner plates. It detected a level of 11. Anything above a 1 is considered unacceptable, according to the Utah Department of Environmental Quality.
After a thorough investigation, the Health Department says the plates were the only detectable source of lead they could find in the home.
Chloe didn’t even eat off the plates; after all she was only 9-months-old at the time. So how could she get lead poisoning from them?
“We asked our doctor and he said because I was breastfeeding and eating off the plates, we were passing it to her through my breast milk,” says Jen.
That’s what her doctor concluded. And he says it’s even possible Jen may have passed lead to Chloe while pregnant.
“It can pass through the placenta. It can go to the baby,” says Dr. Jacob.
The Health Department says things like heat or acidic foods can cause the lead to leach into food, even if the plate is intact.
The McBrides stopped using the dinnerware, and three months later, Chloe’s lead levels were normal. Which again confirms everyone’s suspicions that the plates were the source.
“We were mad,” Jen says, “We were mad. We purchased the plates that hurt our daughter. This was causing her pain.”
And now, even though her levels are normal, Jen and Joe know lead can cause issues that can pop up later in life, such as learning or behavior problems.
Sue Spence, a registered nurse with ‘Lead Safe Kids Program’ says Dr. Jacob, “The right amount to have in your body is zero. But children are particularly at risk because their nervous systems are developing.”
The plates were purchased 3 years ago, and aren’t for sale anymore. But the McBrides say they still want a recall so consumers can be alerted.
“We want the people to know who have them, they could be exposed to lead from eating every day,” says Jen.
Often there are no symptoms of elevated lead levels, so the best way to know if your child has an exposure is to get a blood test through your pediatrician.
By the way, the McBrides say they purchased their HomeTrend dishes through their local Wal-Mart.
