Our hosts, Denmark, other Western European countries, the World Bank, and the US have worked together to shape a regional process and a regional strategy for this important goal. Still, the battle is not won. While the U.S. Centers for Disease Control reports that lead poisoning in children in our country continues a steady decline, there are still nearly a million kids under five years of age who suffer from this awful condition throughout the world. The Wold Bank has determined that in some developing countries, all urban children under 2 years of age, and more than 80 percent of those between the ages of 3 and 5, are suspected to have blood lead levels exceeding WHO health standards. It is estimated that between 15 and 18 million children in these countries may suffer permanent brain damage due to lead poisoning.
Children are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning.
Their exposure to lead is greater, considering their body size. Children's behavior causes them to be exposed in ways that adults are not exposed. They put their hands, toys and other things in their mouths and so, if those things are contaminated with lead, children become exposed. Not only are children at greater risk to exposure, they are also affected more severely by lead than are adults. Science has shown us that children absorb lead at a much greater rate than adults and that, even at very low levels of lead exposure, unborn and young children can suffer metabolic and developmental effects.