I've heard a lot lately about childhood lead poisoning, but I don't know any children who have it. A child who has been poisoned with lead won't have familiar symptoms of illness like a fever or a sore throat. Lead will harm the developing brain and nervous system of a young child and reduce his or her ability to learn and achieve. Once taken in, lead accumulates in the body. That's why public health experts consider even small amounts of lead to be a problem.
Ceramic dishes are just one potential source of lead.
Now that lead is no longer in gasoline, the largest source of lead in the environment is old lead-based paint on houses and other buildings. Dishes that leach more lead then the amount allowed by the FDA cannot legally be sold. Proposition 65 standards for lead in dishes are much stricter than the FDA standards. By approving Proposition 65, California voters let the government know that they want more of a say in deciding what amount of lead in dishes is safe for themselves and their families. Not all manufacturers of ceramic dishes are currently providing the Proposition 65 warning.