Indoor and outdoor air pollution exacerbate asthma and contribute to asthma attacks that send children to the hospital. Lead remains the most common devastating environmental disease of young children. 1.7 million children have blood lead levels high enough to cause decreased intelligence, behavioral disturbances, delayed development, and other health problems. Young children are at a greater risk of lead exposure and toxicity through exposure to lead paint, especially in older urban areas, as well as exposures from soil and dust. Yet lead poisoning is entirely preventable with effective abatement and removal programs.
Oral diseases remain a serious public health problem for children.
Twenty-nine percent of adolescents have severe or very severe malocclusion. Eighty-four percent of 17 year olds have had tooth decay. Community water fluoridation could prevent many of these problems. In total, over 100 million Americans do not live in fluoridated communities. Poison control centers are both valuable and cost efficient organizations in the fight against childhood death and injury.