Lead Levels
Age 0-5 Years
Neighbourhood program to reduce lead levels that harm children
Reduce stress by reducing lead levels in neighbourhood areas
Reducing lead levels protects brain development, lowers the risk of ADHD and intellectual disability, and improves cognitive function, academic performance, and mental well-being in children. It also reduces the long-term burden of neurological and behavioral disorders in the population.
Evidence Base
In India, lead exposure is estimated to contribute to 62% of the DALYs for idiopathic developmental, intellectual disability (IDID) (India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative Mental Disorders Collaborators, 2020). The presence of lead disrupts the organisation of the human cortex (Freedman et al., 1990). In 2009, a study estimated that 25% of ADHD cases in 8- to 15-year-old children may be attributable to lead poisoning (Froehlich et al., 2009). While there are many sources of exposure to lead, one such source is paint. In 2023, a report found that 46 out of 51 (90%) solvent-based paints contained lead concentrations above 90 parts per million, violating the Regulation of Lead Contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules 2016 (Toxic Links, 2018). Furthermore, 76% of these paints contained 111 times the permissible limit (Toxic Links, 2018). An urgent need is to eliminate lead from paints and all other sources through stronger policymaking and implementation adherence.