Doctor To Speak About Health Effects Of Lead

Lead-poisoning expert Dr. John Rosen, of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, will deliver two lectures in the Inland Northwest next week.

Rosen, a professor of pediatrics, was invited to speak by the People’s Action Coalition, a Silver Valley grass-roots organization seeking to open a health clinic for residents poisoned by lead contamination from historic mining and smelting practices.

The group has been critical of government health studies that fail to follow up with health care.

“Five generations gone untreated is unacceptable,” said Barbara Miller, the coalition’s director.

“We need better information than being told to damp-mop our floors and wash our children’s hands,” said Echo Big Springs, a mother and member of PAC.

Rosen will speak about the health effects of lead at low levels of exposure.

Blood lead levels have been dramatically reduced in Idaho’s Silver Valley since the Bunker Hill lead smelter closed in the early ‘80s. Education on reducing lead exposure and the ongoing Superfund cleanup of the area also have contributed to lower blood lead levels.

In 1974, the average blood-lead level for children in the area was six times what’s now considered safe. While the average levels now are below what the national Centers for Disease Control considers an acceptable level, 56 children still had elevated blood lead levels in 1996.

Some children outside the Superfund site also have been found to have elevated lead levels, according to a recent health study.

Prolonged exposure to lead can cause neurological problems, behavioral problems and stunted growth in children.

, DataTimes MEMO: Lectures Rosen will speak at noon, April 10, in the Providence Auditorium, Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane. He’ll deliver his lecture again at 2 p.m., April 11, at Kootenai Medical Center’s Health Resource Center in Coeur d’Alene. For more information, call the People’s Action Coalition at (208) 784-8891.