Sam LeFevre, the overseer of the Utah Department of Health's environmental epidemiology program, says that only around 3 percent of Utah kids undergo testing for lead exposure in any given year. There are around 200,000 children in Utah based on the state's birth rate — and the state tests between 3,000 and 5,000 children annually. This prompted calls for increased monitoring by the American Medical Association and a Utah environmental group.

1. Ashton Tucker Water Treatment
Report: About 3 Percent
of Utah Children Undergo
Lead Testing

2. Sam LeFevre, the overseer of the Utah Department of Health's environmental
epidemiology program, says that only around 3 percent of Utah kids undergo
testing for lead exposure in any given year. There are around 200,000 children
in Utah based on the state's birth rate — and the state tests between 3,000
and 5,000 children annually. This prompted calls for increased monitoring by
the American Medical Association and a Utah environmental group.
More Children Are Exposed to Lead than Originally Assumed
A nationwide study published in The Journal of Pediatrics suggested that more
kids take in unsafe levels of lead than initially assumed. The study discovered
that 2.86 percent of kids tested in Utah registered lead levels in the blood that
went beyond health thresholds. It also discovered that another 2.69 percent
had elevated lead levels that did not go over the 5 microgram lead threshold
per deciliter of blood. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention uses this
threshold to categorize children with unusually lead concentrations in their
blood.

3. The Effects of Lead on Children
Lead is a neurotoxin that negatively impacts every system in the body. Very
severe lead exposure in kids can cause convulsions, coma, and even death.
Smaller amounts of lead could destroy the nervous system and the developing
brains of babies and kids. Even tiny amounts of lead could result in
development delays in children and worsen mental health later in life. It can
also cause renal impairment and increase the risk of high blood pressure.

4. Sources:
http://www.ashtuck.com/
http://www.sltrib.com/news/4028393-155/groups-call-for-more-lead-
testing?fullpage=1
http://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(17)30169-5/abstract
https://wonder.cdc.gov/wonder/prevguid/p0000029/p0000029.asp
The Division of Drinking Water is looking to increase lead testing efforts by
partnering with the state health department. Together, they plan to formulate
a training program for schools that currently have no water quality monitoring
program in force. This is similar to the approach of American Medical
Association's proposal to require all day care facilities and schools to conduct
regular water quality testing.