Lead Poisoning Cases Stonewalled

Cao Xiaoying, a resident of Jiahe County in rural Hunan, has given birth to four children, all of whom have above-normal blood lead levels. Cao’s second son, age six, has mild lead poisoning. Recently, he has been irritable, even wielding a kitchen knife, and his mother thinks it’s related to lead.

Cao is not the only one vexed by blood lead levels in Jinjiling Village in Jiahe County's Guangfa Township. Last August, parents took 18 village children to Chenzhou city for physical examinations. Seventeen had blood lead levels exceeding norms. Jiahe officials organized tests for children in Jinjiling and two nearby villages. Of the 397 children, all under 14 years of age, more than 60 percent had abnormally high blood lead content.