Islamabad, July 21 (IANS) Nearly 40 per cent of children in Pakistan have unsafe levels of lead in their blood, with around 39 per cent impacted in several parts of Karachi, local media reported on Tuesday, citing experts.
Experts revealed the findings during a journalistic training session held in Karachi by the Lead Exposure Elimination Project (LEEP) Pakistan, UNICEF Pakistan and Kamzmin Consultants. During the event, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) health specialist Dr Humaera Irshad presented results from the Pakistan Childhood Lead Exposure Survey and said that blood samples of 2,175 children aged between 12-36 months from seven high-risk cities were analysed, with nearly 40 per cent having lead levels more than globally accepted safe limits, Pakistan’s Express Tribune newspaper reported.
Irshad said Karachi’s selected high-risk localities reported lead presence of around 39 per cent, adding that the survey was limited in scope and a study needs to be conducted in Pakistan to find the full extent of the issue.
Experts said lead is a toxic metal that comes into the body through contaminated food, water, dust, traditional cosmetics like surma, adulterated spices, lead-based paints and illegal recycling of lead-acid batteries. Accumulation of the metal results in lead poisoning, which is especially dangerous for young children, The Express Tribune reported.
Zafar Fatmi, a professor at Aga Khan University, said, “Even small amounts can impair brain development, the nervous system, learning ability and physical growth,” terming lead exposure as a “silent threat” due to absence of early symptoms.
Earlier in May, a new study by the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, and UNICEF said that lead was found in the blood of four in 10 children aged 12-36 months living in seven high-risk areas of Pakistan.
The UNICEF stated that lead exposure can affect growth, cause anaemia, and weaken the immune system, while also lowering IQ, reducing attention span, and impairing memory, raising the risk of learning difficulties and behavioural problems.
“Several likely sources of exposure, including industrial emissions, informal battery recycling, lead-based paints, contaminated food and spices, and traditional cosmetics”, were identified by the study based on global evidence.
According to the UNICEF, as many as 2100 children living in high-risk industrial areas like Haripur, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, and Rawalpindi, were sampled for the study.
It highlighted that 88 per cent of children tested from Hattar and Haripur had high levels of lead in their blood, making them the most affected, compared to one per cent in children living in Islamabad.
With up to eight in 10 children in Pakistan potentially affected, which makes the highest rates globally, the burden may be far higher as reduced learning ability through lead exposure is linked to long-term economic losses, estimated at 6-8 per cent of Pakistan’s GDP (USD 25-35 billion annually).
–IANS
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