This study, coming out of Michigan State University, points to a growing body of research that says that low level lead exposure could be a factor in the increases in ADHD. This study was of 150 children in the Lansing area, and showed that the children with ADHD had higher levels of lead in their blood than those without ADHD.

Other studies have shown a link between low level lead exposure and lower IQs.

So, maybe we should be on the warpath about banning all toys from China and cleaning out all subsidized housing to insure that all lead-based paint has been removed from these aging buildings. Or…

Maybe it’s more complicated and more internal than that. While I’m in no way opposed to stringent laws to protect young children from exposure to lead paint, the findings in a study like this do not show why some kids get ADHD and some don’t. Sure, you may say some are exposed more than other. But lead (like the mercury in vaccine cause of autism) is an equal-opportunity metal. And ADHD seems to be a disorder that crosses all social and economic boundaries (like autism). So saying that poor kids are more likely to have ADHD because they are poor and therefore exposed to more lead is not really what I believe this research shows. (Someone will probably find research that says just that and I’ll be embarrassed.)

But my point is that what is happening inside the person’s neurology and biochemistry (probably a genetic disposition) that allows the lead to impact the brain in this way is what’s important. Now there’s something that needs to be figured out. And if we could determine which children were genetically predisposed to have neurological problems due to neurotoxins, then we could be extra careful not to expose them, or at least recognize that the neurotoxins could be the culprits and do something to lesson the lead, mercury or whatever (copper and aluminum come to mind) is causing the problem.


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