Tackling the dangers of lead in homes

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — The Bloomfield Board of Health has a new program it wants residents to know about and utilize called the Healthy Homes Initiative, already in its second year. But many residents are unaware of the program or have been reluctant to take advantage of it because of pandemic precautions, according to Bloomfield Health and Human Services Director Karen Lore.

The initiative is part of the township lead protection program and is funded by a portion of a $145,000 New Jersey state Department of Health grant. Some residents may be aware of the Healthy Homes Initiative, which includes a residential lead assessment, having seen it promoted by township health employees at community events. But many residents remain unaware of the program.

But despite the pandemic, Samantha Bunsa, the director of Health Education for the Bloomfield Health Department, said the response has been good, with 55 homes assessed between August and December of last year.

“We’ve been doing assessments of how successful this program has been,” she said in a telephone conference call on Friday, Jan. 14. “One hundred percent of the residents are satisfied with the education and service provided.”

Amy Monaco, an assistant health officer for the Bloomfield Health Department, said during the conference call that a home lead survey will point out where lead poses a health hazard, such as cracked paint around windows. Other problems surveyed in homes are areas of water damage that could contain mold, missing smoke detectors and pests. But Monaco said the department makes no enforcement from its findings and that it is up to private homeowners to follow up with the advice they receive.

Bunsa said this Health Department initiative is a breakthrough of sorts, coming as it does during a pandemic.
“This is not focused on COVID-19,” she said. “A lot of our residents are underserved. The program helps to remind them that health and safety starts in their home. We want to make sure that healthy practices are consistent at this time. It’s a quality-of-life issue. A clean and healthy home is a safe home.”

Lead is especially a danger to children, she said, because their brains are still developing.
“Lead can build up and be hard to detect,” she continued. “Children can have elevated levels of lead.”
Lead may get into a child’s system from ingesting lead-based paints or by inhaling the fumes of products containing lead. It may be present in water and soil and, consequently, in plants that are eaten. Lead could also be present in a child’s toys.

“Identifying the problems and addressing the issues is where education comes in,” Monaco said.
Lead may also be present in some spices, she said, because of the machinery used to grind the spice. But it is unlikely for this to happen if the spice is processed in the United States.

“In other countries, it’s an issue,” Bunsa said. “And it’s also used as a coloring agent in chili powder and paprika. But this shouldn’t cause a panic among people using spices.”
She said that, fortunately, certain foods bind to lead, allowing it to be excreted by the body.
“Calcium is a binding agent for lead,” Bunsa said. “Calcium is in cheese, milk and green leafy vegetables, such as kale and collard greens.”

The Health Department provides fact sheets to residents in English and Spanish, including information about the benefits of greens, at the Veggie Truck stop on Broad Street near the Bloomfield Public Library. The truck comes regularly on Tuesdays during the summer. A home assessor for the lead safety initiative is also bilingual.

Because of Tropical Storm Ida flooding in August, a section of the Health Department with offices in the basement of the Bloomfield Municipal Building had to relocate, and space was found at Bloomfield College, which has a nursing school. Bunsa said the change has been a “nice vacation,” but also an opportunity to provide BC students and Bloomfield residents with food vouchers.

“It’s a nice kind of multidisciplining program, covering varied demographics,” she said.