Keep Your Home Safe: A Quick Guide to Preventing Lead Poisoning

August 26, 2026

Protecting your family from household lead is one of the most vital steps you can take for their long-term health. If your home was built before the late 1970s, toxic lead-based paint could be lurking beneath years of modern paint layers.

Lead is a heavy metal that poses severe risks—especially to children under six. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), lead exposure can cause permanent cognitive impairments, learning difficulties, and damage to the nervous system and kidneys.

Common Lead Sources in the Home

  • Pre-1978 Paint: Older homes often contain hidden lead-based paint layers that peel, flake, or create toxic dust.
  • Pre-1986 Plumbing: Older pipes, solder, and fixtures can leach lead directly into your drinking water.
  • Contaminated Soil: Soil around home foundations often collects lead from exterior paint chips or historical vehicle emissions.
  • Imported Goods: Certain traditional medicines, antique toys, cosmetics, and imported glazed cookware can still contain lead.

Protect Your Family from Lead in Your Home from the EPA provides important information on protecting your family from lead. This easy-to-read booklet highlights the dangers of lead from paint, dust, and soil in and around your home, which can be dangerous if not managed properly. For example, children who seem healthy may have dangerous levels of lead in their bodies. The EPA recommends testing children for lead levels even if they appear healthy. Also, disturbing surfaces with lead-based paint or improperly removing it can increase the risk to your family. (The Spanish version is available here.

Taking proactive steps today ensures a safe, healthy living space for your family tomorrow.

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HOW DO I OBTAIN THIS RESOURCE?

Sign up to receive promotional bulletin emails from the US Government Online Bookstore.

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy a vast majority of eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at https://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Order by Phone: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From the US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

Find more than a million official Federal Government publications from all three branches at www.govinfo.gov.

About the author: Blogger Trudy Hawkins is the Senior Marketing & Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publication & Information Sales Office, supporting the U.S. Government Online Bookstore (https://bookstore.gpo.gov).

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Posted by Trudy Hawkins

National Safety Month

June 28, 2019

June is National Safety Month, a great time to think about ways to improve the safety in your home, to keep your family aware of potential hazards, or, to consider possible existing hazards that could be affecting the health and comfort of your loved ones.

One of the most potentially dangerous and often forgotten causes of health-related problems, especially one affecting your children, is lead paint poisoning. And in older homes, lead paint poisoning is considered a high risk due to poor maintenance. It’s easy to forget the room you recently painted with your favorite color has covered over the original paint job that was done when the home was built many years ago. And just because you can’t see it anymore doesn’t mean the lead paint underneath isn’t affecting the places you’re sitting around the dinner table, watching your favorite team play, or catching a well-deserved good night of sleep.

The Federal government offers the following resources for maintaining a healthy and safe environment in your home.

Lead Paint Safety: A Field Guide for Interim Controls in Painting and Home Maintenance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  This booklet addresses the dangers of lead paint and the potential lead poisoning through home maintenance and renovation work. Even better, it is an illustrated hands-on resource. So you’ll have it handy on the next rainy day to review and decide if your home could have lead paint that needs your attention now.

Another resource to help keep your home healthy and free of hazards is the 2019 Healthy Homes Calendar. This colorful calendar filled with children’s artwork provides safety guidance on potential hazards that may be lurking around your home, each month of the year. For example, radon testing is a must for all households. January 2019 reminds you to test for radon and tips on how to do so. Protection against food poisoning and food safety is covered in July 2019. Other important tips include testing water as well as paint and soil around your home to determine the levels of lead that may be hazardous and much more.

A healthy home is a safe home, what better time than National Safety Month to promote the safety and well-being of your loved ones?

The GPO Online Bookstore – Easy Access to Federal Publications

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE RESOURCES?

Sign up to receive promotional bulletin emails from the US Government Online Bookstore.

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy a vast majority of eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at https://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Visit our Retail Store: To buy or order a copy of any print editions from this collection at GPO’s retail bookstore at 710 North Capitol Street NW, Washington, DC 20401, open Monday–Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Federal holidays, Call (202) 512-0132 for information or to arrange in-store pick-up(s).

Order by Phone or Email: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.  Email orders to ContactCenter@gpo.gov

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

Find more than a million official Federal Government publications from all three branches at www.govinfo.gov.

About the author: Blogger contributor Trudy Hawkins is the the Sr. Marketing & Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publication & Information Sales Division supporting the U.S. Government Online Bookstore.

Home Safety image source rawpixel.com

Leave a Comment » | Consumers, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Environmental Protection Agency, Family | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Trudy Hawkins