Description: This indicator provides information about lead exposure risk for census tracts in Los Angeles County based on self-reported housing and poverty data. Using <a href="https://www.cityhealthdashboard.com/metric/lead-exposure-risk-index" target="_blank"> methods implemented by New York University for the City Health Dashboard </a>, a lead risk index score ranging from 1 to 10 was assigned to each census tract with available data, with a score of 1 indicating the lowest risk and a score of 10 indicating the highest risk for lead exposure.<br><br>Lead is a heavy metal that has negative impacts on nearly every system in the body, particularly the brain, kidneys, and blood. Although lead paint was phased out in the 1970s, legacy lead paint and dust remain primary sources of lead exposure in the US. Literature on lead poisoning consistently finds two factors to be correlated with lead exposure risk: the age of houses (which predicts the likelihood of lead paint) and poverty. While all people can be affected by lead, young children and pregnant persons are the most vulnerable. Irreversible neurodevelopment effects, including decreased IQ, shortened attention span, and reduced fine motor skills, occur at even low levels of lead exposure. At high levels, anemia, high blood pressure, seizures, and death can occur. There is no known safe level of lead exposure for children.
Copyright Text: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2018-2022.