What is lead poisoning?

Lead poisoning occurs when a person (often a young child) inhales or swallows lead and it accumulates in the person’s body.  While the NY Public Health Law has defined lead poisoning as occurring at a level of  10 µg/dL (micrograms of lead per deciliter of whole blood) for purposes of overall health policy, the overwhelming consensus in the scientific community is that even low-dose lead exposure is dangerous for children and can cause irreversible brain damage.  The CDC has recognized that there is no known safe lead level.