In November, the company WanBana recalled WanaBana, Weis, and Schnucks apple cinnamon fruit puree pouches and cinnamon apple sauce after reports of elevated lead levels in the products. RHHD Lead Case Manager Jordan Albright added the recall—with color images of the three products—to the Lead Recall Binder she’s begun taking with her when she visits families dealing with lead exposure.
Lead recalls are serious, because no safe level of lead has been identified in children. “Lead is a metal that can compete with most cells in your body,” Jordan explains. “It affects every body system—especially developing brains. You won’t see symptoms until lead levels are really high, but it can still be there causing problems. So it’s important for parents to know where lead might come from and to talk to pediatricians about testing.”
Kids can be tested for lead at regular Well Child pediatricians’ visits, and refugee and immigrant children often receive lead screening upon their arrival in the U.S. If a child’s lead level is higher than average, CDC recommends specific steps based on the specific level. These cases are often referred to a local health department like RHHD.
For households experiencing lead levels higher than 20 on the measurement scale, RHHD’s Lead Safe team will take soil samples and measure lead levels in everyday household items. If the level is slightly lower but still dangerously elevated, a nurse with lead expertise like Jordan comes for a home visit.
Jordan acts like a detective, walking families through the home and helping them figure out what might be causing increased lead exposure. “Home visits are difficult, because you’re trying to help parents identify all the possible lead sources in their home,” Jordan says. “A lot of my patients are small children who spend the entire hour with their hands or toys in their mouths. So knowing what toys have been recalled is a big deal. And then the [recent WanaBana] applesauce recall is very scary.”
Jordan can ask families to talk her through the foods and objects they use regularly, but this step often requires a lot of texting back and forth outside of the visit itself. And because many of Jordan’s patients are children from Afghanistan, a community with particularly high lead levels, an interpreter frequently helps with communication.
These challenges are exactly why Jordan developed the Lead Recall Binder. She scours the VDH Lead Safe website, Consumer Reports, and the FDA, and prints off lead-related recalls. And she credits an unsung public health hero with helping her get the binder together: RHHD’s IT team. Spartak Veliu helped Jordan print professional-looking color images to ensure that the binder’s information would be as clear as possible.
Color images for each recalled product are especially key so that non-English speaking families will be able to identify items in their home. “I’ve show parents pictures before on the phone, but this is easier and just bigger,” Jordan says. “It feels more official and communicates that we’re prepared.”
On her first home visit with the binder, a Spanish-speaking mother immediately identified a food product in her home that had been recalled. While Jordan will keep working with the family to locate other possible lead sources, seeing the binder have such an immediate impact is heartening, and RHHD’s nursing team plans on expanding this resource.
Jealous of Jordan’s awesome binder? Here are some other strategies for tracking recalls and protecting developing brains against lead:
- Visit VDH’s Lead Safe “Information for Parents” page, where you can find information about lead exposure risks around the commonwealth, steps for reducing lead exposure in your home, and updates on recalls.
- Call 804-205-3726 if you live in Richmond or Henrico and need lead screening for a child or a home assessment for children with lead poisoning. You’ll reach RHHD’s Lead Safe team there!
- Sign up for recall updates from the FDA. The FDA also maintains a list of recalls, including a recent recall of some cantaloupe products because of increased salmonella risk.
- Add foods rich in calcium, iron, and Vitamin C into your family’s diet. The EPA has a great list of meal and snack ideas for fighting lead poisoning.
- Talk to your pediatrician about lead testing at your next Well Child appointment.
