Environmental lead exposure and its impact on the health of children, pregnant women and the general population in Haiti
Abstract
Exposure to lead is well known to have detrimental effects on the environment and human health, including almost every organ and system in the body. In Haiti, although leaded gasoline has been banned since 1998, lead is still present in the environment due to its persistence and bioaccumulative capacities. In addition to lead air emissions, urban groundwater resources are exposed to lead. The Haitian population is exposed to a widespread urban health problem that especially affects children
and pregnant women who are more vulnerable. In order to understand environmental lead pollution in Haiti, a literature review in the MEDLINE/PUBMED database was conducted on lead in drinking water from 1997 to 2016. The inclusion criteria included
all studies that reported the prevalence of blood lead levels in the general population and studies assessing the risk of exposure to lead in drinking water in different regions of the country. This work gives an overview of exposure to lead in the environment, its
impact on the health of the Haitian population and indicates requirements for future policy responses and interventions.
Collections
- Santé publique [12]