Alarming lead content in metal cookware is wake-up call

High amounts of lead contam­ination have been reported in ceramic and metal cookware, children’s toys, and cosmetics, all of which offer major health concerns to humans, particularly women and children.

This follows a study conducted by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and Pure Earth that revealed lead could contaminate food when cooked in metal cookware, particularly locally produced aluminum cookware known as “dadesen.”

Lead is a dangerous heavy metal that can affect children’s develop­ment permanently, specifically their behaviour and intellectual capacity.

The study, which included three ecological zones of the nation, found that youngsters in the study regions of Greater Accra and the Northern Regions were frequently exposed to and poisoned by lead.

During a press conference in Ac­cra, it was disclosed that significant levels of lead were discovered in 77 percent of the pots examined.

It also showed that there was a lead contamination rate of 55 per­cent in metal cookware, 18 percent in ceramic cookware, 14 percent in children’s toys, and seven percent in cosmetics (local mascara), despite the fact that 93 percent of mothers in the Northern Region used the traditional eyeliner, “chilo.”

No one is safe because we all eat from metallic cookware, thus this is a significant issue that needs to be addressed right away. Since there is a very high exposure to lead when using these metallic cookware, it has been proven that eating from them puts people at risk for lead poisoning.

When lead exposure levels are high and permanent, it can have a severe impact on children’s intelli­gence and lead to anaemia.

In addition, extended lead expo­sure may cause high Blood Pressure (BP), heart disease, kidney disease, and decreased fertility.

This is an urgent public health issue that needs to be addressed, especially because women and chil­dren are at risk.

Because lead poisoning has nega­tive effects on the developing baby’s brain and nervous system and leads to learning and other behavioural issues, pregnant women and young children are more susceptible to it.

Therefore, the government must take the required actions to set up safeguards for the citizens’ health.

It is encouraging that the Envi­ronmental Protection Agency (EPA), as a result of the study, is supporting a lead prevention and reduction policy for the nation to reduce the use of lead in order to protect the environment, as stated by the EPA’s Executive Director, Dr. Henry Kwabe­na Kokofu.

He says that to develop lead prevention and reduction policy for Ghana, a high-level multi-sectoral ministerial committee made up of the Ministry of Environment, Sci­ence, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), Ministry of Health (MoH), and Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) may be established with assistance from Pure Earth and UNICEF.

It is also reassuring to know that the Agency will work with other regulators to develop the necessary standards for lead concentration in conventional aluminum cookware as well as the action plan on lead prevention and reduction. These regulators include the Ghana Stan­dards Authority (GSA), the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), and others.

The EPA is taking steps to make sure that harmful production meth­ods used in artisanal and informal recycling activities are restricted.

The Spectator applauds the EPA’s suggestions and calls on manufactur­ers to adhere to the rules in order to protect consumer safety.

We also hope that the govern­ment will give medical personnel the resources they need to inform the public about the risks associated with lead exposure.