Exposure of young children to household water lead in the Montreal area (Canada): the potential influence of winter-to-summer changes in water lead levels on children's blood lead concentration

Drinking water represents a potential source of lead exposure. The purpose of the present study was to estimate the magnitude of winter-to-summer changes in household water lead levels (WLLs), and to predict the impact of these variations on BLLs in young children. A study was conducted from September, 2009 to March, 2010 in 305 homes, with a follow-up survey carried out from June to September 2011 in a subsample of 100 homes randomly selected. The first 1-L sample was drawn after 5 min of flushing, followed by a further 4 consecutive 1-L samples after 30 min of stagnation. Non-linear regression and general linear mixed models were used for modelling seasonal effects on WLL. The batchrun mode of Integrated Exposure Uptake Biokinetic (IEUBK) model was used to predict the impact of changes in WLL on children's blood lead levels (BLLs). The magnitude of winter-to-summer changes in average concentrations of lead corresponded to 6.55 μg/L in homes served by lead service lines (LSL+ homes) and merely 0.30 μg/L in homes without lead service lines. For stagnant samples, the value reached 10.55 μg/L in 'LSL+ homes' and remained very low (0.36 μg/L) in 'LSL- homes'. The change in the probability of BLLs ≥5 μg/dL due to winter-to-summer changes in WLL was increased from 5% (in winter) to about 20% (in summer) in children aged 0.5-2 years. The likelihood of having BLLs ≥5 μg/dL in young children during warm months was reduced by at least 40% by flushing tap-water.