United States: Researchers have warned for years about the dangers of lead in things like paint and pipes. But now, a new study says leaded gasoline, which was used in cars long ago, may have also harmed kids’ brains.  

The study shows that people from Generation X (kids born in the 1970s and 1980s) may have more problems with things like depression, anxiety, and ADHD because they were exposed to leaded gasoline when they were younger. 

Leaded gas was prohibited in the United States in 1996, but years of exposure during development put them at high risk, the study said. Lead gas was at its highest between mid-sixties and mid-seventies and children born during this period would grow up to record some of the highest rates of mental health symptoms according to the study done. 

As reported by USA Today, this work also associated leaded gas with ‘’disadvantageous’ attributes of learning which include poor ability to focus, avoid distractions as well as delayed ability to sequence thoughts. 

‘I sometimes refer to them as ‘generation lead, ‘said Aaron Reuben, first author of the study and assistant professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Virginia.  

“They probably were exposed to it more, and we think that they have gone on to develop the internalizing conditions, such as anxiety, depression and symptoms of ADHD.” 

What did the study measure? 

Reuben and researchers from Florida State University then used health survey and national gas use to figure out how much lead people were ingesting between 1940 and 2015. They applied that data to extrapolate the potential impact of such exposures would be on mental health. 

The estimates should be considered a floor because revenue today is largely from gas and not exposure from lead in paint or pipes, Reuben said. 

Lead paint was banned in 1978, however it can still be present in pre 1978 homes and pose a danger to children whether it is swallowed accidentally or otherwise. Older homes need special notice so parents of children in such houses should be more vigilant mainly in such areas like windowsills, doors and door frames, stairs, railings and banisters, porches and so on.