Need advice: Possible lead exposure during remodel, wife pregnant

[u/thecairokid]

We live in an 1860 house in San Francisco and (stupidly) started a remodel before our baby is due. Part of the job was to demo lath and plaster in a long hallway/ceiling but keep the baseboards intact.

The GC was supposed to fully protect the site. We weren’t there during demo, but when we came back (wearing N95s) it was clear they’d done a poor job — only a couple doors had plastic zips, kitchen was completely open, dust on everything. We stayed ~20 min, left, then came back 4 days later and stayed for a week, mostly in our zip-covered bedroom with an air filter.

Later, because the baseboards were so damaged, we decided to replace them. Before coming back yesterday, I asked the GC if it was safe for us to be in the house this week — specifically re: particulates and my pregnant wife. She said it was fine.

But I realized old baseboards = likely lead. I bought a test kit and checked ~12 spots — only the cleaned kitchen ledges were negative. Baseboards, dust, and lath/plaster near baseboards all tested positive. I don’t know if the plaster has lead or if it’s contamination from the paint.

We left immediately for a hotel. Wife’s doctor told us to go to urgent care to test her lead levels. I’m praying any lead was just settled dust and not airborne, but it’s a nightmare.

Unless there’s lead in the plaster, the only way this could’ve gotten stirred up is from paint chips on the baseboards. I called the GC (furious) and she just said she’d get someone to do an air quality test.

Any advice on what to do next, how concerned to be, and what steps we should take?

[u/Flying_Conch]

Bro.

Get a BLL and a ZPP test. Leave this sort of work to professionals.

Call any abatement company and ask for a preliminary or perhaps a consult. You're likely going to need it, and to trust your GC to handle this is the start of a recipe for a special kid.

[u/nickisaboss]

You all should be supplementing zinc and copper in your diets, as it helps to displace lead from the transporter proteins that typically serve as an entryway for lead into your cells. Zinc pincolate is the most well absorbed, zinc gluconate is personally my favorite for some reason. Don't overdo the copper by any means.

Be aware that zinc will make you horny if you are male.

Certian chelation therapies exist, but they carry their own risks and are not really approved for pregnant people.

Please be aware that n95 masks are not sufficient protection from lead dust. Most air filters really aren't sufficient, other than high-grade HEPA or MERV >=14.

Protection from lead is important not only for your spouse, but also for you, as lead leads to both male reproductive damage, and can also pass to your spouse via semem. Face masks are not effective unless you are clean-shaven. That's the crash course on lead exposure.

[u/nickisaboss]

Also, California's prop 65 website recommends supplementing calcium, iron, and vitamin C to potentially lower absorption of lead into your body

https://www.p65warnings.ca.gov/fact-sheets/lead-and-lead-compounds