China is Hurting its Future by not acting on Lead Poisoning

The trajectory of China’s lead poisoning epidemic is reminiscent of other Chinese public health crises over the last decade, with the repeating themes of corruption, cover up and harassment. Lead poisoning can cause permanent physical and cognitive disability, and at stake here are millions of children: China’s future.

Another village was poisoned last month. More than 300 people, including 99 children, were diagnosed with acute lead poisoning in Zhejiang province. Unfortunately, entire villages being poisoned by lead from battery factories or lead smelters is not unusual-in the last year alone mass poisonings in six provinces have been reported in central and southern China.

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