Survey of lead exposure around a closed lead smelter

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that elevated lead in soil is positively correlated with blood lead (BPb) levels in children in an urban population surrounding a closed lead smelter, a US Environmental Protection Agency Superfund clean-up site was surveyed. METHOD: A total of 827 volunteers including 490 children under 6 years of age participated. A questionnaire was administered. Blood lead was determined as was lead content of samples of house dust, soil, paint, and water of the participants' homes. RESULTS: The arithmetic mean venous BPb in 490 children between 6 and 72 months of age was 6.9 micrograms/dL (0.33 mumol/L) range 0.7 to 40.2 micrograms/dL (0.03 to 1.94 mumol/L). The BPb of 78 (16%) children in this group was > or = 10 micrograms/dL (0.48 mumol/L). Based on multiple regression modeling, lead in house dust accounted for 18% of the variance in BPb. Lead in paint together with the condition of the house were the main contributors to the dust lead variance (26%) with soil lead accounting for an additional 6%. Lead in paint alone accounted for 3% of the BPb variance. Lead in paint together with the condition of the house accounted for 12% of BPb variance, and lead in soil accounted for an additional 3%. Factors other than environmental lead such as education of parents, household income, and behavior were associated with BPb levels. CONCLUSIONS: The mean BPb in children was below the present level of concern of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Children with BPb of > or = 10 micrograms/L (0.48 mumol/L) tended to live in poorly maintained older houses. Based on these findings lead in soil and paint in well-maintained homes contributed little to the lead exposure of children.     

Acquisition of noise-induced hearing loss by railway workers

Lead-contaminated water, soil, and paint have been recognized as potential sources of children's lead exposure for decades, but their contributions to lead intake among urban children remain poorly defined. This analysis was undertaken to estimate the relationship of environmental lead exposures to lead intake among a random sample of urban children, adjusted for exposure to lead-contaminated house dust. Analyses of 183 urban children enrolled in a random sample, cross sectional study were conducted. Children's blood and multiple measures of household dust, water, soil, and paint were analyzed for lead, and interviews were conducted to ascertain risk factors for childhood lead exposure. Environmental sources of lead, including house-dust, soil lead, and water lead, were independently associated with children's blood lead levels. In contrast, paint lead levels did not have a significant effect on blood lead levels after adjusting for other environmental exposures. An increase in water lead concentration from background levels to 0.015 mg/L, the current EPA water lead standard, was associated with an increase of 13.7% in the percentage of children estimated to have a blood lead concentration exceeding 10 micrograms/dL; increasing soil lead concentration from background to 400 micrograms/g was estimated to produce an increase of 11.6% in the percentage of children estimated to have a blood lead level exceeding 10 micrograms/dL, and increasing dust lead loading from background to 200 micrograms/ft2 is estimated to produce an increase of 23.3% in the percentage of children estimated to have a blood lead level exceeding 10 micrograms/dL. These data support the promulgation of health-based standards for lead-contaminated dust and soil and the progressive lowering of standards for lead-contaminated water as the definition of undue lead exposure has been modified.     

Relationship between lead mining and blood lead levels in children

The authors studied blood lead levels of 226 randomly selected children, aged 6-92 mo, who lived in either a lead-mining area or a nonmining area, and 69 controls. The authors sought to determine to what extent mining activities contributed to blood lead levels in the children. The mean blood lead levels in the study and control groups were 6.52 microg/dl and 3.43 microg/dl, respectively. The corresponding proportions of children with elevated blood lead levels were 17% and 3%. Soil and dust lead levels were up to 10 times higher in the study than the control group. Elevated blood lead levels appeared to result from exposure to both lead-mining waste and lead-based paint. Mining waste was the cause of the higher prevalence of elevated blood lead levels in these children.     

Environmental urban lead exposure and blood lead levels in children of Mexico City

Lead contamination is now a leading public health problem in Mexico. However, there are few data on the lead content of various environmental sources, and little is known about the contribution of these sources to the total lead exposure in the population of children residing in Mexico City. We conducted a cross-sectional study in a random sample of 200 children younger than 5 years of age who lived in one of two areas of Mexico City. Environmental samples of floor, window, and street dust, paint, soil, water, and glazed ceramics were obtained from the participants' households, as well as blood samples and dirt from the hands of the children. Blood lead levels ranged from 1 to 31 micrograms/dl with a mean of 9.9 micrograms/dl (SD 5.8 micrograms/dl). Forty-four percent of the children 18 months of age or older had blood lead levels exceeding 10 micrograms/dl. The lead content of environmental samples was low, except in glazed ceramic. The major predictors of blood lead levels were the lead content of the glazed ceramics used to prepare children's food, exposure to airborne lead due to vehicular emission, and the lead content of the dirt from the children's hands. We conclude that the major sources of lead exposure in Mexico City could be controlled by adequate public health programs to reinforce the use of unleaded gasoline and to encourage production and use of unleaded cookware instead of lead-glazed ceramics.     

Increased lead absorption with anemia and slowed nerve conduction in children near a lead smelter

Studies to evaluate the prevalence, sources, and health consequences of lead absorption were conducted among children living near a primary lead smelter. Lead levels in air, soil, and dust were highest at the smelter and decreased with distance. Ninety-nine percent of one- to nine-year-old children living within 1.6 kilometers had blood lead levels greater than or equal 40 mug/dl, indicating increased absorption, and 22% had levels greater than or equal 80 mug/dl. The prevalence of lead levels greater than or equal 40 mug/dl decreased with distance; at 72 kilometers from the smelter it was 1%. Erythrocyte protoporphyrin levels increased with blood lead levels: 17% of children with lead levels of greater than or equal 80 mug/dl were anemic. There was no overt neurologic toxicity. Significant negative correlation was found in 202 five- to nine-year-old children between blood lead levels and motor nerve conduction velocity (r = 0.38, p less than 0.02).     

Low-level lead exposure and children's intelligence from recent epidemiological studies in the U.S.A. and other countries to progress in reducing lead exposure and screening in the U.S.A

From the 1980s many well-designed epidemiological studies have confirmed that low-level, subclinical lead exposure in early life is associated with decrements in children's intelligence. Neurodevelopmental deficits from exposure to a low level of lead have been held to be not only an American problem, but also a worldwide issue in the past decade. Good epidemiological studies were reported from England, Scotland, Germany, Greece, Australia and New Zealand. Well-designed cross-sectional and prospective studies were carried out to quantify the magnitude of the relation between full scale IQ in children aged five years or more and the burden of lead (PbB or PbT) in early life of children. Of five cross-sectional studies of blood lead, two demonstrated a significant inverse association between lead and IQ even after adjustment for confounders. Two other studies, however, showed no firm evidence of inverse association after adjustment for confounders, and the remaining study demonstrated no significant inverse association of five cross-sectional studies of tooth lead, two indicated an inverse association between tooth lead and IQ, two others showed no significant inverse association after adjustment for confounders, and the remaining one manifested no association. Of four prospective studies, two revealed strong evidence of an inverse association between blood lead at the age of around two years and IQ. Another one, however, revealed an inverse association between mean postnatal blood level and IQ, while the remaining one demonstrated no significant inverse association between IQ and postnatal blood lead level after adjustment for confounders. In a comprehensive review of 26 epidemiological studies since 1979, including a meta-analysis, Pococok et al. indicated that doubling of the body lead burden (from 10 to 20 micrograms/dl) blood lead or (from 5 to 10 micrograms/g) tooth lead is typically associated with a mean deficit in full-scale IQ of around 1-2 IQ points. Lead in interior household dust, exterior surface soil, and old residential lead paint, which is deteriorated or removed, constitute the major sources of lead poisoning in children in the United States. Infants and children, who typically engage in hand to mouth activities, frequently come into contact with lead dust in soil and on the floor. Marked declines both in air lead and blood lead concentrations are evident parallel to the phase-down of lead in gasoline and soldered cans by U.S. food processors. The major source of lead in drinking water is from lead pipes used in household plumbing. The CDC revised its guidelines concerning childhood lead poisoning, stating that community prevention activities should be triggered when a large percentage of children in a community have blood lead levels of 10 micrograms/dl, the lowest level at which neurodevelopmental effects were believed to occur. For children with blood lead level concentrations between 10 and 14 micrograms/dl, more frequent rescreening may be needed. For concentrations between 15 and 19 micrograms/dl, in addition to more frequent screening, nutritional and educational advice should be given. In cases where these levels persist, there should be environmental investigation and intervention. All children with blood levels of 20 micrograms/dl or greater should receive environmental evaluation and medical examination. Such children may need pharmacological treatment.     

Isotopic ratio analysis in residential lead-based paint and associated surficial dust

OBJECTIVES: This investigation assessed the contribution of lead in lead-based paint (7 samples) to lead-laden dust (8 samples) in a single suburban vacant residence using isotopic ratio analysis. METHODS: Interior/exterior lead-based paint surface concentration was measured by X-ray fluorescence while dust and scrapings were analyzed chemically for total lead content and by mass spectrometry for the associated isotopic ratios. RESULTS: Four out of 5 comparisons of paint (7 samples) and dust (8 samples) for a given location did not match isotopically. In the one location where the isotopic ratio of the paint and dust samples matched closely, some portions of the paint were not intact. One explanation for the isotopic ratio match is that the dust sample may have actually been contaminated with paint flecks. This explanation appears likely since the isotopic ratio for the lead in the dust and paint sample were not in the modern average range of US environmental lead, strongly indicating a local point source of the lead in this dust sample, namely the paint at this location. Lead dust samples whose isotopic ratio lies in the modern average range for US environmental lead cannot be correlated to the paint which is beneath them, since the isotopic ratio of lead in the dust may actually be a composite of many sources of lead over time, as suggested by an isotopic ratio in the modern average range. CONCLUSIONS: From the samples from this one house, the data dispute the contention that intact lead-based paint chalks and creates lead-contaminated dust on its surface. While leaded household dust may contribute to children's lead exposure, intact paint need not contribute to surficial lead-laden dust. Isotopic ratio measurements can be useful for point-source determination by virtue of sample match and by placement of the ratio on the spectrum of isotopic ratio values for lead. Point-source assessment based on isotopic ratio was either strengthened or weakened by placement outside or within the average range for US environmental lead, respectively.     

A community-initiated study of blood lead levels of Nicaraguan children living near a battery factory

OBJECTIVES: In response to requests by parents in Managua, Nicaragua, whose neighborhood borders a battery factory, 97 children were tested for blood lead, as were 30 children in a neighborhood without an obvious source of environmental lead. METHODS: Venous blood was examined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Educational workshops were conducted. RESULTS: Mean blood lead levels were 17.21 +/- 9.92 micrograms/dL in the index children and 7.40 +/- 5.37 micrograms/dL in the controls (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Children living near the battery factory are at increased risk of lead poisoning. The parents were able to petition the government to control the factory emissions and to improve appropriate health services. The factory is now closed.     

Facial rehabilitation by the application of osseointegrated craniofacial implants

The prevalence of allergic disease is low in Eastern Europe for reasons that are poorly understood. Our study aimed to investigate the levels of exposure to indoor allergens and living conditions among Estonian infants in relation to sensitization. Dust samples were collected during four winter months in 1993/94 from the homes of 197 infants participating in a prospective study of sensitization. Information about living conditions was collected through a home visit and interviewing the mothers when the children were 6 weeks old. Three dust samples were collected from each home; i.e., from the infant's mattress, bedroom floor, and living-room carpet. The levels of allergens were determined by ELISA with monoclonal antibodies. The highest allergen level in a home was regarded as the peak value. The peak geometric mean values (+/-SD) of Der p 1 and Der f 1 were 0.3 (0.07-1.4) microg/g dust, of Can f 1, 0.86 (0.23-3.12) microg/g dust, and of Fel d 1, 0.1 (0.01-0.9) microg/g dust. In 12 homes (9%), the peak value of house-dust mite (HDM) allergens exceeded 2 microg/g dust, with Der p 1 as the dominating allergen. Multivariate analyses indicated that high levels of HDM allergens were more common in apartments that were on the ground floor or first floor, that were heated with stoves, and/or that had a dampness problem. The mean allergen levels at home were similar in children sensitized to HDM (n=17, 0.29 vs 0.3 microg/ g dust), dog (n=5, 0.55 vs 1.06 microg/g dust, and cat (n=18, 0.21 vs 0.09 microg/g dust) and in children who were not sensitized to these allergens. Most of the sensitized children were exposed to relatively low allergen levels at home; i.e., below 1 microg/g dust. This level was exceeded in the homes of 4/17 mite-, 5/18 cat-, and 0/5 dog-sensitized children. The similar levels of the major indoor allergens in Estonia and in Scandinavia indicate that the large differences in atopy prevalence among children and young adults in the two regions are not due to differences in allergen exposure. No allergen threshold level for sensitization was identified.     

Human hepatitis B virus and hepatocellular carcinoma. I. Experimental infection of tree shrews with hepatitis B virus

A cross-sectional study involving 771 children under the age of one year, was carried out in a traditional area of urban Ilorin, Nigeria, to determine how socio-economic conditions and feeding practices relate to diarrhoeal disease among infants. After adjustment has been made (through logistic regression) for covariates, five factors had significant association with diarrhoeal disease. These are the age of the child, parity, mother's education, availability of household kitchen and the feeding of semi-solid food to the infants. The lowest diarrhoeal rate occurred in infants aged 0-3 months while the highest rate occurred among infants seven to nine months old (Odds Ratio = 4.2). Children who were of the fifth or higher birth order had significantly higher risk of diarrhoea when compared with those who were of the first or second birth order (OR = 1.62; P < 0.05). Children of mothers with secondary education had significantly higher risk of diarrhoea compared with children of illiterates (OR = 1.9; P < 0.05). Households that had no kitchen had significantly higher risk of infantile diarrhoea than households with kitchen facilities (P < 0.01). Finally, infants receiving semi-solid food had higher risk of diarrhoea compared to those children not receiving semi-solid food (P < 0.05). Diarrhoeal disease awareness campaign to educate mothers on the dangers of childhood diarrhoea and how to prevent it, through proper hygiene, especially, food hygiene, is advocated.     

Chronic exposure to environmental lead in Chilean infants

BACKGROUND: In Chile, there are several sources of environmental lead exposure. However, the few studies about lead levels in Chilean infants, do not allow to establish the prevalence of high lead levels in this population. AIM: To measure blood lead levels in nursing infants, living in rural and urban areas, from birth until two years of age. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Newborns from public maternity hospitals in Santiago and a rural area were selected for the study. An umbilical cord blood sample was obtained at birth and venous blood samples thereafter, every 6 months until the age of 24 months. Lead levels were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Atmospheric lead was measured simultaneously every week in Santiago and the rural area. RESULTS: Three hundred twelve children from Santiago and 113 from the rural area completed the 24 months follow-up. The mean lead exposure for infants living in Santiago and in the rural area was 1.23 +/- 0.66 and 0.19 +/- 0.15 micrograms/m3 respectively (p < 0.001). Mean blood levels were always higher in infants from Santiago, compared to those from the rural area. At 24 months, 4.5% of children from Santiago and 0.7% of children from the rural area had blood lead levels over 10 micrograms/dl. Significant risk factors for high lead levels were recent painting of the house where the infant lives, eating soil, biting banisters and familiar labor exposure to lead. CONCLUSIONS: Infants living in an urban area and exposed to increased atmospheric lead levels have higher blood lead levels than infants living in a rural area.     

Hemisphere asymmetry in sympathetic control of the human myocardium

The changes in dust loading, lead loading and lead concentration, determined from vacuum samples and wipe samples collected during the Childhood Lead Exposure Assessment and Reduction Study (CLEARS) were analyzed to determine the efficacy of the cleaning protocol in homes of children found to have moderate lead poisoning, e.g. levels between 10-20 micrograms/dL. The samples were collected at least twice, and in 65 homes three times, during the course of a year long intervention in homes where half were randomized into a group which received a standardized Lead Intervention program for lead reduction, and the other homes only received an Accident Intervention program. The homes with lead burdened children were located in Hudson County, New Jersey (primarily in Jersey City), and were referred to the CLEARS by a number of private and public sources. Each home had wipe sampling conducted with the LWW Sampler (patented), and vacuum sampling was completed using a device described by Wang et al. in Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene. The results were compared in two ways: (1) between the two intervention groups, and (2) over the time course of the intervention period. When compared to the values seen in the first visit vacuum sampling results showed statistically significant decreases in lead loading and dust loading by the third sampling visit for the Lead Intervention homes. Substantial reductions in lead loading and dust loading were also seen when the Lead Intervention values were compared to values obtained in the Accident Intervention homes over the course of the year long intervention. The wipe sampling results for the 65 homes with three visits found no significant reductions in dust loading and lead loading among any of the room surfaces sampled in the Accident Intervention homes. There were 75% and 50% reductions observed on the window sills and on the bedroom floors of the homes which participated in the Lead Intervention. The levels in the living room and the kitchen showed very little change in loadings. This appeared to be due to the fact these rooms were near a background or baseline value of 0.3 g/cm2 and 0.12 mg/cm2 for dust loading and lead, respectively. This was substantiated by the window sills and bedroom wipe sampling results since each surface approached these values by the third visit. Significant reductions in lead concentrations found in the wipe samples from the intervention homes appeared to be related to the absence of historically active sources of lead in these homes, rather than elimination of current sources. The results of the micro-environmental sampling program in CLEARS indicated that a year long cleaning protocol can significantly decrease lead levels in rugs and on other exposed surfaces. This will reduce the potential for exposure to lead among the occupants, especially children, that come in contact with such surfaces.     

Lipofuscin product accumulation, insufficient antioxidant defence in erythrocytes and plasma and enhanced susceptibility to oxidative haemolysis after thermal trauma

The paper presents the results of the large-scale blood lead levels survey in pre-school urban children living in industrial area of Poland (Katowice Voivodship, Upper Silesian Industrial Zone-USIZ). The program, established in 1993, involves education, screening and medical care of case-children, as its major elements. Until December 1995 six thousand nine hundred sixty nine children aged 2-6 years have been examined in three towns (Chorzów, Kalowice, Sosnowiec). Geometric mean value of blood lead level (PbB) was slightly but not statistically significantly larger in boys (6.68 +/- 1.51 micrograms/dl) than in girls (6.58 +/- 1.54 micrograms/dl). In a multiple regression analysis the following variables explained variation in PbB: town (p = 0.0001), age (p = 0.005), floor on which apartment was located (p = 0.0001), number of siblings (p = 0.0001), apartment quality (p = 0.0001), carpet in a child's room (p = 0.0001), consumption of locally grown vegetables (p = 0.007), frequent trips outside the region (p = 0.0001). The results were verified with PbB as dichotomous variable. The occurrence of PbB above 10 micrograms/dl (frequency, 14.2%-17.2%) was associated with floor on which apartment was located, number of siblings, apartment's quality, the presence of carpet in child's room and frequent trips outside the region. The occurrence of PbB above 15 micrograms/dl (frequency: 2.5%-4.2% of children) was associated with the same variables and additionally, with the place of residence and intensity of vehicle traffic. The findings yield reliable population-based estimates of the risk of over-exposure of "non-hot-spot" urban children to environmental lead and highlight the important role of factors that could be classified as environmental and socio-economical determinants of blood lead level. Among environmental factors deposits of lead are still a problem in a densely populated industrial center of USIZ and the use of leaded gasoline adds to the magnitude of exposure.     

Experience in the study of the effects of lead on the health status of children in Belovo]

Lead releases in Belovo town containing metallurgy enterprise had reached 120 tons/year earlier, but in recent years have decreased to 9 tons/year. Reduction of the production induced decrease of lead levels in the ambient air from 0.7-2.3 mg/m3 in 1994 to 0.001-0.24 mg/m3. Lead concentration in the soil ranges from 30 to 3000 mg/kg. Lead levels were measured in serum of 91 children, in hair of 67 ones and in teeth of 15 children. Serum lead levels in children aged 7-8 years varied from 0.5 to 39 mg/dl, with an average of 9.9 mg/dl (SD is 5.2 mg/dl), geometric mean is 8.5 mg/dl and error of geometric mean is 3.3. 46% of the children had serum lead levels exceeding the normal one (10 mg/dl). Average lead level in the hair equaled 4.5 mg/g (SD is 4.9 mg/g). The children living in towns with higher environmental lead levels demonstrated more frequent anxiety and changes in higher psychic functions. The major points influencing the serum lead level are proximity to highway, dietary load of goods grown near the residence, mother's smoking. Biokinetic model describing lead transfer into the blood helped to evaluate various modes of the enterprise functioning and efficiency of some environmental protection measures. The most efficient are measures aimed to lower dietary intake of lead, less efficiency is associated with measures reducing lead levels in air, dust and soil.     

Environmental risks to the health of American children

The major environmental health issue for children today is the extremely high prevalence of unacceptable exposure to lead, especially in inner cities, but occurring throughout the country. It is now generally accepted that lead is toxic to the developing nervous system at levels that were thought only a decade ago to be without effect. Children are more susceptible to the effects of lead than the adults who live in the same environments. Although lead-based paint is no longer used and lead is now removed from gasoline, children will continue to live in housing with the potential for lead poisoning for perhaps another generation. Research into the prevention of exposure and prevention of the consequences of unavoidable exposure is now under way.     

Knives, guns, and interparent violence: Relations with child behavior problems.

Behavior problems were examined across 3 groups of children (8–12 years of age), living in families characterized by recent physical spousal violence. The groups were (a) 47 children who reported observing marital violence that included the threat or use of knives or guns (observed); (b) 57 children who did not report witnessing marital violence involving knives or guns but whose mothers reported that violence involving knives or guns had occurred in a recent marital dispute (occurred); and (c) 51 children who did not report witnessing marital violence involving knives or guns and whose mothers also reported no violence involving knives or guns (neither). Children in the observed group displayed higher levels of behavior problems than did children in the neither group, but they did not differ from children in the occurred group. Children in the occurred group also displayed higher levels of behavior problems than did children in the neither group. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fluorescent in situ hybridization on flow-sorted cells as a tool for evaluating minimal residual disease or chimerism after allogenic bone marrow transplantation

The objective is to determine the blood lead levels of the children (7-8 years of age) living in some of Madrid's satellite towns, and to establish links between these levels and different socioeconomic items, life styles and environmental factors, among other variables. A cross-sectional study using a sample based on 205 schoolchildren of Second Grade Primary Education, was under taken during 1995. Venous blood samples were analysed through atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Parents answered a questionnaire with items used in this study. The average blood lead level found was 3.9 mud/dl (CI 95% 3.7-4.1), with higher levels among the children of the Northern zone of Madrid. Between the associated factors to blood lead level was found to be the habit of nail biting, mother's studies and some variables associated with habitual dwelling. We reached the conclusion that the blood lead levels of Madrid's suburban children are low.     

Assessment of lead exposure in schoolchildren from Jakarta

Children attending schools in urban areas with high traffic density are a high risk group for lead poisoning. We assessed the magnitude of lead exposure in schoolchildren from Jakarta by analyzing blood lead concentrations and biomarkers of heme biosynthesis. A total of 131 children from four public elementary schools in Jakarta (two in the southern district and two in the central district) were enrolled in the study. To evaluate lead pollution in each area, soil samples and tap water were collected. The mean blood lead concentration was higher in the central district than in the southern district (8.3 +/- 2.8 vs. 6.9 +/- 3.5 microg/100 ml; p<0.05); 26.7% of the children had lead levels greater than 10 microg/100 ml. In 24% of the children, zinc protoporphyrin concentrations were over 70 micromol/mol hemoglobin; in 17% of the samples, hemoglobin was less than 11 g/100 ml. All other values were within the physiological range. Blood lead concentration and hematological biomarkers were not correlated. Analyses of tap water revealed lead values under 0. 01 mg/l; lead contamination of soil ranged from 77 to 223 ppm. Our data indicate that Indonesian children living in urban areas are at increased risk for blood lead levels above the actual acceptable limit. Activities to reduce pollution (e.g., reduction of lead in gasoline) and continuous monitoring of lead exposure are strongly recommended.     

"Do as I say, not as I do": Family influences on children's safety and risk behaviors.

Objective: Although there is considerable speculation that family-based socialization processes influence children's safety and risk behaviors, few studies have addressed this important issue. The present study compared the impact of parent practices and teaching about safety on children's current behaviors and their intended future behaviors when they reach adulthood. Design and Measures: Children 7 to 12 years of age were interviewed and asked to report on their parents' practices and teachings (discussions, expectations for children's behavior) regarding five common safety behaviors. As well, the children reported on their own current practices and how they intended to behave when an adult. When appropriate, they provided explanations about why their parents engage in fewer safety behaviors than they required of their children. Results: Children's current behavior was best predicted by parental teaching, however, how children planned to behave when they were adults was best predicted by parents' practices. Children attributed less frequent safety behaviors by their parents than themselves to general attributes of adults and their parent having special skills that made the safety practices less necessary than was true for children. Conclusion: These results highlight family influences on children's adoption of safety and risk practices and support the notion of intergenerational transmission of risk behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)