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In the midst of Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, which started on Oct. 20 and will end on Oct, 26, the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged all governments to stop producing and selling lead paint. According to the United Nations (UN) health agency, lead paint is responsible for deaths and intellectual disabilities in young children. By increasing awareness of the potential dangers involved with lead paint, WHO hopes that less children will be put at risk in the future.

"Lead poisoning remains one of the most important environmental health concerns for children globally, and lead paint is a major flashpoint for children's potential lead poisoning," the WHO Director for Public Health and Environment, Maria Neira said according to the UN News Centre. "The good news is that exposure to lead paint can be entirely stopped through a range of measures to restrict the production and use of lead paint."

Lead paint can be found on several items in the household, ranging from children's toys to furniture. When lead paint, particularly on walls or furniture, starts to decay, it can contaminate dust, which then gets inhaled by young children. Other than dust, children might put lead painted toys in their mouths, increasing their exposure to the potentially deadly substance. All of these situations that can cause lead poisoning lead to an estimated 143,000 deaths per year. Furthermore, WHO stated that exposure causes around 600,000 new cases of learning disorders annually. Extremely high levels of lead poisoning can lead to brain damage, coma, convulsions and death.

"Paints with extremely high levels of lead are still available in most of the developing countries where paint testing has been conducted as part of the efforts of the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint," said David Piper, the Deputy Director of the UN Environment Programme Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (UNEP DTIE) Chemicals Branch. "In most of the countries with lead paint, equivalent paint with no added lead is also available, suggesting that alternatives to lead are readily available to manufacturers."

Currently, 30 nations have started to phase out the use of lead paint. The Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint hopes that this number will jump to 70 by 2015. This alliance is headed by WHO and UNEP.