Do you know what is in the water your children are drinking? Young children are particularly vulnerable to the toxic effects of lead that can be found in contaminated water. They can suffer profound and permanent adverse health effects, particularly affecting the development of the brain and nervous system. An easy way to prevent this is by checking your water to make sure it is free of contaminants before giving to your children!

Babies are particularly vulnerable to lead. The physical and behavioral effects of lead occur at lower exposure levels in children than in adults, meaning a dose of lead that would have little effect on an adult can have a significant effect on a child. In children, even low levels of exposure have been linked to nervous system damage, behavioral problems, learning disabilities, shorter stature, impaired hearing, and anemia. In rare cases, ingestion of lead can cause seizures, coma, and even death.

While children are exposed to many potential sources of lead, babies who consume mostly mixed formula can receive 40 to 60% of their exposure to lead from drinking water alone. This means that great care should be taken to ensure the quality of the water being given to formula fed babies. The EPA recommends using only cold water to make baby formula because hot water is likely to contain higher levels of lead. Testing with the TestDrop Pro, which can reliably test for lead in the actual water being used in your baby's bottle, is the first step towards confronting this issue.