THE EFFECT OF LEAD-EXPOSURE ON BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS IN PRESCHOOL-CHILDREN

Objectives. Interpreting associations between lead exposure and child behavior problems is difficult because studies have not controlled for sociodemographic confounders or have used shed teeth to mark exposure . This study explored associations between blood lead and preschool be havior. Methods. Children from a smelter town and a non-lead-exposed t own in Yugoslavia were followed up prospectively from pregnancy throug h age 3. The Child Behavior Checklist was used to assess behavior prob lems in 379 3-year-olds, controlling for sociodemographic factors and difficult infant temperament. Results. Multiple regression revealed th e expected significant associations between checklist subscales and so ciodemographic factors, which explained 7% to 18% of the variance on t he subscales. Concurrent blood lead explained a significant 1% to 4% o f the variance on the Destructive and Withdrawn subscales. Earlier dif ficult temperament explained an additional 2% to 5% of the checklist v ariance. Scores on the Destructive subscale were consistently associat ed with blood lead. As blood lead increased from 10 to 20 mu g/dL, sub scale scores increased by approximately 0.5 points. Conclusions. Lead/ behavior associations are significant but small compared with the effe cts of social factors.