Americans already living in housing supported by federal housing assistance programs have significantly lower blood lead levels than counterparts who would later join these programs, according to new research led by environmental health scientists at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and Tufts Medical Center. The findings appear in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives(link is external and opens in a new window).
“Living in federally-supported housing—especially public housing—limited opportunities for residents’ exposure to lead,” says first author MyDzung Chu(link is external and opens in a new window), PhD, assistant professor in the Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies at Tufts Medical Center. “This likely relates to stricter compliance and enforcement of federal residential lead paint laws in HUD housing compared to non-assisted housing in the private market.” Read more about JPB Fellow MyDzung’s research.