An exploratory study of the maternal and child risk factors for lead poisoning in Iloilo City, Philippines

This study determined benchmark data on the common risk factors for lead poisoning among pregnant women in Iloilo City, Philippines. A cross-sectional survey that described characteristics of the respondents was utilized. The researcher hypothesized that Stefanak, Bourguet, and Benzies-Styka's (1996) lead poisoning risk assessment questionnaire would identify risk factors on lead exposure among pregnant women and that 40% of them would have three or more risk factors.; Convenience and quota sampling techniques were used to recruit 340 pregnant women from five city hospitals, Iloilo City health office with six clinics and two private clinics. A self-administered questionnaire was pilot-tested by the researcher to obtain data. Frequency distributions of demographic characteristics were analyzed across categories and Kruskal-Wallis, Mann-Whitney U, and Chi-square tests were utilized to test associations among demographics and selected risk factors.; The study documented that the respondents were in their late 20s, with a mean age of 28 years. Their household size was 5-6 members. Three in every five had one or more family members 17-years-old or younger. Respondents were predominantly college-educated housewives; their mean number of prenatal visits was three, and their average family monthly income was PhP 4,800.00 (US{dollar}92.30).; The hypothesis---"Stefanak et al.'s lead risk assessment questionnaire will identify lead risk factors among 40% of pregnant women in the City of Iloilo, Philippines, with three or more risk factors for lead"---was confirmed by the findings of the study. Use of canned foods differed by age, whereas use of city water varied by age, education, income, and employment. Use of local cosmetics differed by age, but interior home repair differed by education. There was a high frequency of exposures to risk factors for lead among Ilongo pregnant women; however, risk factors did not vary by district.; There is a need for environmental investigations of paint, canned foods, cosmetics, and analysis of lead in city water system; small scale blood lead testing of pregnant women and young children; an immediate ban of leaded gasoline; and regulation of lead solder in cans. Once data are obtained, target-specific education programs should be conducted.