At least 734 children below the age of five, out
of 5,395 kids within the age bracket, have been
confirmed killed by lead poisoning between 2010
and March 2013 in Zamfara State.
Dr. Nasiru Umar Tsafe of the Nigerian Field
Epidemiology and Laboratory Training
Programme, Abuja gave the figure at the
weekend, during a presentation on
'Epidemiological Response to Lead Poisoning in
Zamfara State, 2010-2013,' at a symposium on
lead poisoning, organised by the Usmanu
Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto.
According to him, as at March, 2013 , the number
of children under five, who had been treated,
was 2,070 (62.8%) while 3,198 others still
require treatment.
Besides, 30 out of the 38 villages that require
emergency intervention were yet to be
remediated.
Tsafe explained that children within the 10-24
months age group, were repeatedly identified
as the most vulnerable, due to frequent soil-to-
mouth activity they were exposed to.
He noted that out of 199 villages surveyed, 38
required emergency response but that only
eight were remediated and are currently
receiving treatments.
He described the state lead poisoning crisis as
unprecedented, adding that despite its critical
nature, the situation has not improved as fresh
cases are being reported.
Tsafe identified the challenges facing experts in
tackling the incident to include complete
characterisation of the problem, remediation of
all contaminated villages, recontamination as
well as treatment of affected children.
Others included the poor implementation of
safer mining practices, lack of continuous
community awareness/monitoring activities and
ineffective collaboration with stakeholders.
He urged stakeholders to combine efforts to fix
the situation.
In his remarks, the university's Consultant
Clinical Epidemiologist, Department of
Community Medicine, Dr. Awosan, underscored
the need for all the stakeholders to ensure the
full implementation of public health and lead
poisoning preventive measures in Nigeria.

Source: http://www.donosak..com/2013/10/leads-poisoning-kills-734-children-in.html?m=1

Op, where is the lead coming from?
If they know the origin of the poison,then they can tackle it better.
Why does it affect only children?
Do they eat soil?