Are People Getting "More Stupider"? Studies Say Pollution Causes Low IQ

When we talk about pollution, we tend to think about the more acute instances, billowing smokestacks, traffic jams, and factories releasing wastewater into rivers. Their high visibility drives our resolution to control them. When it comes to pollution that specifically makes us "more stupider" We tend to forget about the more chronic, persistent forms of pollution of lead in paint and in the drinking water. Controlling these pollutant takes not just government intervention, but a bit of a more proactive approach on the part of the individual. If you own a house or send your children to a school built prior to 1978, you could be exposing yourself and your family to lead. There's a big push to have schools prior to renovation, tested for lead and HUD requires lead testing for homes sold through them. As a resident of an older neighborhood, you may want to have your home tested for lead, and check with your local school board if the problem is currently being addressed. If you're buying an older home you can have it checked for lead prior to settlement. Also, if you live in an older home, many municipalities have home renovation programs for those in lower-income households that include lead testing. Though in recent years, federal, state, and local governments have started to take this problem more seriously, a proactive approach by the individual parent/homeowner is probably the best way to handle this particular, more chronic pollution problem.