2023 KIMBERLY MORRIS SAID When I first envisioned my project I was more focused on the education of parents of

KIMBERLY MORRIS SAID

When I first envisioned my project, I was more focused on the education of parents of children under the age of five. I had no intention of including pregnant women in my target audience. One of the things that led me to include this population was by the suggestion of Professor O’Brien. She stated that educating moms and dads on the dangers of lead through toys and other material items made in other countries is a need which should be addressed. After doing a little more research and thinking about it, I could not agree more.

The statement she made reminded me of a study I had looked at a few years ago and how certain food items and makeup which are bought into stores targeted to different cultures and ethnicities can contain foods high in lead. These foods and other items are being brought to the United States by people of other cultures and are being eaten or used. The lead contained within these products is high and, after doing a study to figure out why, they discovered where the contamination was coming from. Originally I was just going to target children between birth to five years but knowing how many parents plan for the birth of their baby by buying items prior to birth and utilizing the internet to find the cheapest deal, I took Professor O’Brien’s suggestion into consideration and decided to expand my target audience to include pregnant moms as well.

Reference:

Washington State Department of Health. (2016, May). A targeted approach to blood lead screening in

children, Washington State. Retrieved from https://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/Pubs/334-

383.pdf