Play store
DHAKA: Children from wealthier households in Bangladesh are more likely to have elevated blood lead levels than those from low-income families, according to researchers who analysed data from a national survey of children under five.
The survey data showed that 30.2% of children from the poorest 20% of households had elevated blood lead levels. The rate was 51.9% among children from the wealthiest 20% of households.
Elevated blood lead levels in children are a major concern. Lead can damage brain and nervous system development, potentially affecting intellectual ability, attention, learning and behaviour. These effects do not always produce immediate symptoms. In many cases, a child may appear healthy even as their development is impaired.
Leading paediatricians in Bangladesh say the number of children experiencing neurodevelopmental problems has increased in recent years.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), no level of lead exposure in children is known to be completely safe. Previous studies in Bangladesh have also found an association between blood lead levels in children and lower scores on tests of intellectual development.
The 14th International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, organised by the WHO, is being observed from October 18 to 24. This year’s theme is “From Detection to Prevention”.
The study, titled Social Patterning of Elevated Blood Lead Among Children Aged 12–59 Months in Bangladesh: A National Cross-Sectional Analysis of MICS 2025, was conducted by Syed Tousiq Hossain and Md Imam Hasan, researchers at the Institute of Health Economics of the University of Dhaka. It was published on October 14 on medRxiv, an online platform for medical and public health research papers.
How the findings emerged
The researchers analysed data from the 2025 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) with technical assistance from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The survey collects information on various aspects of women’s and children’s health, nutrition, education, living conditions and environmental risks.
For the first time, the MICS report included nationally representative measurements of blood lead and several other heavy metals among children under five. The researchers did not conduct new blood tests. Instead, they carried out a new statistical analysis using previously collected blood test results and household socioeconomic data.
The survey covered 18,905 children aged 12–59 months. Blood lead test results were available for 10,622 of them. The main analysis, which considered multiple socioeconomic characteristics simultaneously, included 9,717 children with complete data.
A blood lead level of 5 micrograms per decilitre or higher was classified as elevated. The researchers examined the relationship between elevated blood lead levels and household wealth, mothers’ educational attainment, place of residence, housing conditions and other characteristics.
Higher blood lead levels among children from wealthy households
The study found that 38.5% of children aged 12–59 months in Bangladesh had blood lead levels of at least 5 micrograms per decilitre. In other words, nearly 39 out of every 100 children in this age group had levels at or above the threshold used in the study.
However, the prevalence varied considerably by household wealth. The researchers divided households into five wealth groups.
Among children from the poorest 20% of households, 30.2% had elevated blood lead levels. The rate rose to 51.9% among children from the wealthiest 20%.
The gap between the two groups was 21.7 percentage points, indicating a substantially higher prevalence of elevated blood lead levels among children from the wealthiest households.
The researchers found that the prevalence increased progressively across the household wealth groups. This association remained even after accounting for household wealth, mothers’ education, housing conditions and other characteristics.