Environmental lead pollution in Greece

The blood lead concentration, an index of the environmental lead pollution, was measured in groups of individuals from many parts of greece. The mean blood lead value for urban area individuals was 27.03 micrograms/100 mL for adults, 32.30 for children and 31.03 for neonates; while for rural area individuals it was 18.81 micrograms/100 mL for adults, 22.98 for children and 21.66 for neonates. Twenty one percent of the urban individuals had laboratory evidence of "undue lead absorption" (blood lead level greater than 40 micrograms/100 mL) compared to 1.7% of the rural individuals. Children with elevated blood lead levels were found to have anemia.