Article includes comments from Kim Dietrich, PhD, professor in the UC Department of Environmental Health.

Although lead has long been recognized as toxic and lead paint has been banned in the United States for 40 years, it continues to wreak developmental havoc on children. Most recently, the water crisis in Flint, Michigan, brought this decades-old problem to the fore yet again. Now, a new study is the latest to confirm that lead exposure not only damages cognitive function but also leads to lower socioeconomic status.