Taking The Gray Out At Root Of Fears Of Lead Contamination

DEAR MS. H.E.:I recently purchased a bottle of Grecian Formula 16 for the first time to treat some mild graying of my thirtysomething hair. But my wife and I are expecting our first baby in a few months and I am concerned about the lead contamination in our house. Should I be concerned about the "less than one percent lead acetate" in Grecian Formula 16 that would be spread by combs, brushes and contact? The manufacturer instructions say to wash users' hands after use, but wouldn't the lead acetate be spread by combs, brushes, linens, pillows, clothes and contact (not to mention our baby grabbing my hair!) Am I paranoid?

DEAR READER: "Less than one percent lead acetate" doesn't sound like much and certainly Grecian Formula 16 isn't a major root of lead exposure for young children. Lead in the soil and lead that might be in your drinking water are much more serious threats. However, if you are concerned about keeping your family's exposure to lead at a minimum it's important to take a hard look at any household product that contains lead.

Philip Dickey, of the Washington Toxics Coalition, and John Roberts, of the Home Toxics Task Force, can help you put the "less than once percent" amount in perspective: The World Health Organization recommends that you limit your child's lead intake to less than 3.8 micrograms per kilogram of body weight a day. (Why? Because, among other reasons, their research shows that every one microgram of lead per deciliter of blood will lower your child's IQ one-fourth of a point.)

In a letter to Dickey, the manufacturer, Combe, said one gram of Grecian Formula 16 (equivalent to a small dab of toothpaste you'd squeeze onto your toothbrush) contains about 3,600 micrograms of lead and the bottle contains 432,000 micrograms. They recommend that you apply 2 to 5 grams twice a week, which means you are applying roughly 14,000 to 36,000 micrograms of lead to the top of your head weekly (figures also supplied by Combe).

Short of actually getting her hands on the bottle and taking a swig - the cap is not childproof - what are baby's chances of ingesting any? It's hard to say, of course. You would certainly want to wash your hands and brush thoroughly, and also wash the towel you used and clothes you wore while applying the stuff. Rinse the sink very carefully, too.

Apparently the lead bonds with the naturally occurring sulphur in your hair, so that once it is dry you don't have to worry about recontamination any time something touches your head. But what about the hair that falls out around the house? Babies are notorious for putting gummy fingers and toys in their mouths, and they may ingest quite a few hairs in the course of a day's work. And what about your own lead exposure? Lead raises blood pressure in men, contributing to their risk of heart attacks. Never smoke or eat after applying the dye until you have washed up.

What should you do? Take a hard look at how disciplined you are. If you can really take all the precautions every time you treat your hair, and you really hate the sight of those (terribly distinguished) gray hairs, go ahead and use the stuff. But I have another question. Why bring lead home on purpose? In my opinion, you should toss the dye. Except you can't toss it if there is anything left in the bottle. "Less than one percent lead acetate" means your bottle must be disposed of as household hazardous waste. Better call the Hazards Line - 296-4692 in Seattle, 296-6540 elsewhere in King County - and find out where to take it. (Elsewhere in the state, call your local garbage utility to find out where to dispose of household hazardous waste.)

DEAR READERS: I wrote a column on nontoxic flea control earlier this year, and it must have run on that very weekend you all decided to go out of town. Record numbers of flea-bitten readers have written recently to ask for a reprint. I can't do reprints, but now that the floor is beginning to sag under the accumulated weight of your flea letters, I'll do what I can do: Tell you where to get the information you need.

Send $1 to the Washington Toxics Coalition, 4516 University Way N.E., Seattle, WA 98105, and ask for a copy of their flea fact sheet. Also send $6.25 to Bio-Integral Resources Center, PO Box 7414, Berkeley, CA 94707, and ask for a copy of L.T. Fleas. And know that an outfit called FleaBusters will treat your house with a desiccant powder they claim is non-toxic and foolproof. I have no way of evaluating whether their claims are true. Susan McGrath's column runs every two weeks in the Home/Real Estate section of The Times. Send questions and comments to: The Household Environmentalist, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA, 98111.