2026-06-04 ブラウン大学
◆銃器の発射時には鉛を含む弾薬や雷管から鉛粒子が発生し、衣類や装備品を介して家庭内へ持ち込まれることがある。研究では、米国オハイオ州の出生コホート研究（HOME Study）のデータを分析し、銃器所有状況、保管方法、室内粉塵中の鉛濃度、子どもの血中鉛濃度を比較した。その結果、銃器が施錠されずに保管されている家庭では、粉塵中の鉛濃度が29～84％高く、子どもの血中鉛濃度も約20％高いことが確認された。鉛は神経毒性物質であり、安全な曝露量は存在しないとされ、幼少期の曝露は認知機能や行動発達に悪影響を及ぼす可能性がある。
◆研究は、銃器の安全保管が事故防止だけでなく、小児の鉛曝露低減にも有効であることを示し、環境保健と公衆衛生の観点から新たな意義を提示した。
＜関連情報＞
- https://www.brown.edu/news/2026-06-04/firearms-storage-lead
- https://www.nature.com/articles/s41370-026-00928-w
銃器、保管方法、子供の血中鉛濃度および家庭内塵中の鉛含有量：HOME研究からの知見 Firearms, storage practices, and child blood lead levels and household dust lead loadings: findings from the HOME study
Christian Hoover,Yingying Xu,Bruce Lanphear,Kimberly Yolton,Nicholas Newman & Joseph M. Braun
Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology Published:30 May 2026
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41370-026-00928-w
Abstract
Background
Lead is a persistent environmental toxicant associated with adverse neurodevelopmental and behavioral outcomes, with children particularly vulnerable due to heightened exposure and biological susceptibility. Although population blood lead levels in U.S. children have declined substantially, a large proportion remain above levels associated with harm, indicating ongoing exposure from additional sources. Firearms use lead-based ammunition and primers and discharging a firearm releases lead particles that can be inhaled or transported into residential environments via take-home contamination.
Objective
To examine whether firearm ownership and storage practices were prospectively associated with children’s blood lead levels and residential dust lead.
Methods
In the HOME Study (Cincinnati, Ohio, enrolled 2003–2006), blood lead levels (µg/L; 10 µg/L = 1 µg/dL) were measured at ages 12, 24, and 36 months (n = 323) and floor dust lead (µg/ft²) at baseline, 12, and 24 months (n = 316). Caregivers reported firearm ownership, number of firearms, and storage practices during pregnancy. We fit generalized estimating equations to log₂-transformed blood lead levels and log₁₀-transformed dust lead, adjusting for income, race/ethnicity, flooring, cleanliness, maternal age, and child sex.
Results
Among firearm owners (n = 57–59 per analysis), homes where firearms were not stored or locked had 29–84% higher dust lead at baseline through age 24 months and children had ~20% higher blood lead levels at ages 12–36 months. Associations between firearm ownership and dust and blood lead levels appeared mostly null.
Significance
Among firearm owners, less safe storage was associated with higher floor dust and child blood lead levels, though some results were imprecise. Safe firearm and ammunition storage may reduce pediatric lead exposure in gun-owning households.
Impact
- This prospective birth cohort study evaluates household firearms and storage practices as an understudied source of pediatric exposure. Using repeated measures of children’s blood and residential floor dust lead concentrations, we examined whether firearm ownership and firearm/ammunition storage practices during pregnancy were associated with lead biomarkers from birth through 36 months. Findings suggest that, among firearm-owning households, less secure storage practices are associated with higher residential dust lead and higher child blood lead levels. These results highlight a potentially modifiable exposure pathway relevant to environmental exposure science and pediatric lead prevention.
