The first-time homebuyer’s tax credit has spurred interest in buying and renovating smaller “starter” homes, homes that are often older – and often include lead paint.

Lead poisoning in children is often connected to home renovation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported earlier this year.

A study released by the CDC found that the percentage of children with high lead levels attributable to home repair and renovation doubled – from 7 percent to 14 percent.

In two-thirds of those cases, the study found, the home renovation was done by the resident and not by a contractor.

According to the Virginia Department of Public Health, almost 7,000 Virginia kids under age 6 have high levels of lead in their blood. Most of those children are poisoned in one of Virginia’s 1.8 million homes built before 1978, when lead paint was outlawed.

“Lead interferes with normal brain development and is associated with permanently reduced IQ, learning disabilities and behavioral disorders,” the DPH says.

The Environmental Protection Agency suggests that homeowners renovating a home with lead-based paint take these steps to keep their children safe and prevent lead exposure:

• Take furniture out of the room or cover it with heavy plastic sheeting

• Use heavy plastic sheeting to cover the floor and to separate the work area from the rest of the house

• Close and seal vents in the work area and – if necessary – shut down forced-air HVAC systems

• Sand, grind or plane only with power tools that have a shroud and HEPA vacuum attachment.