I recently had a very chilling unusual conversation with a colleague whom we were neighbors as young doctors living in the doctors flats. He shared with me his current predicament of poor performance in school and behavioral challenges of his first two children.He intimated to me that after extensive personal research he came to the conclusion after blood test that his children might be victims of lead poisoning.

Nairobi is home to many men, lots of men in fact. Simple inferences and calculations from the 2013 Kenya Demographic Estimates quickly imply that more than half a million men aged between 25 to 64 years live in Nairobi. And the majority of these men, 90% in demographic estimates, are literate. To a lay person, this means well-informed and able to make reasoned and healthy judgements.

Mpango wa kando is a well known phrase in this city. Most Nairobians don’t need to have it spelt out. And a good number practise the trade whenever they choose, or if a chance presents itself. But therein lies a good recipe for disease.