Summary
Jolanta Wadowska-Król is a pediatrician who has dedicated her life to helping children affected by lead poisoning. Her story is that of a courageous and intelligent woman who chose to treat and protect the health of as many children as possible, despite the authorities’ attempts to conceal the toxicity generated by the Szopienice smelter (Poland).
Photo by Jolanta Wadowska-Król
Source : https://https://thecinemaholic.com/
The diagnosis that changes everything: lead poisoning in the children of Szopienice
When Jolanta saw a child several times for consultations, she noticed that he suffered from severe anemia. She then realized that several children in nearby clinics were suffering from the same ailment. The doctor quickly hypothesized that the cause was environmental, since a large number of children presented the same symptoms. At that time, the toxic effects of lead on foundry workers were already known, but no one made the connection with the children who played and lived near the foundry. Lead polluted the air, the fields, and also the food consumed by the local population.
Through testing, lead poisoning was confirmed in the first patient. Faced with this discovery, she tried as quickly as possible to alert the foundry managers, who didn’t believe a doctor from this district (one of the poorest) and who, moreover, wanted to conceal the link the doctor was making between the factory and the children’s poisoning. She also alerted Bożena Hager-Małecka, then director of the pediatric clinic at the Silesian Medical Academy. The latter, initially skeptical of the doctor’s hypotheses, tested the children at her clinic, who then tested positive for lead poisoning.
Reste pour Jolanta à effectuer des tests sur un grand nombre d’enfants habitant proche de la fonderie pour s’assurer que ceux-ci sont également intoxiqués, mais elle rencontre des difficultés énormes dans cette quête. Les parents sont dubitatifs et refusent de faire passer des tests à leurs enfants et les responsables de la fonderie ne vont pas l’aider dans ses démarc
Buildings of the “Uteman” zinc foundry (photo by Henryk Poddębski, 1927)
Source : https://sciencesforgirls.com
A fierce fight against injustice and indifference
Despite the pressure exerted by factory and regional management—who wanted to conceal Dr. Jolanta’s research to avoid factory closure, economic losses, and damaging the foundry’s image—Jolanta fought to continue her tests with the help of Professor Hager-Małecka, aiming to diagnose and remove as many children as possible from the foundry. Faced with threats from management, Jolanta remained steadfast and refused to be silenced, even when offered a better position in a more desirable district and the opportunity to pursue a doctorate, her long-held ambition. She chose to stay and dedicated herself to continuing to care for the children of the foundry.
Professor Hager-Małecka then offered to be his doctoral supervisor and encouraged him to continue his research on lead poisoning caused by the foundry. However, later, the Polish United Workers’ Party censored and destroyed all his extensive research and prevented him from publishing his thesis to avoid damaging the country’s image.
A health and environmental activist, a legend forever
Dr. Jolanta’s fight was not only medical, but also social and environmental. She helped the parents of sick children with the numerous procedures involved in hospitalizations and stays at the sanatorium. She also initiated the demolition of the houses near the foundry and the relocation of the residents.
Years later, Dr. Jolanta received numerous accolades for her work, including an honorary doctorate as symbolic redress for the thesis she was never able to defend. While her struggle was long, so too will the example of determination and resilience she embodied. Jolanta passed away in 2023, leaving behind the story of her fight, which inspired numerous articles and a Netflix series in 2026 titled Children of Lead.
Image taken from the Netflix series Children of Lead (2026).
Source : https://sciencesforgirls.com
Sources:
Jolanta Wadowska-Król, holder of USil Honorary Doctorate Degree, will be the focus of a Netflix series | Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach. https://us.edu.pl/en/dhc-us-jolanta-wadowska-krol-bohaterka-serialu-netflixa/ (2026).
Urban, K. Dr Wadowska-Król kontra śląska Katanga. SmogLab https://smoglab.pl/dr-wadowska-krol-dzis-jest-legenda/ (2026).
Bajorek, A. Herstoria Górnoślązaczki. Jolanta Wadowska-Król – szopienicka doktor ołowianych dzieci. Annales Universitatis Paedagogicae Cracoviensis | Studia Historicolitteraria 25, 549–562 (2025).
Zaremba, J. Kim była dr Jolanta Wadowska-Król? Lekarka ujawniła tragedię ‘ołowianych dzieci’. Polskie Radio 24
