Also, does anything happen to the lead if you boil the water, or does it stay in there? We have an older house (50+ years) and I'm wondering if I should have the water tested or if I can just take some precautions to protect ourselves.

TIA -

I don't know about the Brita, but boiling water actually increases the concentration of chemicals in the water because it is pure water being boiled off, which leaves a higher ratio of chemicals to water left behind. That is how you get distilled water- boiling off the steam and cooling it back to water. Boiling water kill bacteria only.

Yes, brita removes lead. You can sometimes see if you have lead pipes just by looking, copper ones are copper (really!!) with green stains and lead is soft enough to scratch with a key and gray. check in the basement. ask neighbors. or, get a jar, run the water first thing in the am, the stuff sitting in the pipes, and pay the $30 for a lab analysis.

We do have lead pipes coming into the house from the street, and have managed to get dd's lead from 12 to 6 in about six months. (The main problem was really a chipping, lead-painted door.) Apparently, lead amounts in water from lead pipes are negligible if you only cook and drink from the cold water tap, and let the cold water run for a few minutes every morning. Even with lead pipes, the source of lead poisoning is usually lead dust from painted windows, chipped paint, or contaminated soil that gets tracked into the house. Brita does filter lead, but you should be careful to change the filter as recommended, because its performance declines with use. EPA has lots of info, and a great booklet that they give out.

Thanks everyone - the pipes in our actual house are not lead but I was worried about the city's plumbing, since it's an older neighborhood.