[Contribution of environmental lead exposure to blood lead level among infants based on IEUBK model]
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Published on: August 18, 2023
Bo Wang1, Dichu Shao, Zhanghua Xiang
1School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Insights
Environmental lead exposure is not the primary cause of elevated infant blood lead levels. Prenatal exposure and other sources, like food, are more significant contributors to infant lead intake.
Area of Science:
- Environmental health
- Toxicology
- Pediatric health
Context:
- Infant blood lead levels are a significant public health concern.
- Prenatal lead exposure and environmental contamination are potential contributors.
- Understanding lead exposure pathways is crucial for intervention.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the influence of environmental lead exposure on infant blood lead.
- To differentiate contributions of environmental and prenatal lead exposure using the IEUBK model.
- To identify major sources of lead intake in infants.
Summary:
- A prospective study measured maternal and infant blood lead levels, alongside environmental lead concentrations (soil, air, water).
- The Integrated Exposure Uptake Biokinetic (IEUBK) model estimated environmental lead's contribution to infant blood lead at 22.7%.
- Maternal blood lead levels during late pregnancy were 40.3 ± 3.7 µg/L, and infant levels at six months were 54.7 ± 6.7 µg/L.
Impact:
- Environmental lead contamination in the studied rural area is unlikely the main driver of elevated infant blood lead.
- Food lead exposure may be a more significant source of lead intake for infants.
- Future research and interventions should focus on non-environmental lead sources.
Objective:
To evaluate the influence of environmental lead exposure on infant's blood lead through integrated exposure uptake biokinetic model for lead in children (IEUBK) model, based on environmental lead and prenatal lead exposure.
Methods:
The data is from a prospective study conducted among pregnant women during 2005 -2007. Blood lead of the pregnant women in the late pregnancy, environmental lead values including lead concentration in soil, air and drink-water were measured. Moreover, the blood lead concentrations of infants were measured as well.
Results:
Infants were exposed to lead from the pregnant women during the pregnancy, and in the late pregnancy the geometric mean blood lead of pregnant women was (40.3 +/- 3.7) microg/L. The geometric mean blood lead concentration of six-month old infants was (54.7 +/- 6.7) microg/L and there were 17.3% infants whose blood lead concentration were above 100 microg/L. Lead in soil,atmosphere and drink-water were 45.57 mg/kg, 0.023 microg/m3 and 3.25 microg/L respectively. While based on the calculation of the IEUBK model, the value attributed to environmental lead exposure was 12.4 microg/L, accounting for 22.7% of the real blood lead level.
Conclusion:
The results indicated that environmental lead contamination in the rural area might not be the main reason of elevation in blood lead among infants, other lead resources such as food lead exposure might be the major sources for the intake of lead among infants and should be paid more attentions in future.
