Exposure to Environmental Pollutants in Perinatology

The urban population is exposed to different sources of chemical pollutants, such as food, industrialization, heavy car traffic, water, air pollution and the use of cosmetics, in small daily doses and continuously and gradually. Exposure to environmental pollutants during pregnancy has been linked to complications for both the mothers and their babies. The aim of this study was to investigate food as a source of exposure to chemical pollutants in a group of pregnant women who participated in the pilot PIPA project study (Childhood and Environmental Pollutant Project). This is a cross-sectional study comprising 139 pregnant women recruited in the 3rd trimester that analyzed blood and urine to measure pollutant concentrations and interviewed the population to collect information on exposure sources. The exposure variables were kitchen utensils, water source and food. The analyzed pollutants were lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, organochlorines, PCBs and perfluoroalkyl, measured in blood and pyrethroid metabolites (3BPA and 4FPBA) in urine.

In this study, higher consumption (≥3 times) resulted in higher concentrations of certain pollutants, with eggs containing more arsenic (p=0.038), grains (p=0.005) and beans (p=0.049), more cadmium, grains, more lead (p=0.020) and teas (p=0.042) and grains (p=0.029), more mercury. Lower rice consumption (up to 2-fold) resulted in higher lead concentrations (p=0.042)