Estimated intake levels of methylmercury in children, childbearing age and pregnant women in a Mediterranean region, Murcia, Spain

Methylmercury (MeHg) is a bioaccumulable toxin in the trophic chain and a powerful neurotoxin during fetal and child development. Consumption of contaminated fish and shellfish is a principal environmental source of MeHg exposure. This study was designed to assess the Hg and estimated MeHg intake in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of pediatrics 2009-09, Vol.168 (9), p.1075-1080
Main Authors: Ortega-García, Juan Antonio, Rodriguez, Kristina, Calatayud, Marta, Martin, Marlene, Vélez, Dinoraz, Devesa, Vicenta, Sánchez-Alarcon, Mari Carmen, Torres Cantero, Alberto Manuel, Galindo-Cascales, Consuelo, Gil-Vázquez, Juana María, Sánchez-Sauco, Miguel Felipe, Sánchez-Solís, Manuel, Alfonso-Marsilla, Blas, Romero-Braquehais, Fernando
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Catchment Area (Health)
Child
Child, Preschool
Environmental health
Female
Fish
Fishes
Food additives
Food Contamination - statistics & numerical data
Food safety
General aspects
Hospitals
Humans
Infant
Medical sciences
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Metabolic diseases
Methylmercury Compounds - blood
Nutrition research
Original Paper
Pediatrics
Pregnancy
Public health
Questionnaires
Reference Values
Seafood
Shellfish
Spain - epidemiology
Surveys and Questionnaires
Toxicity
Womens health
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Summary:Methylmercury (MeHg) is a bioaccumulable toxin in the trophic chain and a powerful neurotoxin during fetal and child development. Consumption of contaminated fish and shellfish is a principal environmental source of MeHg exposure. This study was designed to assess the Hg and estimated MeHg intake in vulnerable groups of the Murcia region, a Mediterranean part of Spain, compared with international regulations. A validated food frequency questionnaire was used to assess seafood consumptions in 320 children younger than 10 years, 301 women of childbearing age, and 537 pregnant women. Hg concentrations were measured in the most consumed fish products by cold vapor generation–atomic fluorescence spectrometry. The weekly intake of MeHg (μg/kg bw/week) was 2.60 (95% CI = 2.10–3.10) in children 1–5 years, 2.65 (95% CI = 2.26–3.03) in children 6–10 years, 0.98 (95% CI = 0.89–1.07) in women of childbearing age, and 0.88 (95% CI = 0.81–0.95) in pregnant women. The main exposure to MeHg, especially in young children, is related to intake of bluefin tuna and swordfish. Fifty-four percent of children aged 1–10 years, 10% of pregnant women, and 15% of women of childbearing age exceed the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives provisional tolerable weekly intake of MeHg. In the Murcia region, where fish is a central component of the diet, the focus should be on educating vulnerable populations to reorient fish consumption in order to lower the amount of Hg incorporated with the diet as well as to reduce Hg emissions into the environment.
ISSN:0340-6199
1432-1076
DOI:10.1007/s00431-008-0890-z