Arsenic contamination of ground water and its health impact on population of district of Nadia, West Bengal, India

Abstract

Background:The global health impact and disease burden due to chronic arsenic toxicity has not been well studied in West Bengal.Objective:To ascertain these, a scientific epidemiological study was carried out in a district of the state.Materials and Methods:Epidemiological study was carried out by house-to-house survey of arsenic affected villages in the district of Nadia. A stratified multi-stage design has been adopted for this survey for the selection of the participants. A total number of 2297 households of 37 arsenic affected villages in all the 17 blocks were surveyed in the district.Result:Out of 10469 participants examined, prevalence rate of arsenicosis was found to be 15.43%. Out of 0.84 million people suspected to be exposed to arsenic, 0.14 million people are estimated to be suffering from arsenicosis in the district. Highest level of arsenic in drinking water sources was found to be 1362 μg/l, and in 23% cases it was above 100 μg/l. Majority of the population living in the arsenic affected villages were of low socio-economic condition, inadequate education and were farmers or doing physical labour. Chronic lung disease was found in 207 (12.81%) subjects among cases and 69 (0.78%) in controls. Peripheral neuropathy was found in 257 (15.9%) cases and 136 (1.5%) controls.Conclusion:Large number of people in the district of Nadia are showing arsenical skin lesion. However, insufficient education, poverty, lack of awareness and ineffective health care support are major factors causing immense plight to severely arsenic affected people.

Assessment of toxic metals in groundwater and saliva in an arsenic affected area of West Bengal, India: A pilot scale study

“…Nadia is one of the districts of West Bengal, India where the arsenic concentration in groundwater is above the WHO guideline (10 mg L À 1 ) (Guha Mazumder et al, 2010). The study areas, Debagram and Chhoto-Itna are neighboring villages which are located in the northern part of the district (Fig.…”

“…The crisis in health of local communities stemming from the switch from surface water to groundwater for drinking, cooking and irrigation purposes has been well documented (Chowdhury et al, 2000;Guha Mazumder et al, 2010). The chronic intake of As is associated with a range of dermal, neural, cardiovascular, hematological, renal, endocrine and hepatic diseases along with increased risk of cancer of various organs (Rahman et al, 2001;Ahsan et al, 2006;Kapaj et al, 2006;Guha Mazumder et al, 2010).…”

Heavy Metal Contamination in Milk and Dairy Products

“…20 Çevresel arsenik maruziyetinin oldukça yük-sek olduğu Hindistan'ın Bengal bölgesinde yapı-lan bir çalışmada, içme sularının %77'sinin 0,1 mg/l'nin üzerinde arsenik seviyesine sahip olduğu belirlenmiştir. 45 Bu çalışmada, açıkta satılan ürün-lerden elde edilen arsenik miktarı yukarıda bahsedilen bölgenin ürünlerinden elde edilen arsenik miktarı ile benzerdir. Açıkta satılan süt ve süt ürünleri tüketenlerin ciddi arsenik maruziyeti yaşamalarının olası olduğunu anlatan bu durum oldukça düşündürücüdür.…”

Nutritional deficiency and arsenical manifestations: a perspective study in an arsenic-endemic region of West Bengal, India

“…A village-level sampling frame was created from all villages within these two blocks which had at least one tube-well contaminated with arsenic at a level greater than 50 mg/l, as described previously (21) .…”