Dietary Predictors of Perfluorinated Chemicals: A Study from the Danish National Birth Cohort

Abstract

This study investigated the association between dietary variables and plasma levels of perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) among 1076 pregnant women. Diet was assessed at midpregnancy by a food-frequency questionnaire. Mean first trimester plasma PFOS and PFOA levels were 35.1 and 5.6 ng/mL respectively. PFOS levels were positively associated (p < 0.05) with intake of red meat, animal fats, and snacks (e.g., popcorn, potato chips), whereas intake of vegetables and poultry was inversely associated. The adjusted mean differences between the 75th and 25th intake percentiles were 4.3 ng/mL [95% CI: 2.1, 6.5] for red meat 3.4 ng/mL [95% CI: 1.2, 5.6] for animal fats, and 2.0 ng/mL [95% CI: 0.3, 3.6] for snacks. Similar but weaker associations were observed for PFOA. Furthermore, a comparison between women reporting low (< or =25th percentile) red meat and high (> or =75th percentile) vegetable intake and women reporting low vegetable and high red meat intake resulted in differences in plasma PFOS and PFOA concentrations equal to 31% and 18% of mean levels, respectively. Studies quantifying levels of perfluorinated compounds in food have suggested that diet could be an important route of human exposure. The observed associations in our study between dietary variables and maternal exposure further support that conclusion.

Consumption of Seafood, Serum Liver Enzymes, and Blood Levels of PFOS and PFOA in the Japanese Population

“…Two previous reports also reported that consumption of fish and shellfish was positively correlated with plasma or serum concentrations of PFOS in Norway 9,31) . In contrast, meat, but not fish, was a significant predictor of PFOS levels in plasma among pregnant Danish women 11) . The high bioaccumulative potential of PFOS in the food web 1) and high intake of seafood in Japan, Spain and Norway may explain these results.…”

“…Several reports have indicated that PFOS and PFOA were transferred into the human body mainly through fish intake 9,10) . On the other hand, research in Denmark showed positive associations between concentrations of PFOS in blood and consumption of red meat, animal fat and snacks, but not fish 11) . Few studies have investigated the factors associated with blood levels of PFOS and PFOA in Japan.…”

Characterisation of human exposure pathways to perfluorinated compounds — Comparing exposure estimates with biomarkers of exposure

“…In a study from Poland, Falandysz et al (2006) showed that individuals who reported a high intake of fish had higher concentrations of PFCs in their blood than those from who did not report high intake of fish. Results from Denmark showed positive associations between PFOS concentrations in serum and consumption of red meat, animal fat and snacks (Halldorsson et al 2008).…”

Perfluorinated compounds in milk, milk powder and yoghurt purchased from markets in China

“…In recent years, the concentrations of PFCs have been extensively measured and studied for human exposure and risk evaluation. Various PFCs have been detected in human blood and milk from North America [6,7], Europe [8,9] and Asia [10,11]. A study shows that both serum albumin proteins and -lactoglobulin proteins had a strong binding affinity for some PFCs [12].…”

“…In recent years, the levels of PFCs in a series of foodstuffs have been investigated in several countries such as the United Kingdom [15], Canada [13,16], Germany [9] and Spain [14]. Halldorsson et al [6] investigated the correlation between dietary variables and plasma levels of PFOS among 1076 pregnant women. The results show that the PFOS level has positive correlation with intakes of red meat, milk, animal fat, potatoes and snacks without the adjustment analyses for parity, smoking, maternal age, prepregnancy body mass index and socio-occupational status.…”