What are the blood lead levels of children living in Latin America and the Caribbean?

Olympio, Kelly Polido Kaneshiro; Gonçalves, Cláudia Gaudência; Salles, Fernanda Junqueira; Ferreira, Ana Paula Sacone da Silva; Soares, Agnes; Buzalaf, Marília Afonso Rabelo; Cardoso, Maria Regina Alves; Bechara, Etelvino José Henriques

doi:10.1016/j.envint.2016.12.022

Cited by 46 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…Moreover, a national U.S. study (2016) covering the period of 2009–2015 showed that 3% of children younger than 6 years had BLC > 5 μg/dL [ 17 ]. In contrast, the BLC of children in Latin America and Caribbean countries between 2000 and 2014 ranged from 25 to 43.2 μg/dL [ 18 ], which was much higher than our study. Another study evaluated 28,427 refugee children in the U.S. between 2010 and 2014 (The top 5 overseas examination countries by arrivals were Thailand, Nepal, Malaysia, Iraq, Kenya) and reported an elevated BLC (> 5 μg/dL) in 19.3% of cases, which was higher than our study [ 16 ].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 89%

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Blood lead concentration and its associated factors in preschool children in eastern Iran: a cross-sectional study

et al. 2020

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Background Lead is a toxic metal that affects almost every organ in the body. Children are more susceptible to lead toxicity because they ingest non-food items (pica), have oral exploratory habits, absorb more substantial amounts of ingested lead compared to adults, and have a developing central nervous system. This study describes venous blood lead concentrations (BLC) in young children living in Birjand, Iran. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed in 2016 on children 1–7 years of age who were referred to healthcare centers in Birjand City. Demographic information was obtained, and their BLC was tested using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). Results Four hundred children were tested. Their mean age was 52.37 ± 23.77 months; their mean BLC was 2.49 ± 2.64 μg/dL (median 1.85 μg/dL). Thirty-two (8%) children had a BLC > 5 μg/dL. A logistic regression model revealed that per one unit of increase in age, the chance of an elevated BLC decreased by 3% (OR (95%CI): 0.97 (0.96–0.99), p < 0.01). The risks of an elevated BLC was 61% lower in girls compared to boys (OR (95%CI): 0.39 (0.17–0.92), p = 0.03). Further, per one rate of increase in the BMI, the chance of an elevated BLC was higher (OR (95%CI): 1.13 (1.02–1.24), p = 0.01). Children whose fathers were laborers had higher BLC than those with employee fathers (p = 0.01). Conclusion Of 400 children aged 1–7 years old living in Birjand, Iran, 8% had elevated BLC. BLC correlated with the child ‘s age, gender, body mass index, and father’s occupation.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 89%

“…Based on the results of this study, young age significantly increased the chance of high lead concentrations in children. In this regard, some other studies have reported similar results [ 15 – 18 ]. Previous studies also reported that the maximum blood lead concentration rise at the age of around 2 years [ 15 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 74%

Blood lead concentration and its associated factors in preschool children in eastern Iran: a cross-sectional study

et al. 2020

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“…Childhood lead (Pb 2+ ) intoxication is a public health problem of major proportion throughout the world (Dooyema et al, 2012;Li et al, 2014;Olympio et al, 2017;Raymond and Brown, 2016;Zhang et al, 2020). In the United States, public health policy implemented in the late 1970s to remove Pb 2+ from paint and gasoline was effective in markedly reducing the overall levels of Pb 2+ in blood of the general population and in particular in children (Lanphear et al, 2003;Pirkle et al, 1994;Pirkle et al, 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chronic Developmental Lead Exposure increases μ-Opiate Receptor Levels in the Adolescent Rat Brain

Albores-García

McGlothan

Bursac

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Opioid use and abuse has reached epidemic proportion in the United States resulting in a significant numbers of deaths due to overdose. While environmental factors are implicated in opioid addiction, less is known about the role of exposure to environmental pollutants on the brain opioid system. Human and preclinical studies have suggested an association between childhood lead (Pb 2+ ) intoxication and proclivity to substance abuse and delinquent behavior. Opioid receptors are involved in the biological effects of opioids and other drugs of abuse. In this study, we examine the effect of chronic developmental Pb 2+ exposure on µ-opioid receptor (MOR) levels in the rat brain using [ 3 H]-D-Ala2-MePhe4-Gly-ol5 enkephalin ([ 3 H]-DAMGO) quantitative receptor autoradiography.Our results indicate that chronic developmental Pb 2+ exposure increases the levels of [ 3 H]-DAMGO specific binding to MOR in several limbic regions of the brain in male and female rats during the pre-adolescence (PN14) and early-adolescence (PN28) period. These changes were less pronounced in late-adolescence (PN50) and adult (PN120) animals. Our findings are important because the pre-adolescence and early adolescence period is a time in which there is higher engagement in reward and drug seeking behaviors in humans.In summary, we show that chronic exposure to Pb 2+ an ubiquitous and well-known environmental contaminant and neurotoxicant, alters MOR levels in brain regions associated with addiction circuits in the adolescent period with important implications to opioid drug use and abuse.

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“…A recent meta-analysis included data from Mexico, but the studies were mostly of samples with point exposure sources (for example, smelters, occupational exposure) and included data only from cohort A from our study. Nonetheless, lead-glazed ceramics was identified as a source of exposure in most studies [ 25 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Children’s Blood Lead Concentrations from 1988 to 2015 in Mexico City: The Contribution of Lead in Air and Traditional Lead-Glazed Ceramics

Pantic

Tamayo‐Ortiz

Rosa-Parra

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Despite the removal of lead from gasoline in 1997, elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) > 5 µg/dL are still detectable in children living in Mexico City. The use of lead-glazed ceramics may explain these persistent exposure levels. Mexico lacks a national surveillance program for BLL, but temporal trends can be derived from epidemiological studies. With this approach, we leveraged a series of birth cohorts to report BLL trends from 1987 to 2002 and expanded our analysis to 2015. Data were from 1–5-year-old children from five Mexico City cohorts followed between 1988 and 2015. BLLs are reported on 1963 children, who contributed 4975 BLLs. We estimated the trend of mean BLL, which decreased from 15.7 µg/dL in 1988, to 7.8 µg/dL in 1998 (a year after the total ban of lead in gasoline), to 1.96 µg/dL in 2015. The proportion of BLL ≥ 5 µg/dL decreased from 92% (1988–1998) to 8% (2008–2015). The use of lead-glazed ceramics was associated with an 11% increase in BLLs throughout the study period. Replacing lead-based glazes in traditional ceramics may be the key to further reducing exposure, but this presents challenges, as it involves a cultural tradition deeply rooted in Mexico. In addition, the creation of a rigorous, standardized, and on-going surveillance program of BLL is necessary for identifying vulnerable populations.

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What are the blood lead levels of children living in Latin America and the Caribbean?

Cited by 46 publications

References 67 publications

Blood lead concentration and its associated factors in preschool children in eastern Iran: a cross-sectional study

Blood lead concentration and its associated factors in preschool children in eastern Iran: a cross-sectional study

Chronic Developmental Lead Exposure increases μ-Opiate Receptor Levels in the Adolescent Rat Brain

Children’s Blood Lead Concentrations from 1988 to 2015 in Mexico City: The Contribution of Lead in Air and Traditional Lead-Glazed Ceramics

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