title: Demographic and dietary predictors of urinary bisphenol A concentrations in adults in Israel.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To date, there is scarce data on levels of exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) in the general population in Israel and the region. The goal of the current study was to measure urinary levels of BPA in the general adult population in Israel and to determine the demographic and dietary predictors of exposure.
  
  
  METHODS
  We recruited 249 individuals (ages 20-74) from five different regions in Israel. We collected urine samples and questionnaire data including detailed dietary data and analyzed urine samples for BPA concentrations.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Eighty nine percent of the study population had urinary BPA concentrations equal to or above the level of quantification (0.3 μg/L). Median creatinine adjusted BPA urinary concentrations in the study population (2.3 μg/g) were slightly higher than those reported for the general population in the US (1.76 μg/g) and Canada (1.47 μg/g), and were comparable to those reported for the general population in Belgium (2.25 μg/g) and Korea (2.09 μg/g). BPA concentrations were higher in Jews compared to Arab and Druze (prevalence ratio (PR)=2.34; 95%CI 1.56-3.49), in individuals with higher education (PR=1.70, 1.11-2.62), in individuals consuming mushrooms (PR=2.08, 1.07-4.05), and in smokers (PR=1.43, 1.00-2.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found that the general adult population in Israel is widely exposed to BPA. Our findings on higher BPA levels in Jews compared to Arabs and Druze and in individuals with higher education highlights the fact that predictors of BPA exposure vary across populations.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Services, Ministry of Health, Israel. Electronic address: tamar.berman@moh.health.gov.il.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Berman
authors.affiliation: Public Health Services, Ministry of Health, Israel.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goldsmith
authors.affiliation: Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine of the University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Göen
authors.affiliation: Public Health Services, Ministry of Health, Israel.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Spungen
authors.affiliation: Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Novack
authors.affiliation: Braun School of Public Health, Hebrew University-Hadassah, Israel.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.affiliation: Bar Ilan University, Israel.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Amitai
authors.affiliation: Israel Center for Disease Control, Ministry of Health, Israel.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shohat
authors.affiliation: Public Health Services, Ministry of Health, Israel; Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Grotto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018912:Arabs; D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds / Q000652:urine*; D004032:Diet; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000652:urine*; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D007585:Jews; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010636:Phenols / Q000652:urine*; D055815:Young Adult; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds
chemical_list: D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010636:Phenols; C006780:bisphenol A; D000098826:Bisphenol A Compounds
keywords: Biomonitoring; Bisphenol A; Exposure; Population