title: Cadmium levels in a representative sample of the Spanish adult population: The BIOAMBIENT.ES project.
abstract: Urinary cadmium levels (U-Cd) were measured in 1770 adults (aged 18-65 years) as a representative sample of the Spanish workforce. The geometric mean (GM) was 0.28 μg/l with 95% CI: 0.27-0.32 μg/l (GM: 0.20 μg/g 95% CI: 0.18-022 μg/g creatinine). The 95% percentile was 1.03 μg/l. U-Cd increased with age, with women showing higher U-Cd than men (p<0.001; 0.24 μg/g vs 0.17 μg/g). A multivariate analysis confirmed that sex, age and smoking habit significantly influence U-Cd. Smoking habit increases U-Cd by ∼90% per 10 years of age, almost twice the increase observed for non-smoking. Female smokers had 85% higher U-Cd than non-smokers, whereas the corresponding value for male smokers and non-smokers was 45%. No regional differences were observed with respect to the national reference level. The Spanish population studied here exhibits similar urinary cadmium levels to its European counterparts in Germany and slightly lower levels than in France, the Czech Republic, Italy and the United Kingdom. This paper provides the first baseline information concerning cadmium exposure in the Spanish adult population on a national scale. As such, these findings will help us to establish reference levels, follow temporal trends and identify high-exposure groups, thereby enabling comparisons with other countries and contributing to the improvement of public health and environmental quality.
authors.affiliation: Environmental Toxicology, National Centre for Environmental Health (CNSA), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: López-Herranz
authors.affiliation: Environmental Toxicology, National Centre for Environmental Health (CNSA), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cutanda
authors.affiliation: Environmental Toxicology, National Centre for Environmental Health (CNSA), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Esteban
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pollán
authors.affiliation: Ibermutuamur, Ramirez de Arellano 4, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Calvo
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pérez-Gómez
authors.affiliation: Ibermutuamur, Ramirez de Arellano 4, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Victoria Cortes
authors.affiliation: Environmental Toxicology, National Centre for Environmental Health (CNSA), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Argelia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Castaño
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D002104:Cadmium / Q000652:urine*; D003404:Creatinine / Q000652:urine; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000652:urine*; D005260:Female; D005843:Geography; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D013030:Spain; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D002104:Cadmium; D003404:Creatinine