title: Food intake survey of kindergarten children in Korea: Part 3 cadmium and lead burden.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was initiated to elucidate the extent of dietary exposure of children in Korea to two pollutant metals of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb). Possible urban-rural difference was also examined.
  
  
  METHODS
  Food duplicate and morning spot urine samples were collected from 108 children in 4 kindergartens (KG) (1 KG in Seoul and 3 KGs in Jeju Island), as reported in a previous publication. The samples were analyzed for Cd and Pb by ICP-MS.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cd and Pb in food duplicate and urine samples were distributed approximately log-normally. Geometric means for Cd and Pb in food duplicate samples were 12.4 and 5.8 μg/day, or 0.58 and 0.27 μg/kg body weight/day, respectively, and the values for Cd and Pb in urine (as observed, i.e., with no correction for urine density) were 0.91 and 1.64 μg/L, respectively. 2.41 and 0.30 μg/day of Cd and Pb (accounting for 19.5 and 5.1%) came from boiled rice, the staple food. The levels of Cd and Pb burden among the children in the present survey were essentially the same with the levels reported for children in Pusan. The reasons for difference in the rank in Cd-D and Cd-U among the 4 KGs need further study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The observed levels of Cd and Pb exposure were more or less similar to what were reported for children in Pusan. No apparent urban-rural difference could be detected.
authors.affiliation: Department of Childhood Education, Faculty of Human Sciences, Tohoku Bunkyo University, Yamagata, 990-2316, Japan.
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Eul-Sang
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yang-Sook
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.forename: Hye-Ran
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Chan-Seok
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: Haruo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakatsuka
authors.forename: Shinichiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shimbo
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ikeda
mesh_terms: D002104:Cadmium / Q000652:urine*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004435:Eating; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000652:urine*; D005260:Female; D005504:Food Analysis; D006801:Humans; D007854:Lead / Q000652:urine*; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population; D014505:Urban Population
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D002104:Cadmium; D007854:Lead