title: Cadmium Concentration in Mother's Blood, Milk, and Newborn's Blood and Its Correlation with Fatty Acids, Anthropometric Characteristics, and Mother's Smoking Status.
abstract: The aim of this study was to determine cadmium concentration in mothers' blood, milk, and newborns' blood from Szczecin (Poland) as a result of environmental cadmium exposure and evaluate the correlation (1) between cadmium levels in analyzed matrices, (2) between cadmium and fatty acids in those matrices, and (3) between cadmium and some selected personal variables, such as anthropometric characteristics, mothers' smoking status, and fruit and fish consumption by mothers. The concentration of cadmium in whole blood and milk of mothers and in the umbilical cord blood of newborns was determined by atomic absorption spectrometry with graphite furnace atomization and Zeeman correction. The fatty acid concentrations were determined by gas chromatography in our previous study. The mean concentrations of cadmium in maternal blood, newborn's blood, and breast milk were 0.61 ± 0.62 μg/L, 0.05 ± 0.04 μg/L, and 0.11 ± 0.07 μg/L, respectively, and differed significantly between analyzed matrices. Cadmium concentrations in the umbilical cord blood were 15 % (range 0-83 %) of the concentration in maternal blood, whereas cadmium concentrations in breast milk constituted 35 % (range 3-142 %) of the concentration in mothers' blood. No correlation was found between cadmium levels in three analyzed matrices. The correlation analysis revealed significant low positive correlation between maternal blood cadmium concentrations and concentrations of elaidic, oleic, and cis-vaccenic acids in mothers' milk (correlation coefficients 0.30, 0.32, and 0.31, respectively). Mothers' blood cadmium correlated with mothers' age (r = -0.26, p = 0.03), maternal smoking before pregnancy (r = 0.55, p < 0.000), maternal smoking during pregnancy (r = 0.58, p < 0.000), and fruit consumption by mothers after delivery (r = -0.44, p = 0.003). Mothers' height was the only variable that correlated significantly with breast milk cadmium levels. Newborns' blood cadmium concentrations correlated significantly with mothers' height (r = 0.28, p = 0.02), newborns' birth weight (r = 0.26, p = 0.03), maternal smoking during pregnancy (r = 0.24, p = 0.048), and fish consumption by mothers after delivery (r = 0.37, p = 0.02). The concentrations of cadmium in Polish mother-newborn pairs are among the lowest in Europe and within the norms established by different institutions. The results of our study confirm the existence of effective partial barriers (such as the placenta and mammary gland) restricting cadmium passage from mother to newborn. The significant positive correlations between maternal blood Cd and concentrations of oleic, elaidic, and cis-vaccenic acids in breast milk might suggest the increased cadmium toxicity to infant, taking into consideration even low cadmium passage to milk. Maternal smoking during pregnancy increases both maternal and newborn's blood cadmium level. Promotion of nonsmoking among pregnant women could substantially reduce prenatal and neonatal exposure to cadmium. Moreover, the results of our study point to the need of establishing complex biomonitoring of cadmium in mother-infant pairs in order to better protect children from this toxic and carcinogenic metal exposure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Pomeranian Medical University, Powstańców Wlkp. 72 Str., 70-111, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Olszowski
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Medical Chemistry, Pomeranian Medical University, Powstańców Wlkp. 72 Str., 70-111, Szczecin, Poland. ika@sci.pam.szczecin.pl.
authors.forename: Irena
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Baranowska-Bosiacka
authors.affiliation: Department of Vertebrate Zoology and Anthropology, University of Szczecin, Wąska 13 Str., 71-415, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rębacz-Maron
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Human Nutrition, Pomeranian Medical University, Broniewskiego 24 Str., 71-460, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Izabela
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gutowska
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Human Nutrition, Pomeranian Medical University, Broniewskiego 24 Str., 71-460, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Dominika
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jamioł
authors.affiliation: Institute of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, Kościelna 13 Str., 41-200, Sosnowiec, Poland.
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Prokopowicz
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Medical Chemistry, Pomeranian Medical University, Powstańców Wlkp. 72 Str., 70-111, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goschorska
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Medical Chemistry, Pomeranian Medical University, Powstańców Wlkp. 72 Str., 70-111, Szczecin, Poland.
authors.forename: Dariusz
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chlubek
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002104:Cadmium / Q000097:blood*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000378:metabolism*; D011044:Poland; D012907:Smoking / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D002104:Cadmium
keywords: Anthropometry; Cadmium; Fatty acids; Mother-newborn pairs; Smoking habits