Education, fish consumption, well water, chicken coops, and cooking fires: Using biogeochemistry and ethnography to study exposure of children from Yucatan, Mexico to metals and arsenic.
Around the world, the nocuous health effects of exposure to environmental contaminants, especially metals and Arsenic, are a growing health concern. This is especially the case in Mexico, where corruption and ineffective political administration are contributing to increasing deterioration in the environment. Importantly, shallow soils and the karstic nature of bedrock in Yucatan, Mexico make the subterranean aquifer especially susceptible to contamination because contaminates are carried to it with little resistance. Given these environmental conditions, we developed a multi/interdisciplinary project to evaluate the impact of metal and Arsenic pollution on a sample of 107 children, ages 6 to 9years, living in the urban areas of Progreso, Merida, and Ticul, in the State of Yucatan using urine and blood samples. In addition, ethnographic research was carried out in the homes of the children that participated in the study to identify potential exposure pathways. This research proved invaluable because the complexity of human social organization, lifestyles, and geographical patterning create an intricate array of exposure pathways that vary across social sectors and geographic space. In the following article, we use nonparametric univariate statistical analysis to reveal potential exposure pathways among sub-populations included in our sample. These analyses show that children from poor/marginal families tend to be exposed to Copper, Lead, and Nickel; whereas, children, from wealthier families, tend to be exposed to Cadmium, Arsenic, and inorganic Copper (Copper Sulfate).
Unidad de Química Sisal, Facultad de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico.
Flor
F
Arcega-Cabrera
Departamento de Ecología Humana, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional - Unidad Mérida, Mexico. Electronic address: fargher@mda.cinvestav.mx.
Lane F
LF
Fargher
D001151:Arsenic / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D002648:Child; D002947:Cities; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000032:analysis; D004522:Educational Status; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D005260:Female; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D060587:Groundwater / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D008800:Mexico; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
D060766:Drinking Water; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008670:Metals; D001151:Arsenic
Arsenic; Blood; Children; Ethnography; Metals; Urine