title: Do Glazed Ceramic Pots in a Mexico-US Border City Still Contain Lead?
abstract: In order to identify the presence of lead in glazed ceramic pots in a Mexico-US border city, 41 clay pots were sampled. The pots were purchased in several establishments located in different geographical areas of the city. The presence of lead was determined using LeadCheck Swabs. Most (58.5%) of the pots were from the State of Jalisco and 24.4% were of unknown origin. Only 4 pots did not contain varnish and were lead-negative. Thirty-seven (81.1%) of the glazed pots were lead positive. Among the lead-negative pots, 4 showed the label "this pot is lead-free." Thus, if we consider the remaining 33 glazed pots without the "Lead-Free" label, 90.9% were lead-positive and only 9.1% were lead-negative. We also found that earthenware glazed utensils without the "Lead-Free" label were 1.6 times more likely to contain lead (OR: 1.6, 95% CI 1.0-2.5), P = 0.003. We concluded that lead was detected in almost all acquired food containers. Government interventions in Mexico have focused on training manufacturers to make lead-free glazed ceramics but it has been difficult to eradicate this practice. Educational interventions to make and acquire lead-free glazed ceramics should be targeted to both sellers and buyers.
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Psychology, Autonomous University of Baja California, 14418 Calzada Tecnologico, 22390 Tijuana, BCN, Mexico.
authors.forename: Ana M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Valles-Medina
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Psychology, Autonomous University of Baja California, 14418 Calzada Tecnologico, 22390 Tijuana, BCN, Mexico.
authors.forename: Angel I
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-9894-6862
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Osuna-Leal
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Psychology, Autonomous University of Baja California, 14418 Calzada Tecnologico, 22390 Tijuana, BCN, Mexico.
authors.forename: Maria Elena
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Martinez-Cervantes
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Psychology, Autonomous University of Baja California, 14418 Calzada Tecnologico, 22390 Tijuana, BCN, Mexico.
authors.forename: Maria Carmen
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Castillo-Fregoso
authors.affiliation: MSN/FNP Program, United States University, 830 Bay Boulevard, Chula Vista, CA 91911, USA.
authors.forename: Martha
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8690-5622
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vazquez-Erlbeck
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, San Diego State University, 5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA 92182, USA.
authors.forename: Alfonso
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-8201-4040
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rodriguez-Lainz