title: Number of Persistent Organic Pollutants Detected at High Concentrations in Blood Samples of the United States Population.
abstract: Human exposure to environmental chemicals as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is usually assessed considering each pollutant individually, with little attention to concentrations of mixtures in individuals or social groups. Yet, it may be relatively common for humans to have low and high concentrations of numerous POPs. The study objectives were to analyze the number of POPs detected per person at high concentrations in the U.S. population, and the associations between such type of indicators and socioeconomic factors as gender, race / ethnicity, education, and poverty level. From 91 POPs analyzed in serum samples of 4,739 individuals in three subsamples of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003-2004 (the last period with valid updated individual data for the compounds considered in the present study), we computed the number of POPs whose serum concentrations were above selected cutoff points. POPs included were 13 organochlorine compounds (OCs), 10 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), the polybrominated biphenyl (PBB) 153, 38 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 17 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/Fs), and 12 perfluorinated compounds (PFCs). Over 13% of participants had ≥10 of the 37 most detected POPs each at a concentration in the top decile (P90). Over 30% of subjects with total toxic equivalency (TEQ) ≥P75, had ≥10 of 24 POPs not included in TEQ calculations at concentrations ≥P90. Compared to non-Hispanic whites, the adjusted odds ratio of having ≥10 of the 37 POPs at P90 was 9.2 for non-Hispanic blacks and 0.18 for Mexican Americans. Poverty, body mass index, age, and gender were also independently associated with having ≥10 POPs in the top decile. More than one tenth of the US population may have ≥10 POPs each at concentrations in the top decile. Such pattern is nine times more frequent in Non-Hispanic blacks and four times less frequent in Mexican Americans than in non-Hispanic whites.
authors: Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.
authors: José
authors: J
authors: Pumarega
authors: Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|School of Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Magda
authors: M
authors: Gasull
authors: Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea.
authors: Duk-Hee
authors: DH
authors: Lee
authors: Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|School of Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Tomàs
authors: T
authors: López
authors: Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain.|CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain.|School of Medicine, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
authors: Miquel
authors: M
authors: Porta
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000097:blood*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000097:blood; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D016017:Odds Ratio; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000097:blood*; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls / Q000097:blood; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000097:blood; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000097:blood; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; D009930:Organic Chemicals; D011075:Polybrominated Biphenyls; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls