No abstract

There has been a notable promotion of fish consumption based on the importance of fish as a part of a healthy diet. However, the balance between health benefits and risks, due to the intake of chemical contaminants, is not well characterized. In the present study, we analyzed data on blood mercury level and dietary intakes of 1,983 urban children aged 7 to 8 year in Korea. Dietary intakes were assessed by a semi‐quantitative food frequency questionnaire and blood mercury level was analyzed by the cold vapor generation method. A cut of point of 2μ/L of blood mercury level was used to categorize children into high (n = 934) and low (n = 1,049) groups. After adjusting for possible confounding variables, intakes of animal iron, zinc, and n3‐fatty acids were positively associated with high blood mercury level. In food group analyses, more frequent consumptions of white and blue fishes, shell fishes, processed and fermented fishes were observed in the high mercury group than the low mercury group. These results showed blood mercury level is strongly associated with fish consumption independent of type of fish. (Supported by a grant from the Ministry of Environment, Korea in 2006)