Blood cadmium by race/hispanic origin: The role of smoking

Abstract

Background There have been increasing concerns over health effects of low level exposure to cadmium, especially those on bones and kidneys. Objective To explore how age-adjusted geometric means of blood cadmium in adults varied by race/Hispanic origin, sex, and smoking status among U.S. adults and the extent to which the difference in blood cadmium by race/Hispanic origin and sex may be explained by intensity of smoking, a known major source of cadmium exposure. Methods Our sample included 7,368 adults from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011-2014. With direct age adjustment, geometric means of blood cadmium and number of cigarettes smoked per day were estimated for subgroups defined by race/Hispanic origin, smoking status, and sex using interval regression, which allows mean estimation in the presence of left- and right-censoring. Results Among never and former smoking men and women, blood cadmium tended to be higher for non-Hispanic Asian adults than adults of other race/Hispanic origin. Among current smokers, who generally had higher blood cadmium than never and former smokers, non-Hispanic white, black, and Asian adults had similarly elevated blood cadmium compared to Hispanic adults. A separate analysis revealed that non-Hispanic white adults tended to have the highest smoking intensity regardless of sex, than adults of the other race/Hispanic origin groups. Conclusions The observed pattern provided evidence for smoking as a major source of cadmium exposure, yet factors other than smoking also appeared to contribute to higher blood cadmium of non-Hispanic Asian adults.

Predictors of mercury, lead, cadmium and antimony status in Norwegian never-pregnant women of fertile age

“…We found a median Cd value of 1.53 nmol/L, which is low compared to other countries ( Table 5 ). As smoking has been associated with higher levels of Cd [ 25 ], this finding might be related to a low prevalence of smokers in our population. The use of snuff is becoming increasingly popular in Norway [ 56 ], but studies on how use of smokeless tobacco affect toxic element status are difficult to find [ 57 ].…”

“…As the age for giving birth to the first child is increasing, the burden of toxic elements in never-pregnant women of fertile age is of interest. We have evaluated the Hg, Pb, Cd and Sb status in healthy, never-pregnant Norwegian women aged of fertile age (18–40 years) and related this to age and life style factors associated with toxic trace element exposure [ 25 – 30 ].…”

Prenatal epigenetics diets play protective roles against environmental pollution

“…The consumption of contaminated water or food is a common source of chronic, but low-level arsenic and cadmium exposure [182, 183]. Pesticide manufacturing is another common source of arsenic exposure [184], and smokers tend to have higher cadmium exposure [185]. Lead is often found in lead-contaminated house dust, residential soil, lead-based paints, glazed food containers, and drinking water [186, 187].…”

Placing prostate cancer disparities within a psychosocial context: challenges and opportunities for future research

“…Landrine and Corral suggest that higher environmental exposures to toxins and residence in poorer built environments in segregated neighborhoods may contribute to racial disparities in cancer [56]. For instance, some preliminary evidence hint at higher traces in the blood of the heavy metal cadmium -a risk factor for prostate cancer [57]-among Blacks compared to Whites [58,59]. However, the two studies focusing on segregation and prostate cancer did not consider variations in environmental toxins and access to care as potential mediators.…”