Cadmium and Lead Levels in Blood and Arsenic Levels in Urine among Schoolchildren Living in Contaminated Glassworks Areas, Sweden

Abstract

The Kingdom of Crystal, an area in southern Sweden famous for its many glassworks, is historically heavily burdened by pollution from this industry. Glass crust containing cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and arsenic (As) has been deposited around the area and used as filling. The purpose of this study was to monitor whether the high levels of metals in the contaminated soil were reflected in blood and urine among school children in this area. Blood and urine samples were collected from 87 children in 2017. The levels of cadmium (Cd-B) and lead (Pb-B) found in blood were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The speciation of As in urine (As-U) was performed by ion chromatography. The geometric mean of Cd-B and Pb-B among the children were 0.09 μg/L and 9.9 μg/L respectively. The geometric mean of inorganic As (AsIII and AsV) with metabolites in urine was 6.1 μg/L and 6.94 μg/g creatinine. Children in the study area had blood levels of Pb and Cd that correspond to levels generally found in Swedish children. The levels of inorganic As and its metabolites in urine were low and in the same magnitude as other children in Europe and the U.S.

Potential of total‐reflection X‐ray spectrometry for multielement analysis of biological samples using dilution or suspension sample preparation techniques

“…These values are not adequate to monitor these potentially toxic metals in biological fluids and are significantly higher compared to the values obtained in similar sample matrices using ICP‐MS. [ 24 ] Therefore, despite the fact that dilution + TXRF analysis can be a simple, fast and cost‐effective approach to monitor minor and trace elements in biological fluids, more sophisticated sample treatments (i.e., digestion followed by a pre‐concentration step) or more sensitive techniques such as ICP‐MS are required for the determination of other potentially toxic metals that are present at lower concentrations. [ 25,26 ]…”

“…The calculated limits of detection were in the range of 0.05-0.3 mg/kg (Cd) and 0.07-0.2 mg/kg (Pb), respectively. These values are not adequate to monitor these potentially toxic metals in biological fluids and are significantly higher compared to the values obtained in similar sample matrices using ICP-MS. [24] Therefore, despite the fact that dilution + TXRF analysis can be a simple, fast and cost-effective approach to monitor minor and trace elements in biological fluids, more sophisticated sample treatments (i.e., digestion followed by a pre-concentration step) or more sensitive techniques such as ICP-MS are required for the determination of other potentially toxic metals that are present at lower concentrations. [25,26] An additional advantage of TXRF compared to other atomic techniques such as ICP-MS is the possibility of performing quantitative analysis without the need for external calibration.…”

Distribution of blood lead and cadmium levels in healthy children aged 0 to 18 years and analysis of related influencing factors in Henan, China: data findings from 2017 to 2022

“…Most of the available studies on BLLs and BCLs in children have focused on areas with Pb and Cd contamination [ 19 , 20 ]. Alternatively, studies have been conducted on non-healthy children (usually a group of children with certain diseases) [ 21 ], or have monitored the results of the survey only for a certain age group [ 16 – 18 ].…”

Tannic Acid and Tea Prevents the Accumulation of Lead and Cadmium in the Lungs, Heart and Brain of Adolescent Male Wistar Rats—Possible Therapeutic Option

“…The distribution of Pb and Cd, depends primarily on their ability to penetrate biological membranes and to some extent on the affinity with the specific structure of the organism [ 7 ]. Resorption depends on the form of Pb and Cd, metabolic activity of the organism, age and physiology [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ].…”