Estimation of Polish cigarettes contamination with cadmium and lead, and exposure to these metals via smoking

Abstract

To estimate exposure to cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) through cigarette smoking, the concentrations of both metals in the blood or/and urine of smokers (20 cigarettes or more per day for 10 years or longer) and their non-smoking counterparts inhabiting an environmentally unpolluted area (Bialystok, Poland) were evaluated, as well as Cd and Pb contents in the cigarette brands (produced in Poland) smoked by the participants, including intact cigarettes, pre-smoking (tobacco, paper and filter) and post-smoking (butt, ash and smoke) cigarette components. Blood and urinary Cd concentrations in the smokers have been already reported by us to be 2-4 times higher than in the non-smokers (Galazyn-Sidorczuk et al. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 13 (Suppl.1):91-95, 2004). All the other measurements are the subject of the present paper. Pb concentration in the blood of the cigarette smokers (52.12 +/- 15.51 microg l(-1)) was higher by 29% than in the non-smokers (40.42 +/- 11.19 microg l(-1)). The mean Cd and Pb contents in the cigarettes were 0.6801 +/- 0.1765 and 0.6853 +/- 0.0746 microg per cigarette, respectively. Under cigarette burning, performed using a machine for self-acting burning, on average 33% of Cd and 11% of Pb present in the whole cigarette was released into the smoke. For Cd, unlike Pb, there was a high positive correlation between the metal content in cigarettes and tobacco and its release into the smoke. Moreover, the subjects smoking cigarettes containing the highest Cd amount had higher blood Cd concentration than smokers of other cigarette brands. The results give clear evidence that in the case of inhabitants of areas unpolluted with Cd and Pb habitual cigarette smoking, due to tobacco contamination, creates a serious source of chronic exposure to these metals, especially to Cd.

Determinants of lead exposure in children on the outskirts of Salvador, Brazil

“…Galazyn-Sidorczuk et al (2008) evaluated levels of lead in several brands of cigarette, found concentrations of lead ranging from 0.69 ± 0.07 μg/cigarette and set the amount of Pb inhaled could reach 0.208 to 1.033 μg. Schroijen et al (2008) in studies of exposure to pollutants with adolescents living in areas around waste incinerators, showed increased body burden of several environmental contaminants, among them Pb, corroborating the findings of this study that the exposure to smoke from the burning of household waste is an important factor for the exposure of children to the metal, besides the possibility of exposure to other contaminants present in the smoke generated during this waste disposal habit.…”

Smoking

“…Cigarette smokers are exposed to significant amounts of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) (54), which accumulate in kidney tissue more than in any other organ and are toxic at very low dosages (55). According to studies from Egypt, smoking has toxic effects on tubular cells, which are synergistic to occupational Pb (56), mercury (57), and silica (58) exposure.…”

Determination of Lead and Arsenic in Tobacco and Cigarettes: an Important Issue of Public Health

“…It is observed that contents of lead (7)(8)(9) and arsenic (10-12) in biological samples of human population are much higher in smokers than those in non-smokers.…”