Seasonality and Children’s Blood Lead Levels: Developing a Predictive Model Using Climatic Variables and Blood Lead Data from Indianapolis, Indiana, Syracuse, New York, and New Orleans, Louisiana (USA)

Abstract

On a community basis, urban soil contains a potentially large reservoir of accumulated lead. This study was undertaken to explore the temporal relationship between pediatric blood lead (BPb), weather, soil moisture, and dust in Indianapolis, Indiana; Syracuse, New York; and New Orleans, Louisiana. The Indianapolis, Syracuse, and New Orleans pediatric BPb data were obtained from databases of 15,969, 14,467, and 2,295 screenings, respectively, collected between December 1999 and November 2002, January 1994 and March 1998, and January 1998 and May 2003, respectively. These average monthly child BPb levels were regressed against several independent variables: average monthly soil moisture, particulate matter < 10 μm in diameter (PM10), wind speed, and temperature. Of temporal variation in urban children’s BPb, 87% in Indianapolis (R2 = 0.87, p = 0.0004), 61% in Syracuse (R2 = 0.61, p = 0.0012), and 59% in New Orleans (R2 = 0.59, p = 0.0000078) are explained by these variables. A conceptual model of urban Pb poisoning is suggested: When temperature is high and evapotranspiration maximized, soil moisture decreases and soil dust is deposited. Under these combined weather conditions, Pb-enriched PM10 dust disperses in the urban environment and causes elevated Pb dust loading. Thus, seasonal variation of children’s Pb exposure is probably caused by inhalation and ingestion of Pb brought about by the effect of weather on soils and the resulting fluctuation in Pb loading.

Organochlorine and heavy metals in newborns: Results from the Flemish Environment and Health Survey (FLEHS 2002–2006)

“…Seasonal variations in blood Pb levels have been observed in venous blood of adults and children (Farias et al, 1996;Laidlaw et al, 2005). In venous blood of 513 pregnant women of Mexico City (where climate and nutrition are quite different from Belgium): higher levels were measured during fall and winter, compared to spring and summer (Farias et al, 1996).…”

Relationships of video assessments of touching and mouthing behaviors during outdoor play in urban residential yards to parental perceptions of child behaviors and blood lead levels

“…This window was selected to ensure that BLLs were obtained in seasons when children could be expected to be playing outdoors and to reduce variability due to seasonal influence on blood lead (Yiin et al, 2000;Laidlaw et al, 2005).…”

“…The study was performed during summer months and BLLs were limited to the months when the influence of the outdoor environment on BLL is expected to be highest (Yiin et al, 2000;Laidlaw et al, 2005). Outdoor play behaviors likely would vary if it was cold or rainy.…”

Use of simulated epithelial lung fluid in assessing the human health risk of Pb in urban street dust

“…It is noted that 12 of the sampled sites (Table 2) exceed the 'normal background concentration' (95th percentile) for Pb in urban soil of 820 mg/kg (in England) (DEFRA, 2012). The presence of high Pb content in urban street dust could pose an important exposure route through involuntary dust ingestion, often dependent upon climatic conditions (Laidlaw et al, 2005). In addition, the transfer of urban street dust into the workplace and domestic situation is also likely to be prevalent and totally involuntary via direct contact with footwear as well as through the deposition of airborne material such as on outer clothing and window sills (Campbell et al, 2003;Rich et al, 2002).…”