Sidestream tobacco smoke as the main predictor of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were measured in mainstream and sidestream tobacco smoke from 14 commercial brands of cigarettes purchased in Italy during 2001-2002. The PAHs detected in smoke and analysed with HPLC and a fluorimetric detector were: fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo[a]anthracene, chrysene, benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[b] fluoranthene, benzo[k] fluoranthene, benzo[g,h,i]perylene and dibenzo[a,h]anthracene. The PAH levels in mainstream smoke from different cigarette brands obtained using an official smoking machine varied by about threefold (from 118 to 374 ng per cigarette for total PAHs and from 23.5 to 100 ng per cigarette for carcinogenic PAHs). Total PAH levels in mainstream smoke were correlated with tar content (r = 0.615, P < 0.05, n = 14). Total PAH content in sidestream smoke, measured by collection of all the smoke produced by a lit cigarette in a glass chamber, was about tenfold higher compared with mainstream smoke. The PAH content in sidestream smoke was relatively uniform (2.3-3.9 and 0.49-1.21 micro g per cigarette for total and carcinogenic PAHs, respectively) and was not correlated with tar content. These results indicate that cigarette manufacturing and filter characteristics influence the PAH composition of mainstream smoke, but have no effect on the PAH content in sidestream smoke, which is the main determinant of smokers' and non-smokers' exposure to PAHs in environmental tobacco smoke.

Smoking during pregnancy is associated with higher dietary intake of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and poor diet quality

“…Estimates of daily intake of both BaP (0?19 mg/d) and total PAH (9?28 mg/d) in this population of pregnant women were in a range comparable to levels previously reported in Spain (13,14,17) and other European countries (3,(24)(25)(26) . For example, our estimates of dietary BaP (3,13,14,17,(24)(25)(26)(27) .…”

“…For example, our estimates of dietary BaP (3,13,14,17,(24)(25)(26)(27) . Such differences could be explained by disparities in dietary habits or the populations studied (all adults, adult women v. pregnant women), but may also be due to differences in the methods used to assess dietary intake or estimates of PAH concentrations.…”

“…Among these compounds, benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is best known and has been widely used as a marker of exposure and to analyse the health effects of carcinogenic PAH in food (2) . Several studies have shown that both active and passive tobacco smoke are major sources of exposure to PAH (3,4) . Other than tobacco smoke, diet is the main source of human exposure to PAH in the non-occupationally exposed populations (1,5,6) .…”

Involuntary Tobacco Smoke Exposure and Urinary Levels of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the United States, 1999 to 2002

“…In addition, consistent with our findings in children, Tsai et al (53) reported an average 9.6% increase in urinary 1-OHPyr in preschool children per one cigarette smoked by the child's father. The higher concentrations of urinary PAH metabolites in nonsmokers who are involuntary exposed to tobacco smoke compared with unexposed can be related to high PAH levels in the sidestream fraction of tobacco smoke, the main fraction to which nonsmokers are exposed (54)(55)(56).…”

In vitro assessment of reproductive toxicity of cigarette smoke and deleterious consequences of maternal exposure to its constituents

“…For examples, the growth of rat follicles cultured in vitro was impeded by the presence of B[a]P (Lodovici et al, 2004;Neal et al, 2007). Moreover, administration of this toxicant signifi cantly reduced follicle diameter and attenuated FSH stimulated growth in a dose-dependent manner.…”