| Environmental Urban Lead Exposure and Blood Lead Levels in Children of Mexico City Isabelle Romieu,
1
Tania Carreon,
2
Lizbeth Lopez,
2
Eduardo Palazuelos,
3
Camilo Rios,
4
Yves Manuel,
5
and Mauricio Hernandez-Avila
2
(1) Centro Panamericano de Ecologia Humana y Salud, Organizacion Panamericana de la Salud, Mexico City, Mexico
(2)Centro de Investigaciones en Salud Poblacional, Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica, Cuernavaca, Mexico
(3) Hospital ABC, Mexico City, Mexico
(4) Instituto Nacional de Neurologia y Neurocirugia, Mexico City, Mexico
(5) Environment Ministry, Paris, France
Abstract
Lead contamination is now a leading public health problem in Mexico. However, there are few data on the lead content of various environmental sources, and little is known about the contribution of these sources to the total lead exposure in the population of children residing in Mexico City. We conducted a cross-sectional study in a random sample of 200 children younger than 5 years of age who livied in one of two areas of Mexico City. Environmental samples of floor, window, and street dust, paint, soil, water, and glazed ceramics were obtained from the participants' households, as well as blood samples and dirt from the hands of the children. Blood lead levels ranged from 1 to 31 µg/dl with a mean of 9.9 µg/dl (SD 5.8 µg/dl) . Forty-four percent of the children 18 months of age or older had blood lead levels exceeding 10 µg/dl. The lead content of environmental samples was low, except in glazed ceramic. The major predictors of blood lead levels were the lead content of the glazed ceramics used to prepare children's food, exposure to airborne lead due to vehicular emission, and the lead content of the dirt from the children's hands. We conclude that the major sources of lead exposure in Mexico City could be controlled by adequate public health programs to reinforce the use of unleaded gasoline and to encourage production and use of unleaded cookware instead of lead-glazed ceramics. Key words : glazed ceramics, lead, Mexico City, vehicular emissions. Environ Health Perspect 103:1036-1040 (1995)
Address correspondence to M. Hernandez-Avila, Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica, Av Universidad 655, Col Sta Maria Ahuacatitlan, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. This study was supported by funding from the Fundacion Mexicana para la Salud, the Consejo Nacional para la Ciencia y la Tecnologia, The American British Cowdray Hospital, The Consejo Asesor en Epidemiologia, the French Ministry of Environment, and the National Center for Environment, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We thank David Jacobs, Georgia Technical Institute, for training field personnel and standardizing procedures ; Tito Alexandre and all of the health professionals who participated in the field work ; Magdalene Rojas for the laboratory analysis of glazed ceramic samples ; the National of Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and the Wisconsin Occupational Health Laboratory for providing the filters for dust analysis ; and Jane A. Zanca for assistance in preparing the manuscript. Received 13 March 1995 ; accepted 3 August 1995.
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