Toxic metal levels in children residing in a smelting craft village in Vietnam: a pilot biomonitoring study (2015)
Undergraduates: Sloane Miller, Alison P. Sanders Viet Nguyen, Jonathon B. Kotch
Faculty Advisor: Rebecca Fry
Department: Health Environmental Sciences & Engineering
In Vietnam, environmental pollution caused by small-scale domestic smelting of automobile batteries into lead ingot is a growing concern. Despite the concern of toxic metal exposure in smelting craft villages, biomonitoring among susceptible populations, such as children, has not been conducted. The aim of this study was to determine the body burden of toxic metals in children residing in a smelting craft village. Twenty children from Nghia Lo were selected for capillary whole blood and toenail biomonitoring. Whole blood lead levels (BLLs) and toenail levels of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, manganese, and mercury were measured. The findings show that all 20 children had detectable BLLs that exceeded the CDC guideline level of 5 ¿¿g/dL. Eighty percent of tested subjects had BLLs higher than 10 ¿¿g/dL. Five children had BLLs greater than 45 ¿¿g/dL, the level of recommended medical intervention. In addition to blood lead, all of the children had detectable levels of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, manganese, and mercury in toenail samples, with notably high average toenail lead, manganese, and mercury levels. Linear regression showed that reducing the distance to the nearest active smelter by half was associated with a 116% increase in BLL (p < 0.05). The results suggest that children in battery recycling and smelting craft villages in Vietnam are co-exposed to toxic metals. There is an urgent need for mitigation to control metal exposure related to domestic smelting.