Evaluation of Urinary Pesticide Biomarkers Among a Sample of the Population in the United States

• Main Author: Lebeau, Alex Lance
• Format: Others
• Published: Scholar Commons 2012
• Subjects: Background; Children; Organophsophate; Pyrethroid; Residential; American Studies; Arts and Humanities; Public Health; Toxicology
• Online Access: http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/4123; http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5319&context=etd

Pesticide use in the United States continues to attract negative public attention. In recent years, this attention has focused on the effects that chronic, low-level pesticides may have, especially on children and various sub-populations. Over the past decade, studies have attempted to correlate negative health effects with detections of pesticide biomarkers in biological media. The current research investigates biomarker of exposure levels in a sample of the United States population. Data from the 2001-2002 NHANES dataset (n=11,039) was evaluated. The detection frequency of urinary biomarkers of exposure and the geometric mean from the NHANES pesticide dataset (n=3,152) were determined. Of the 18 specific pesticide biomarkers, three were detected in more than 50% of the sample: 79% had a detectable level of 3,5,6-trichloropyridinol, a biomarker of chlorpyrifos, with a geometric mean of 2.07 µg/L (C.I: 1.98-2.17); 53% had a detectable level of paranitrophenol, a biomarker of methyl parathion, with a geometric mean of 0.367 µg/L (C.I.: 0.346-0.389); and 77% had a detectable level of 3-phenoxybenzoic acid, a biomarker of permethrin, with a geometric mean of 0.336 µg/L (C.I.: 0.320-0.352). These levels fall within the range of other epidemiological and biomonitoring studies investigating background levels of biomarkers in the general population. The association between the detection of a biomarker and variations in mean height and weight of children aged 6-11 was evaluated. No significant results were found when evaluating these differences for 3,5,6-trichloropyridinol exposure. Paranitrophenol associated with shorter children at age 8 [Non-Detect=134.3 cm and Detect: 130.9 cm (p=0.046)] and taller children at age 11 [Detect=153.7 cm and Non-Detect=149.9 cm (p=0.022)]. Heavier children associated with 3-Phenoxybenzoic Acid at age 7: [Detect=28.61 kg and Non-Detect=25.26 kg (p=0.009)]. Clinical chemistry biochemical concentration comparisons were made between individuals that had a detectable level of the biomarker in urine and those that did not. Two biochemicals had a significant difference across all three biomarkers: cholesterol and sodium. The biochemical levels with significant difference between detects and non-detects for the biomarkers were not elevated above clinical reference values. Overall, there is insufficient evidence to suggest a relationship between background pesticide exposures in this sample and negative health effects.