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A Sustainable Alternative to a U.S. Breast Milk Monitoring Program: Using NHANES Serum Data to Estimate Breast Milk PBDE Concentrations
Citation:
Marchitti, S., J. LaKind, C. Berlin, D. Naiman, AND J. Kenneke. A Sustainable Alternative to a U.S. Breast Milk Monitoring Program: Using NHANES Serum Data to Estimate Breast Milk PBDE Concentrations. Presented at International Society of Exposure Science, Seattle, WA, October 28 - November 01, 2012.
Impact/Purpose:
Presentation given at the International Society of Exposure Science in Seattle, WA from 10/28/12 - 11/01/12.
Description:
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are high-production-volume chemicals that have been widely used as flame retardants in a variety of consumer products. PBDE concentrations in the environment, wildlife, and humans have been increasing for several decades. Concentrations in the U.S. population are among the highest in the world, creating substantial concern about the fate and transport of PBDEs and pathways of human exposure. The greatest source of infant PBDE exposure is believed to be through their mothers via breastfeeding. Currently, the U.S. does not have a national breast milk monitoring program for monitoring chemical levels in breast milk. As an alternative, we developed predictive exposure models to estimate PBDE breast milk concentrations in the U.S. population. Existing PBDE (BDE-28, BDE-47, BDE-99, BDE-100, BDE-153, BDE-154) milk and serum partitioning data from three recent U.S. studies, where milk and serum samples were taken close in time, were evaluated by least-squares linear regression. The predictability of each regression model was calculated using k-fold cross-validation. U.S. milk and serum partitioning data for each PBDE congener exhibited a linear relationship that correlated well across studies (R2 > 0.90) and had high predictability (Q2 > 0.90). To estimate the distribution of PBDE concentrations in U.S. breast milk, models were applied to U.S. NHANES 2003-2004 serum data for women of reproductive age (18-45 yr). Predicted median milk PBDE concentrations correlated well with median concentrations reported from U.S. studies with similar milk sampling years (2003-2007). Collectively, the models developed in this study can be used to estimate breast milk PBDE concentrations from PBDE serum concentrations. When applied to the representative population of U.S. NHANES serum biomonitoring data, this approach represents an alternative to a U.S. milk monitoring program and should improve estimates of PBDE exposures in breastfeeding infants
