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DETERMINATION OF A STANDARD FOOD ITEM FOR ANALYSIS OF PESTICIDE CONSUMPTION IN THE DIETARY INTAKE OF YOUNG CHILDREN
Citation:
Raymer, J., T. Marrero, G G. Akland, Y. Hu, M Berry, C E. Bernard, AND L J. Melnyk. DETERMINATION OF A STANDARD FOOD ITEM FOR ANALYSIS OF PESTICIDE CONSUMPTION IN THE DIETARY INTAKE OF YOUNG CHILDREN. Presented at ISEA Meeting, Stresa, Italy, September 21-25, 2003.
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of this research is to reduce uncertainties in exposure assessments of young children by improving EPA's ability to measure exposures in the context of aggregate and cumulative exposure assessments. The general objective of this research is to support FQPA children's exposure assessment efforts by improving procedures and reducing uncertainty in measurements for dietary exposure of young children, a critically needed area for improved risk assessment. Specifically, this research will evaluate a protocol and companion model for measuring or otherwise assessing the combined dietary intake of a young child as influenced by pesticides, or other environmental contaminants, which contaminate their foods during the eating process (indirect ingestion exposure). This research will continue to develop the important factors which are needed to characterize excess intake of pesticides by young children. Specifically, the research will measure pesticide surface transfer efficiencies for food contacts with surfaces and eating activity patterns of young children that define the frequency of contacts with contaminated surfaces. A series of reports/products are anticipated by the end of FY05.
Description:
The objective of this study was to establish a standard food item for the collection of residential use pesticides from household surfaces commonly encountered by young children while eating. The amount of a pesticide that young children ingest during eating is influenced by the residue in/on foods and the excess intake caused by food handling. The latter is not easily measured. If a young child allows food to contact hands, tabletops, or flooring, pesticides may transfer to the food and then be ingested by the child. A standard food item will create a uniform measure of excess food contamination from child handling with known transfer characteristics for target pesticides from multiple surfaces.
Three food items (bologna, cheese, and fruit roll-up) were evaluated for transfer of pesticides from three types of pesticide-treated surfaces (hardwood flooring, vinyl flooring, and a plastic high chair tray). Seven pesticides (permethrin, cypermethrin, esfenvalerate, cyfluthrin, deltamethrin, malathion, and chlorpyrifos) were mixed in an aqueous solution and uniformly sprayed across the various surfaces. Each food item was placed on the three surfaces. All surfaces were wiped with isopropanol moistened gauze pads following the removal of the food items or after a similar time period for unchallenged surfaces. A GC/MS-based analytical method was established for the extraction and analysis of the foods and wipes. Transfer efficiencies were based on the amount of the pesticides in the foods as compared to the amount wiped off the surfaces. Transfer efficiencies of bologna, cheese, and fruit roll-ups ranged from less than 1% to 23% of the applied concentration for the three surfaces. Bologna transferred the organophosphate pesticides (5% - 22%) more efficiently than the pyrethroids (1% - 7%). Cheese showed consistent transfer efficiencies for the pesticides on all surfaces; pyrethroids at ~3% and the organophosphates at ~7%. Fruit roll-ups transferred all classes of pesticides with similar efficiency (3% - 7%), with the exception of the vinyl flooring where values were less than 1% for 4 of the 7 pesticides. Based on the transfer results, all three choices would be acceptable for use as a standard food item.
This study was funded by EPA contract 68D-99-012, Task 8. The EPA has not reviewed the results of this study. The use of trade names does not imply official endorsement.