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Contribution of diet to aggregate arsenic exposures—An analysis across populations

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 24, pages 156–162 (2014)Cite this article

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Abstract

The relative contribution of dietary arsenic (As) to aggregate daily exposure has not been well-characterized, especially in relation to the current EPA maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 10 p.p.b. for As in drinking water. Our objectives were to: (1) model exposure to inorganic and total As among non-seafood eaters using subject-specific data, (2) compare the contribution of food, drinking and cooking water to estimated aggregate exposure in households with variable background tap water As levels, and (3) describe the upper distribution of potential dose at different thresholds of tap water As. Dietary As intake was modeled in regional study populations and NHANES 2003–2004 using dietary records in conjunction with published food As residue data. Water As was measured in the regional studies. Among subjects exposed to tap water As >10 p.p.b., aggregate inorganic exposure was 24.5–26.1 μg/day, with approximately 30% of intake from food. Among subjects living in homes with tap water As ≤10, 5 or 3 p.p.b., aggregate inorganic As exposure was 8.6–11.8 μg/day, with 54–85% of intake from food. Median inorganic As potential dose was 0.42–0.50 μg/kg BW/day in subjects exposed to tap water As >10 p.p.b. and less than half that among subjects exposed to tap water As ≤10 p.p.b. The majority of inorganic and total As exposure is attributable to diet in subjects with tap water As <MCL. Further research is needed to determine the potential toxicity and need for regulation of As in foods.

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Acknowledgements

This study was completed in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the PhD program in Epidemiology at the University of Arizona, Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. Funding for this research was provided by the US EPA Star Grant No. R83399201-0, The University of Arizona Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) (NIH/NCI CA95060), the Superfund Basic Research Program Grant (NIH ES-04940) and the Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center Grant (NIH ES-006694).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    Margaret Kurzius-Spencer, Jefferey L Burgess, Robin B Harris, Jason Roberge, Shuang Huang, Chiu-Hsieh Hsu & M K O’Rourke

  2. Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    Margaret Kurzius-Spencer

  3. Arizona Cancer Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    Robin B Harris, Vern Hartz, Jason Roberge & Chiu-Hsieh Hsu

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  1. Margaret Kurzius-Spencer
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Correspondence to Margaret Kurzius-Spencer.

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Kurzius-Spencer, M., Burgess, J., Harris, R. et al. Contribution of diet to aggregate arsenic exposures—An analysis across populations. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 24, 156–162 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2013.37

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