Temporal trends of legacy and emerging persistent organic pollutants in inuit preschoolers from Northern Quebec (Canada)

ABSTRACT

In this study, we report the temporal trends of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in 181 preschool Inuit children from Nunavik and the influence of confounding factors on blood contaminant levels. From 2006 to 2010, no significant trends were detected in Σpolychlorinated biphenyls (ΣPCBs), Σorganochlorine pesticides (ΣOPs), Σtoxaphene, and Σper- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (ΣPFASs). On the contrary, significant downward trends ranging from 9.3% to 14.3% per year were found for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Breastfeeding was significantly associated with increased levels of POPs. Age was positively and significantly related to ΣPCBs, ΣOPs and Σtoxaphene. Compared with girls, boys had significantly higher concentrations of ΣPBDEs, but lower concentrations of ΣPFASs. Weight-for-height or body mass index z-scores were negatively and significantly related to ΣPCBs and ΣOPs. Passive smoking was positively and significantly associated with ΣOPs and Σtoxaphene. In conclusion, continued efforts to reduce contaminant exposure are needed to protect children’s health and development.

KEYWORDS:

• Children
• pollutants
• Canada

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the Nunavik parents and children for their participation. They wish to thank all directors, educators and cooks of childcare centers in Nunavik who supported this project. They would like to thank Margaret Gauvin and Julie-Ann Berthe from the Kativik Regional Government for their constant support. They are thankful to the Nunavik Nutrition and Health Committee for their expertise and support and to nurses and dietitians who worked on this project. They also wish to thank Chantal Vinet-Lanouette, Émilie Vaissière, Marthe Paris, Annie Augiak, Lizzie Anne Esperon, Maryse Turcot and Sylvie St- Hilaire for their great involvement in the nutrition program. They also benefited from the expertise of Hélène Crépeau (Service de Consultation Statistique, Université Laval) for statistical analysis. The authors wish to thank Éric Gaudreau (Environmental Contaminants Division Lead; Centre de Toxicologie du Québec (CTQ)/INSPQ) for validation and verification of analytical methods. They also wish to thank Edward James O’Brien for ensuring English language support. This study was made possible through funding by the Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (Northern Contaminants Program), the Kativik Regional Government and Health Canada.

Disclosure

The funding sources had no role in the design, analysis or writing of this paper.

Competing Interests

The authors declare that there are no competing interests regarding the publication of this paper.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Health Canada; Kativik Regional Government; Goverment of Canada, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada.