HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT FOR INUIT NEWBORNS EXPOSED TO DIOXIN-LIKE COMPOUNDS THROUGH BREAST-FEEDING

Inuit people living in the Arctic receive an unusually high dose of di oxin-like compounds through their traditional diet, which comprises la rge amounts of fatty tissues from various sea mammal species. During b reast feeding, the mother transfers part of their body burden to its n ewborn. We estimated the impact of breast feeding on the body burden o f Inuit from birth to age 75 years. Simulations performed with a toxic okinetic model revealed that breast feeding strongly influences body b urden during childhood but not after age 20 years. Liver and adipose t issue concentrations expected in Inuit are well below those which indu ced severe adverse health effects in laboratory animals, e.g. cancer a nd reproduction. However, these concentrations approach levels generat ing subtle effects on reproductive systems.