DIOXIN AND PCB LEVELS IN BLOOD AND HUMAN-MILK IN RELATION TO LIVING AREAS IN THE NETHERLANDS

Dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are ubiquitous toxic comp ounds in the environment. Negative influences of these compounds on th e health status of human beings have been described. Especially suscep tible might be the fetus, which is exposed in utero, and the newborn b reast-fed infant, since both are exposed to relatively high levels of dioxins and PCBs during a critical period of organ growth and developm ent. We investigated PCB levels in 406 maternal plasma samples as well as PCB and dioxin levels in 172 human milk samples with relation to l iving area of women living for at least five years in the western indu strialized part of the Netherlands or the northern more rural part. Th e western part was further subdivided into one urban and two highly in dustrialized areas. After correction for covariates, we found signific antly higher levels of PCB 118 in maternal plasma as well as significa ntly higher levels of the dioxin-TEQ and of ten individual dioxin and PCB congener levels in human milk in the western more industrialized a reas of the Netherlands compared to the northern more rural part. We d id not find significant differences in planar, mono-ortho or di-ortho PCB-TEQ levels in human milk between all different areas. We conclude that significantly higher levels of a number of dioxin and PCB congene rs are found in women living in industrialized areas compared to women living in rural areas in the Netherlands.