Pj. Kostyniak et al., Relation of Lake Ontario fish consumption, lifetime lactation, and parity to breast milk polychlorobiphenyl and pesticide concentrations, ENVIR RES, 80(2), 1999, pp. S166-S174
Lactating female members and spouses of male members of the New York State
Angler Cohort who agreed to provide breast milk samples were the subjects o
f this study. Questionnaires were provided to participants focusing on Lake
Ontario fish consumption, reproductive history, and lactation history. Mil
k samples were analyzed for 77 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) congeners, 1
,1-dichloro-2,2-bis (p-chlorophenyl) ethylene (DDE), a metabolite of dichlo
rodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and 1,1a,2,2,3,3a
, 4,5,5,5a,5b,6- dodecachlorooctahydro-1,3,4.methano-1H-cyclobutalene (Mire
x). The percentage of samples with quantifiable levels, above the limit of
detection (LOD), varied among the individual congeners from 10 to 100%. Nin
e PCB congeners (designated by their IUPAC No.) and DDE were found in all o
f the 100 samples analyzed. These include the following, in decreasing orde
r of concentration: DDE > 153 > 138> 180 > 118 > 187> 188> 177> 200. Total
PCE concentrations were estimated by taking the sum of the concentrations o
f all PCB congeners (up to 77 congeners) above their respective LOD in a gi
ven sample. PCB concentrations increased with increasing concentration of m
ilk lipid. Lipid adjusted PCB concentrations increased as a function of mat
ernal age. PCB congener profiles in milk favored the higher chlorinated con
geners, with the four highest congeners having 5 to 7 chlorine atoms. Fish
eaters had a significantly higher level of several major PCB congeners with
congeners 153 and 138 being 1.36 and 1.34 times higher, respectively. PCB
and DDE concentrations, expressed on a lipid basis, varied inversely with p
arity. The total number of months of lifetime lactation varied inversely wi
th the total PCB concentration in breast milk. A similar relationship was e
vident for DDE. These data are of use for risk assessment in estimating the
relative exposure to these environmental contaminants in breast fed infant
s whose mothers consumed contaminated Lake Ontario fish. (C)1999 Academic P
ress.