CONTAMINATION OF HUMAN BREAST-MILK WITH ORGANOCHLORINE RESIDUES - A COMPARISON BETWEEN EAST AND WEST-GERMANY THROUGH SENTINEL PRACTICE NETWORKS

Study objective-The aim of the study was to assess and compare the con tamination of human breast milk with organochlorine residues through t wo sentinel practice networks in Lower Saxony, a state of former West Germany, and Saxony-Anhalt, a state of former East Germany. Design-Eli gible women were enrolled in this cross sectional study by a network o f 51 paedriatric practices in Lower Saxony and 44 in Saxony-Anhalt whe n bringing their babies for a regular screening examination four to si x weeks after delivery. Sociodemographic, Lifestyle, and exposure fact ors were determined by questionnaire. Milk samples were analysed for h exachlorocyclohexane (HCH), hexachlorbenzole (HCB), DDT, dieldrin, pol ychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), and heptachlorepoxid (HCE); half the sam ples were also analysed for dioxin. Analytic statistics were computed using multiple logistic regression. Setting-The study was conducted in Lower Saxony, Germany, from July 1992 to June 1993, and in Saxony-Anh alt, Germany, from January to June 1995. Participants-156 primiparous, breastfeeding women from Lower Saxony and 113 from Saxony-Anhalt were studied, who either were born and raised in former West or East Germa ny, respectively. Main result-Mean age of mothers and children differe d significantly between the two study groups. In Lower Saxony all but two milk samples were well below the tolerable concentrations establis hed by the German Research Council (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (D FG)). In Saxony-Anhalt no participant had concentrations above those r ecommended by the DFG. After adjustment for age of mother and child, o ccupational and non-occupational pesticide contact, DDT and beta-HCH c oncentrations were significantly lower in Lower Saxony; HCE and dieldr in concentrations were lower in Saxony-Anhalt. No differences between the two states were found for PCB, HCB, gamma-HCH, and dioxin. Conclus ions-Breast milk contamination levels in former East German Saxony-Anh alt exceeded the contamination in Lower Saxony only for DDT and beta-H CH.