| Lead Sources in Human Diet in Greenland Peter Bjerregaard,1 Poul Johansen,2 Gert Mulvad,3 Henning Sloth Pedersen,3 and Jens C. Hansen4 1National Institute of Public Health, Copenhagen, Denmark; 2National Environmental Research Institute, Roskilde, Denmark; 3Primary Health Care Center, Nuuk, Greenland; 4Centre for Arctic Environmental Medicine, University of Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark Abstract
Although blood lead levels have declined in Greenland, they are still elevated despite the fact that lead levels in the Greenland environment are very low. Fragments of lead shot in game birds have been suggested as an important source of dietary exposure, and meals of sea birds, particularly eider, contain high concentrations of lead. In a cross-sectional population survey in Greenland in 1993-1994, blood lead adjusted for age and sex was found to be associated with the reported consumption of sea birds. Participants reporting less than weekly intake of sea birds had blood lead concentrations of approximately 75 µg/L, whereas those who reported eating sea birds several times a week had concentrations of approximately 110 µg/L, and those who reported daily intake had concentrations of 170 µg/L (p = 0.01) . Blood lead was not associated with dietary exposure to other local or imported food items. Key words: diet, Greenland, Inuit, lead, lead shot, sea birds. Environ Health Perspect 112: 1496-1498 (2004) . doi:10.1289/ehp.7083 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 21 July 2004]
Address correspondence to P. Bjerregaard, Section for Research in Greenland, National Institute of Public Health, Svanemøllevej 25, DK-2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark. Telephone: 45-3920-7777. Fax: 45-3927-3095. E-mail: p.bjerregaard@dadlnet.dk The study was supported by Karen Elise Jensen's Foundation. The authors declare they have no competing financial interests. Received 9 March 2004 ; accepted 21 July 2004.
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