Arsenic in private well water associated with low birth weight infants

In the largest epidemiological study of arsenic and birth outcomes to date, researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and cooperating institutions estimated arsenic levels in U.S. private well water sources by county and documented their estimates. Compared with the birth result. They found a link between estimated groundwater arsenic levels and the risk of low birth weight.

Findings reported in the journal Environment InternationalEfforts to reduce arsenic in private wells suggest that more babies can be helped to be born with a healthy weight, especially in rural areas.

Arsenic is, in some forms, a highly toxic natural element when consumed through contaminated water used for drinking, cooking food, or irrigating crops. All public water systems in the United States need to monitor arsenic levels, but private wells-; used by 14% of people in the country-; are not regulated. As a result, comprehensive data on the extent of arsenic pollution and associated health risks in the United States is limited.

Arsenic is known to be dangerous, but lack of data on exposure from private wells makes some U.S. communities disproportionately vulnerable to the adverse health effects of pollutants. increase. Developing a method for estimating these exposure risks was the first step in understanding the true exposure risks of all people living in the United States. “

Maria Argos, Research Co-author, Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Associate Dean of Global Health, Faculty of Public Health, UIC

Using several machine learning algorithms, researchers have characterized the probability that a certain range of arsenic concentrations will occur in groundwater sources in nearly every 3,000 or more counties in the continental United States.

“These machine learning models are based on data collected by USGS from more than 20,000 privately owned wells across the United States,” said Melisson Bird, a hydrologist at the United States Geological Survey, who is also the co-author of the study. Says. “The model allows us to estimate arsenic in areas where there is no data. The development of the model is by hydrologists and epidemiologists to investigate the relationship between arsenic exposure from drinking water and human health outcomes. It was a collaborative work. “

Probability model estimates and private well usage data were linked to all birth certificates issued in 2016. The researchers compared the model to birth outcome data tracked by the public health department by examining gestational age and birth weight.

There was no observed association for gestational age, but even moderately low levels were inversely associated with birth weight.

The model predicted that counties with high arsenic levels in private wells above 5 micrograms per liter were associated with birth weight 1.8 grams lower than average. Similarly, counties (federal standards) where arsenic levels in private wells are likely to exceed 10 micrograms per liter have been associated with a 2.8 gram reduction in birth weight compared to the average. rice field.

The researchers said the associations they found were somewhat limited because the analysis was based on exposure estimates rather than individual-level measured exposures, but the limitations of their model were true associations. You may be underestimating your sex.

“Birth outcomes are indicators of lifelong health and risk of chronic illness, and the results of our study are to raise awareness of exposure in communities that rely on private wells and expand testing resources for public health. It provides evidence that it should be a priority, “Argos said. ..

This study was funded by the USGS John Wesley Powell Analytical and Synthetic Center Working Group, “Linking Environmental and Public Health Data to Assess the Health Impact of Arsenic Exposure from National and Public Supply Wells.” rice field.