Persistent Organic Pollutants in Human Milk: Exposure Levels and Determinants among Lactating Mothers in Lebanon

What is it about?

Exposure of newborns to Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) is a public health concern. The objective of this study was to assess the occurrence of POPs in the human milk collected from lactating mothers in Lebanon and investigate the socio-demographic, nutritional, and other lifestyle determinants. Among the screened POPs, Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) was the only POP detected in breast milk samples. DDE contamination was found in 17.9 % of the samples only. Among the latter, the mean DDE was 11.6 µg/L (SD= 5.0) with a range of 5.7-21.4 µg/L. Pre-pregnancy BMI and age were positively associated with DDE contamination in breastmilk. Females who consumed cereals at least two times/week had detectable levels of DDE contamination in their breast milk. Consumption of potatoes and beans at least once/week was also associated with DDE contamination.

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