What silicone wristbands say about chemical exposure in Uruguayan
children
A study examines chemical exposure in a small group of 6- to 8-year-olds
in Montevideo, Uruguay

Date:
July 20, 2020
Source:
University at Buffalo
Summary:
Researchers used silicone wristbands to examine the extent of
chemical exposure among a small group of children in Montevideo,
Uruguay. The 6- to 8-year-olds wore the bands for seven days. After
analyzing the wristbands, researchers found an average of 13
pollutants in each one collected. Some of the wristbands showed
exposure to DDT, a harmful pesticide that has been banned for use
in many countries, including the U.S., since the 1970s.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Millions of children fail to reach their developmental potential
worldwide, in part due to higher rates of exposure to current and legacy pollutants.


========================================================================== Researchers studying chemical exposures among children in Uruguay
turned to an unlikely data collection device as part of a recent study: silicone wristbands.

These wristbands -- the kind many people around the world wear to show
their support for a cause or organization -- are extremely effective
in capturing certain types of harmful chemicals, and they're easy for
children to wear.

Researchers from the University at Buffalo and the Catholic University
of Uruguay used the wristbands to examine the extent of chemical
exposure among a small group of children in Montevideo, Uruguay. The
6- to 8-year-olds wore the bands for seven days. After analyzing the wristbands, researchers found an average of 13 pollutants in each one collected. Some of the wristbands showed exposure to DDT, a harmful
pesticide that has been banned for use in many countries, including the
U.S., since the 1970s.

The study, published recently in the journal Science of the Total
Environment, is the first to apply silicone wristbands to measure
children's exposure to chemicals in a country outside of the U.S. The
study was conducted as part of an ongoing research project in Montevideo
led by Katarzyna "Kasia" Kordas, PhD, the paper's senior author. Kordas
is an associate professor of epidemiology and environmental health in
UB's School of Public Health and Health Professions and co-director of
UB's Community for Global Health Equity.

The UB RENEW (Research and Education in eNergy, Environment and Water) Institute provided funding for the study.



==========================================================================
"One of the key findings from this research is that we still
observe industrial and agricultural chemicals that have been banned
from production for years and even decades," said Steven C. Travis,
the study's first author, who is a PhD student in the Department of
Chemistry in UB's College of Arts and Sciences.

"We were also able to find specific differences between chemical
exposures of the children in our study compared to children in the U.S.,
and identify potential reasons for differences in exposure," added Travis, whose major PhD adviser, Diana Aga, Henry Woodburn Professor of Chemistry
in UB's College of Arts and Sciences, is a paper co-author.

Silicone wristbands have become a popular method in recent years to
measure personal exposures to organic chemicals because they are easy to
wear and are a non-invasive sampling method. They also have a greater
capacity to hold semi- volatile chemicals, and can capture chemicals
for a longer period of time. More than 1,500 chemicals have been sampled
using silicone wristbands, Travis said.

Researchers analyzed wristbands in this study for 45 chemicals from among
five groups: polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pesticides, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), organophosphorus flame retardants (OPFRs) and
novel halogenated flame-retardant chemicals (NHFRs). NHFRs were the only chemical group not detected. Anywhere from eight to 19 chemicals were
detected in each of 23 wristbands collected.

"The use of wristbands as a personal sampling device is an excellent alternative for assessing what harmful chemicals are accumulating in
children's bodies, rather than the old-fashioned way of collecting blood
and measuring the chemical concentrations in the blood," said Aga.



==========================================================================
PCBs were found in 19 of the 23 wristbands. The researchers noted that
the entry and trade of PCBs wasn't regulated in Uruguay until 2007,
and that there were an estimated 40,000 transformers -- a major source
of PCBs -- operating in the country in 2006.

The presence of PBDEs was confirmed in 22 out of 23
wristbands. Concentrations of this chemical group, however, were much
lower than those found in U.S.

studies. That was surprising, according to the researchers.

"With this study, we've been able to link different exposures to certain lifestyle characteristics," Travis said. "For example, we are able to
suggest that not having carpets in the home may lead to lower exposure
to brominated flame retardants, which were used widely in the production
of carpet padding.

Also, with the use of other studies, we can uncover differences in
exposure based on various modes of transportation." Eleven wristbands contained all six OPFRs analyzed. Pesticides were also present, including
DDT, which was found in 20 wristbands.

"It is very concerning that young children are exposed to multiple
chemicals, including those that have been banned in the U.S. because of demonstrated harms to health," said Kordas. "We know that when chemicals
occur together in so- called mixtures, they could be more detrimental to children's development than each chemical alone." Travis added, "This emphasizes that we need to be more careful with the chemicals that we use
for industrial and agricultural purposes, since they have the potential
to remain in the environment and can affect people over decades."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_at_Buffalo. Original
written by David J. Hill.

Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Steven C. Travis, Diana S. Aga, Elena I. Queirolo, James R. Olson,
Mo'nica Daleiro, Katarzyna Kordas. Catching flame retardants and
pesticides in silicone wristbands: Evidence of exposure to current
and legacy pollutants in Uruguayan children. Science of The Total
Environment, 2020; 740: 140136 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140136 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200720103326.htm

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