1.4 billion X 76 IQ Patna institute finds Elevated levels of lead in 92% of breast milk samples, linked to contaminated food and water; researchers warn of severe risks to children’s mental and physical health
Mohd Imran Khan
Published:10th Dec, 2024 at 4:25 PM
A study conducted by researchers from Patna’s Mahavir Cancer Sansthan & Research Centre found high levels of lead in the breast milk of women in six districts of Bihar. The research comes on the heels of another paper by the same team that found arsenic in breast milk as well.
Health experts and researchers involved in the study emphasised that lead poisoning through breast milk poses a significant threat to the mental development of children and could lead to other serious health complications.
A team of 12 scientists from the institute’s research department wrote the paper, High lead contamination in Mother's breastmilk in Bihar (India): Health risk assessment of the feeding children, was published in the journal Chemosphere. The team obtained biological samples, including breast milk, mothers’ urine, children’s urine and blood samples from 327 women aged 17 to 40.
Also read:Element of mystery: Lead poisoning is a huge public health concern for India; here’s why
The study found elevated levels of lead in 92 per cent of the breast milk samples, with the highest value recorded at 1,309 micrograms per litre (µg/L), Arun Kumar, senior research scientist at the research centre and one of the authors of the paper, told this reporter.
No level of lead in the blood is considered safe; even concentrations as low as 3.5 µg/dL can affect children’s intelligence, behaviour and learning abilities, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Lead was also detected in the blood of 87 per cent of the studied samples, with a peak value of 677.2 µg/L. Kumar explained that lead contamination in soil can enter the human body through food consumption, with vegetables and coarse grains being primary carriers, ultimately leading to its presence in breast milk.
Also read:India bears world’s highest health, economic burden due to lead poisoning: Centre
“The study indicated that lead exposure through food sources such as wheat, rice and potatoes has contaminated mothers’ breast milk, which then transfers to their children,” Kumar said. “This can result in severe neurological damage, reduced IQ, poor memory and stunted mental growth in exposed children. A strategic intervention is urgently needed to address this issue.”
Lead poisoning in newborns can cause premature birth, low birth weight and slow growth. It can cause anaemia, neurological, skeletal, and neuromuscular problems in both children and adults.
Lead toxicity is a major concern in India — 275 million children in India recorded blood lead levels beyond the WHO’s tolerable limit of 5 µg/dL, according to a 2020 report by UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Pure Earth, a US-based environmental health non-profit.
Also read:Pesticides leading cause of poisoning in India: Study
Research methodology
The team looked at samples from Samastipur, Begusarai, Khagaria, Darbhanga, Munger and Nalanda districts, facing significant challenges in collecting breast milk samples in rural areas.
Along with the biological samples, the scientists also gathered household water samples from handpumps and food samples, including wheat, rice and potatoes, to assess lead levels.
Ashok Kumar Ghosh, a lead scientist on the team and former chairman of the Bihar Pollution Control Board, revealed that the team had initially studied arsenic contamination in drinking water in districts along the River Ganga.
“Following this, we decided to examine breast milk and found lead poisoning alongside arsenic, both of which are fatal to breastfeeding children,” Ghosh said.
Also read:A third of world’s children are poisoned by lead, says UNICEF report
Another team scientist, Mohammad Ali, highlighted additional sources of contamination, such as adulterated turmeric powder containing yellow dyes and pesticide use in agriculture, which exacerbate lead poisoning. However, Ali cautioned that lead poisoning in breast milk is particularly alarming for breastfeeding children, as it affects their mental development, vision and other bodily functions.
High lead levels were detected in biological and food samples in all six districts, with both geogenic (natural) and anthropogenic (human-made) sources were identified as contributors.
Also read:Lead in turmeric more than 200 times the limit in parts of India: Study
Quantitative data
Abhinav Srivastava, another scientist involved in the study, disclosed that in mothers’ urine, the highest lead value was 4,168 µg/L (62 per cent of samples), while in children’s urine, the highest recorded value was 875.4 µg/L (62 per cent of samples).
Food samples also showed significant contamination, with lead content detected in 45 per cent of wheat samples (highest value: 7,910 microgrammes per kilogramme [µg/kg]); 40 per cent of rice samples (highest value: 6,972 µg/kg) and 90 per cent of potato samples (highest value: 13,786 µg/kg)
The hazard quotient and cancer risk for lead contamination were markedly higher in mothers than in their children.
Also read:"Children are affected by lead poisoning"
In July 2022, a study by the Union government think tank NITI Aayog and the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) revealed that 23 states in India exceed the 5 µg/dL threshold for lead toxicity. Bihar (average blood lead level of 10.42 µg/dL), Uttar Pradesh (8.67 µg/dL), Madhya Pradesh (8.32 µg/dL), Jharkhand (8.15 µg/dL), Chhattisgarh (7.46 µg/dL) and Andhra Pradesh (7.14 µg/dL) collectively account for 40 per cent of the population with elevated blood lead levels.
Additionally, a 2016 analysis by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, a global health research centre at the University of Washington School of Medicine, estimated that lead toxicity in India results in 4.6 million Disability-Adjusted Life Years and 165,000 deaths annually.
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/amp/story/health/patna-institute-finds-high-levels-of-lead-in-breast-milk-across-6-bihar-districtshttps://www.downtoearth.org.in/amp/story/health/patna-institute-finds-high-levels-of-lead-in-breast-milk-across-6-bihar-districts
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