Original ArticleHair Mercury Levels of Women of Reproductive Age in Ontario, Canada: Implications to Fetal Safety and Fish Consumption
Section snippets
Methods
The study cohort consisted of 3 groups (Table I): (1) a group of Canadian women of reproductive age who had called the Motherisk program in 2006 to 2007 while planning pregnancy for information on the safety of consuming fish during pregnancy (n = 22). All except for one completed post secondary education; (2) a convenience sample of Canadian women of reproductive age who did not consult the Motherisk program and were not concerned about fish consumption were selected in Southwestern Ontario as
Results
Overall, the majority of subjects consumed salmon, as the fish of choice, or canned tuna at least 1 to 2 times a month; when not pregnant other commonly consumed fish were included. When comparing fish consumption habits among the 3 groups, the median number of servings of fish per month of each group differed significantly between the Japanese group and Motherisk callers (P < .001); the highest among the Japanese group (10 servings), followed by the Motherisk callers (4). The Japanese also
Discussion
This study examined fish consumption habits and mercury exposure in three cohorts in Ontario. We corroborated a significant relationship between fish servings and hair mercury, a correlation that was improved when examining the association between calculated mercury intake and hair mercury content. The correlations presented here are comparable with previous studies in which hair mercury was correlated with fish consumption.13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19
This correlation suggests that only 50% of
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Supported by a grant from the First Nation and Inuit Branch, Government of Canada and Health Canada. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.