Human biomonitoring reference values for some non-persistent chemicals in blood and urine derived from the Canadian Health Measures Survey 2009–2013
- DOI
- Language of the publication
- English
- Date
- 2018-03-16
- Type
- Article
- Author(s)
- Khoury, Cheryl
- Werry, Kate
- Haines, Douglas
- Walker, Mike
- Malowany, Morie
- Publisher
- Elsevier
Abstract
The Canadian Health Measures Survey collects nationally representative human biomonitoring data on a suite of chemicals and their metabolites, including many non-persistent chemicals. Data has been collected on non-persistent chemicals, including acrylamide, chlorophenols, environmental phenols and triclocarban, organophosphate insecticides, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, pyrethroid insecticides, and volatile organic compounds from 2009 to 2013. Using a systematic approach building on the reference interval concept proposed by the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, we derive human biomonitoring reference values (RV95s) for these classes of non-persistent chemicals in blood and urine for the general Canadian population. RV95s were derived for biomarkers of non-persistent chemicals with widespread detection in Canadians (>66% detection rate). Samples with urinary creatinine levels outside the recommended range of 0.3–3.0 μg/L were excluded. Reference populations were constructed by applying smoking and fasting as exclusion criteria where appropriate. Age and sex were evaluated as possible partitioning criteria and separate RV95s were derived for sub-populations in cases where partitioning was deemed necessary. Reference values were derived for 40 biomarkers and represent the first set of RV95s for non-persistent chemicals in the general Canadian population. These values provide a measure of the upper margin of background exposure in the general population and can be compared against individual and population human biomonitoring data. RV95s can be used to by public health officials to identify individuals with high exposures, and by risk assessors and risk managers to identify atypical exposures or subpopulations with elevated exposures.
Plain language summary
Health Canada is responsible for the assessment and management of health risks to Canadians associated with exposure to products and chemicals in the environment. The Canadian Health Measures Survey collects nationally representative human biomonitoring data on a suite of chemicals and their metabolites, including many non-persistent chemicals. These non-persistent chemicals include acrylamide, chlorophenols, environmental phenols and triclocarban, organophosphate insecticides, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, pyrethroid insecticides, and volatile organic compounds. In this study, human biomonitoring reference values (RV95s) were derived for non-persistent chemicals in blood and urine in the general Canadian population based on data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey. The 95th percentile chemical concentrations were used to derive the RV95s reflecting the upper limit of exposure to a given chemical at a given time in the general population. Biomarkers of non-persistent chemicals were chosen based on specific selection criteria, including their widespread detection in Canadians (> 66% detection rate). Separate RV95s were derived for the sub-populations in cases where differences were observed between age groups and/or males and females. These RV95s represent the first set of reference values for non-persistent chemicals in the general Canadian population. RV95s are statistical estimates of chemical exposure and, unlike health based guidance values, do not take into account toxicological information. As such, they cannot be used to assess health risks and are not regulatory limits. RV95s provide a reference point against which individual and population results could be compared to help identify increased levels of exposure compared with the background general population level, which in turn can inform risk assessment and risk management decisions.
Subject
- Health,
- Health and safety