Dietary and reproductive determinants of plasma organochlorine levels in pregnant women in Rio de Janeiro

Organochlorine (OC) plasma levels and their dietary and reproductive determinants were investigated in 64 pregnant women from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Prenatal exposure of newborns was evaluated in a subset of these women in which umbilical cord blood was analyzed. To assess the influence of dietary factors on OC levels, a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire was completed by participants. Nondietary determinants were investigated through a general questionnaire that addressed reproductive history, lifestyle, and social–demographic characteristics. Both women and their newborns had detectable but low levels of OCs. The most frequently detected compound was p,p′-DDE, the main metabolite of p,p′-DDT. This compound was found in 97% of the women who participated in the study and in 67% of the umbilical cord blood samples, with levels ranging from 0.161 to 8.03 ppb and from 0.320 to 1.06 ppb, respectively. Among the OCs detected, only p,p′-DDE showed any correlation with dietary and nondietary factors. There was a positive correlation between maternal p,p′–DDE and the consumption of fish (Pearson r=0.38,P=0.002) and chicken (Pearson r=0.26, P=0.042). The correlation between pork consumption and p,p′-DDE exhibited an inverse relationship (Pearson r=−0.25,P=0.052). Parity was the only nondietary factor that showed a significant correlation (Pearson r=−0.36,P=0.004). The main determinants of p,p′-DDE levels in this group of women were fish consumption and parity, together explaining 28% of the variance (P<001), in a multivariate model.