A method to determine residue levels of persistent organochlorine pesticides in human milk from Indonesian women

A method has been developed for the analysis of organochlorine pesticides in human milk using solvent extraction, Florisil® solid phase extraction clean-up and analysis by gas chromatography with an electron capture detector. The recovery of analytes from spiked milk samples was in the range 53±1% to 109±7% (n=9). A small number of samples were obtained from women in a rural and an urban area of Indonesia and analysed using the developed method. The results are reported on a milk fat basis. All samples contained detectable residues of p,p′-DDT (urban mean 0.11±0.18 mg kg−1 (n=5), rural mean 0.07±0.03 mg kg−1 (n=5)) and p,p′-DDE (urban mean 0.05±0.04 mg kg−1 (n=5), rural mean 0.76±1.46 mg kg−1 (n=5)). Residues of HCB, β-HCH, α-endosulfan and dieldrin were also detected in some samples. There was no significant difference (at the 95% confidence level) in levels of pesticides between urban and rural areas. The levels of organochlorine pesticides in milk from Indonesian women were lower than those reported from Indonesian women exposed to DDT through malaria eradication schemes and were similar to levels reported from UK and Japan.