TY - JOUR

T1 - Maternal seafood diet, methylmercury exposure, and neonatal neurologic function

AU - Steuerwald, Ulrike

AU - Weihe, Pal

AU - Jørgensen, Poul J.

AU - Bjerve, Kristian

AU - Brock, John

AU - Heinzow, Birger

AU - Budtz-Jørgensen, Esben

AU - Grandjean, Philippe

PY - 2000

Y1 - 2000

N2 - Objective: To determine whether neonatal neurologic function is adversely affected by seafood contaminants from maternal diet during pregnancy. Study design: One hundred eighty-two singleton term births were evaluated in the Faeroe Islands, where marine food includes pilot whale. Maternal serum, hair, and milk and umbilical cord blood were analyzed for contaminants. Levels of essential fatty acids, selenium, and thyroid hormones were determined in cord blood. Each infant's neurologic optimality score was determined at 2 weeks of age adjusted for gestational age, and predictors were assessed by regression analysis. Results: Exposures to methylmercury and polychlorinated biphenyls were increased in relation to maternal seafood intake, as were ω3 fatty acid concentrations in cord serum. Thyroid function was normal. After adjustment for confounders, a 10-fold increase of the cord- blood mercury concentration was associated with a decreased neurologic optimality score of 2.0 (P = .03). This effect corresponds to a decrease in gestational age of about 3 weeks. Other indicators of the seafood diet had no effect on this outcome. Conclusions: Prenatal exposure to methylmercury from contaminated seafood was associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental deficit. Thus in this North Atlantic population, methylmercury constituted an important neurologic risk factor, although effects of other seafood components were not detectable.

AB - Objective: To determine whether neonatal neurologic function is adversely affected by seafood contaminants from maternal diet during pregnancy. Study design: One hundred eighty-two singleton term births were evaluated in the Faeroe Islands, where marine food includes pilot whale. Maternal serum, hair, and milk and umbilical cord blood were analyzed for contaminants. Levels of essential fatty acids, selenium, and thyroid hormones were determined in cord blood. Each infant's neurologic optimality score was determined at 2 weeks of age adjusted for gestational age, and predictors were assessed by regression analysis. Results: Exposures to methylmercury and polychlorinated biphenyls were increased in relation to maternal seafood intake, as were ω3 fatty acid concentrations in cord serum. Thyroid function was normal. After adjustment for confounders, a 10-fold increase of the cord- blood mercury concentration was associated with a decreased neurologic optimality score of 2.0 (P = .03). This effect corresponds to a decrease in gestational age of about 3 weeks. Other indicators of the seafood diet had no effect on this outcome. Conclusions: Prenatal exposure to methylmercury from contaminated seafood was associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental deficit. Thus in this North Atlantic population, methylmercury constituted an important neurologic risk factor, although effects of other seafood components were not detectable.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0034127350&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1067/mpd.2000.102774

DO - 10.1067/mpd.2000.102774

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:0034127350

VL - 136

SP - 599

EP - 605

JO - Journal of Pediatrics

JF - Journal of Pediatrics

SN - 0022-3476

IS - 5

ER -