Mercury exposure from fish consumption in subsistence fishers in rural Oklahoma

描述(由申请人提供)：该项目的目标是确定俄克拉荷马州东北部的种族亚群(美洲原住民、拉美裔和密克罗尼西亚人)和休闲垂钓者是否因自给性捕鱼做法而暴露于汞水平升高。研究地点位于俄克拉何马州渥太华县及其周边，位于格兰德湖分水岭。这一分水岭可能受到当地和区域大气汞沉降源的影响，但人们对这一分水岭中汞污染和生物积累的程度知之甚少。通过食用鱼类接触甲基汞是一个主要的公共卫生问题，特别是在儿童和育龄妇女中，因为它是一种神经毒素，而且有在食物网内生物放大的趋势。该项目是针对社区对食用当地鱼类汞暴露的关注而设计的，将包括食物频率调查问卷、作为汞暴露生物标志物的毛发汞浓度的测量，以及当地常见鱼种汞浓度的测量。该项目的主要目标是：(1)确定生活在渥太华县的人谁捕获和消费大湖流域的鱼，特别是种族成员(美洲原住民、西班牙裔、密克罗尼西亚人)，是否与同一地理社区的其他不经常消费当地鱼的居民以及与普通美国人相比，体内汞负担更高；(2)测量从大湖及其主要支流捕获和消费的常见鱼类物种的汞浓度；(3)通过教育社区成员关于常用消费鱼中汞的浓度，包括长度、采样地点和季节的信息，促进安全自给性捕鱼；(4)制定以社区为基础的教育计划，使社区成员能够在更知情的水平上参与监管过程；以及(5)通过与州和地区机构合作，制定保护自给性渔民的鱼类消费建议，促进汞排放的减少，从而促进鱼类汞浓度的长期降低和人类暴露。我们的最终目标是减少汞暴露，同时解决人们对汞污染的担忧，因为汞污染可能不必要地限制消费率，并促进加强文化和家庭纽带的生存活动。 与公共健康相关：该项目旨在确定在俄克拉荷马州东北部食用大量当地鱼类的人是否通过饮食暴露于不安全水平的汞，并帮助他们找到减少汞摄入量的方法。这个项目将在研究的所有阶段都有社区的参与，并将强调与社区分享结果和发展正在进行的教育项目。最终，该项目的结果还可用于制定保护所有人的鱼类消费建议，特别是那些食用大量鱼类的人，并为政府机构提供信息，以用于制定控制向环境排放汞的法规。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this project is to determine whether ethnic subpopulations (Native Americans, Hispanics, and Micronesians) and recreational anglers in northeastern Oklahoma are exposed to elevated mercury levels resulting from subsistence fishing practices. The study site is located in and around Ottawa County, Oklahoma, in the Grand Lake watershed. This watershed is potentially impacted by local and regional sources of atmospheric mercury deposition, but little is known about the extent of mercury contamination and bioaccumulation in this watershed. Exposure to methyl mercury through consumption of fish is a major public health concern, especially among children and women of childbearing age, due to its role as a neurotoxin and its tendency to biomagnify within food webs. This project was designed in response to community concerns about mercury exposure through consumption of local fish, and will involve a combination of food frequency questionnaires, measurements of hair mercury concentrations as biomarkers of mercury exposure, and measurements of mercury concentrations in commonly-consumed species of local fish. The primary aims of this project are: (1) to determine whether people living in Ottawa County who catch and consume fish from the Grand Lake watershed, particularly members of ethnic populations (Native Americans, Hispanics, Micronesians), have higher body burdens of mercury compared to other residents of the same geographic community that do not frequently consume local fish and compared to the general U.S. population; (2) to measure mercury concentrations in fish species commonly caught and consumed from Grand Lake and its major tributaries; (3) to promote safe subsistence fishing by educating community members about mercury concentrations in commonly consumed fish, including information on length, sampling location and season; (4) to develop a community- based education program that will enable community members to participate in the regulatory process at a more informed level; and (5) to promote long-term reductions in mercury concentrations in fish and human exposure by working with state and regional agencies to develop fish consumption advisories that protect subsistence fishers and promote reductions in mercury emissions. Our ultimate goal is to reduce mercury exposure while simultaneously addressing fears about mercury contamination that may unnecessarily limit consumption rates, and to promote subsistence activities that strengthen cultural and family bonds. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This project is designed to determine whether people who eat large amounts of local fish in northeastern Oklahoma are exposed to unsafe levels of mercury through their diet, and to help them find ways to decrease the amount of mercury they consume. This project will involve community participation at all stages of the research, and will emphasize sharing results with the community and developing ongoing educational programs. Ultimately, the results of this project also may be used to develop fish consumption advisories that protect all people, especially those that eat large amounts of fish, and to provide information for government agencies to use in creating regulations to control mercury emissions into the environment.