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Unequal airborne exposure to toxic metals associated with race, ethnicity, and segregation in the USA.

ABSTRACT: Persons of color have been exposed to a disproportionate burden of air pollution across the United States for decades. Yet, the inequality in exposure to known toxic elements of air pollution is unclear. Here, we find that populations living in racially segregated communities are exposed to a form of fine particulate matter with over three times higher mass proportions of known toxic and carcinogenic metals. While concentrations of total fine particulate matter are two times higher in racially segregated communities, concentrations of metals from anthropogenic sources are nearly ten times higher. Populations living in racially segregated communities have been disproportionately exposed to these environmental stressors throughout the past decade. We find evidence, however, that these disproportionate exposures may be abated though targeted regulatory action. For example, recent regulations on marine fuel oil not only reduced vanadium concentrations in coastal cities, but also sharply lessened differences in vanadium exposure by segregation.

SUBMITTER: Kodros JK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9626599 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Unequal airborne exposure to toxic metals associated with race, ethnicity, and segregation in the USA.

Kodros John K JK Bell Michelle L ML Dominici Francesca F L'Orange Christian C Godri Pollitt Krystal J KJ Weichenthal Scott S Wu Xiao X Volckens John J

Nature communications 20221101 1

Persons of color have been exposed to a disproportionate burden of air pollution across the United States for decades. Yet, the inequality in exposure to known toxic elements of air pollution is unclear. Here, we find that populations living in racially segregated communities are exposed to a form of fine particulate matter with over three times higher mass proportions of known toxic and carcinogenic metals. While concentrations of total fine particulate matter are two times higher in racially s ...[more]

PMID: 36319637

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Project description:BackgroundPrior research has reported disparities in environmental exposures in the United States, but, to our knowledge, no nationwide studies have assessed inequality in noise pollution.ObjectivesWe aimed to a) assess racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequalities in noise pollution in the contiguous United States; and b) consider the modifying role of metropolitan level racial residential segregation.MethodsWe used a geospatial sound model to estimate census block group–level median (L50) nighttime and daytime noise exposure and 90th percentile (L10) daytime noise exposure. Block group variables from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey (ACS) included race/ethnicity, education, income, poverty, unemployment, homeownership, and linguistic isolation. We estimated associations using polynomial terms in spatial error models adjusted for total population and population density. We also evaluated the relationship between race/ethnicity and noise, stratified by levels of metropolitan area racial residential segregation, classified using a multigroup dissimilarity index.ResultsGenerally, estimated nighttime and daytime noise levels were higher for census block groups with higher proportions of nonwhite and lower-socioeconomic status (SES) residents. For example, estimated nighttime noise levels in urban block groups with 75% vs. 0% black residents were 46.3 A-weighted decibels (dBA) [interquartile range (IQR): 44.3–47.8 dBA] and 42.3 dBA (IQR: 40.4–45.5 dBA), respectively. In urban block groups with 50% vs. 0% of residents living below poverty, estimated nighttime noise levels were 46.9 dBA (IQR: 44.7–48.5 dBA) and 44.0 dBA (IQR: 42.2–45.5 dBA), respectively. Block groups with the highest metropolitan area segregation had the highest estimated noise exposures, regardless of racial composition. Results were generally consistent between urban and suburban/rural census block groups, and for daytime and nighttime noise and robust to different spatial weight and neighbor definitions.ConclusionsWe found evidence of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic differences in model-based estimates of noise exposure throughout the United States. Additional research is needed to determine if differences in noise exposure may contribute to health disparities in the United States. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP898

Project description:BackgroundHypertension-related disease burden is a major challenge globally, with an estimated 1.56 billion adults expected to be affected by hypertension by 2025. Environmental factors, such as metals, could be risk factors for hypertension, but the relationship between airborne metals and hypertension is rarely studied.MethodsCensus-tract airborne metal concentrations (arsenic, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, lead, manganese, mercury, nickel, selenium, and antimony) from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 2005 National Air Toxics Assessment database were linked to enrollment residential addresses of 47,595 women in the Sister Study cohort. Hypertension was defined as high systolic (≥140 mm Hg) or diastolic (≥90 mm Hg) blood pressure measured by trained examiners at enrollment or taking anti-hypertensive medications. Multivariable log binomial regression was used to estimate adjusted prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the association between individual metals and hypertension, with and without co-adjustment for other metals. Quantile-based g-computation was used to estimate the joint effect of the overall metal mixture.ResultsComparing the highest to lowest quartiles, risk of hypertension was higher among women with higher residential exposure to arsenic (PR = 1.05, 95%CI = 1.02,1.09), lead (PR = 1.04, 95%CI = 1.01,1.08), chromium (PR = 1.03, 95%CI = 1.00,1.06), cobalt (PR = 1.03, 95%CI = 1.00,1.07), and manganese (PR = 1.03, 95%CI = 1.00,1.06). Selenium was associated with lower risk of hypertension (PR = 0.96, 95%CI = 0.93,0.99). Results were similar with mutual adjustment for all other metals. The associations varied by race/ethnicity, with greater PRs in other races/ethnicities (Hispanic, black, and other participants) compared to non-Hispanic white participants. The joint effect of a quartile increase in exposure to all the metals was 1.02 (95%CI = 0.99,1.04).ConclusionWe found that living in areas of higher exposure to arsenic, lead, chromium, cobalt, and manganese was related to higher risk of hypertension, whereas living in areas with higher selenium was inversely related to the risk of hypertension.

Project description:Background/objectivesLow-level, in-utero exposure to toxic metals such as lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) is widespread in the US and worldwide; and, individually, was found to be obesogenic in children. To address the literature gaps on the health effects of co-exposure to low-level toxic metals and the lack of intervention strategy, we aimed to investigate the association between in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, cadmium (Cd) and childhood overweight or obesity (OWO) and whether adequate maternal micronutrients (selenium (Se) and folate) can be protective.Subjects/methodsThis study included 1442 mother-child pairs from the Boston Birth Cohort, a predominantly urban, low-income, Black, and Hispanic population, who were enrolled at birth and followed prospectively up to age 15 years. Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) was applied to estimate individual and joint effects of exposures to metals and micronutrients on childhood OWO while adjusting for pertinent covariables. Stratified analyses by maternal OWO and micronutrient status were performed to identify sensitive subgroups.ResultsIn this sample of understudied US children, low-level in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, and Cd was widespread. Besides individual positive associations of maternal Hg and Pb exposure with offspring OWO, BKMR clearly indicated a positive dose-response association between in-utero co-exposure to the three toxic metals and childhood OWO. Notably, the metal mixture-OWO association was more pronounced in children born to mothers with OWO; and in such a setting, the association was greatly attenuated if mothers had higher Se and folate levels.ConclusionsIn this prospective cohort of US children at high-risk of toxic metal exposure and OWO, we demonstrated that among children born to mothers with OWO, low-level in-utero co-exposure to Hg, Pb, and Cd increased the risk of childhood OWO; and that adequate maternal Se and folate levels mitigated the risk of childhood OWO.Clinical trial registry number and website where it was obtainedNCT03228875.

Project description:BackgroundRacial and ethnic minoritized groups are disproportionately at risk for Alzheimer's Disease (AD), but are not sufficiently recruited in AD neuroimaging research in the United States. This is important as sample composition impacts generalizability of findings, biomarker cutoffs, and treatment effects. No studies have quantified the breadth of race/ethnicity representation in the AD literature.MethodsThis review identified median race/ethnicity composition of AD neuroimaging US-based research samples available as free full-text articles on PubMed. Two types of published studies were analyzed: studies that directly report race/ethnicity data (i.e., direct studies), and studies that do not report race/ethnicity but used data from a cohort study/database that does report this information (i.e., indirect studies).ResultsDirect studies (n = 719) have median representation of 88.9% white or 87.4% Non-Hispanic white, 7.3% Black/African American, and 3.4% Hispanic/Latino ethnicity, with 0% Asian American, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaska Native, Multiracial, and Other Race participants. Cohort studies/databases (n = 44) from which indirect studies (n = 1745) derived are more diverse, with median representation of 84.2% white, 83.7% Non-Hispanic white, 11.6% Black/African American, 4.7% Hispanic/Latino, and 1.75% Asian American participants. Notably, 94% of indirect studies derive from just 10 cohort studies/databases. Comparisons of two time periods using a median split for publication year, 1994-2017 and 2018-2022, indicate that sample diversity has improved recently, particularly for Black/African American participants (3.39% from 1994-2017 and 8.29% from 2018-2022).ConclusionsThere is still underrepresentation of all minoritized groups relative to Census data, especially for Hispanic/Latino and Asian American individuals. The AD neuroimaging literature will benefit from increased representative recruitment of ethnic/racial minorities. More transparent reporting of race/ethnicity data is needed.

Dataset Information

Unequal airborne exposure to toxic metals associated with race, ethnicity, and segregation in the USA.

Publications

Unequal airborne exposure to toxic metals associated with race, ethnicity, and segregation in the USA.

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