Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children
Poor water quality has been reported along with a variety of negative health outcomes in the Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria. We assessed the concentration of elements in drinking water and urine in refugee women and children. Twenty-four samples of distributed public drinking water were collected...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2018-07-01
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| Series: | Toxics |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/6/3/40 |
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| author | Inger Aakre Sigrun Henjum Elin Lovise Folven Gjengedal Camilla Risa Haugstad Marie Vollset Khalil Moubarak Tecber Saleh Ahmed Jan Alexander Marian Kjellevold Marianne Molin |
| author_facet | Inger Aakre Sigrun Henjum Elin Lovise Folven Gjengedal Camilla Risa Haugstad Marie Vollset Khalil Moubarak Tecber Saleh Ahmed Jan Alexander Marian Kjellevold Marianne Molin |
| author_sort | Inger Aakre |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Poor water quality has been reported along with a variety of negative health outcomes in the Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria. We assessed the concentration of elements in drinking water and urine in refugee women and children. Twenty-four samples of distributed public drinking water were collected, along with urine samples from 77 women and 296 children. Using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, we analyzed water and urine for 31 and 10 elements, respectively. In addition, the water samples were analyzed for five anions by ion-exchange chromatography. Data were described according to two areas: zone 1 with purified water and water with naturally better quality, and zone 2 with only partially purified water. Most elements in drinking water had significantly higher concentration in zone 2 compared with zone 1. Sodium, chloride, nitrite, and nitrate were the parameters that exceeded the WHO Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality. Among both women and children, urinary concentration of vanadium, arsenic, selenium, lead, iodine, and uranium exceeded reference values, and most of the elements were significantly higher in zone 2 compared to zone 1. Even though water purification in the Saharawi refugee camps has increased during the last years, some elements are still exceeding the WHO guidelines for drinking water quality. Moreover, urinary exposure of some elements exceeded reference values from the literature. Further effort should be made to improve the water quality among the Saharawi refugees. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T16:48:54Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-61849355d2b540a592bb407c7c66f071 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2305-6304 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T16:48:54Z |
| publishDate | 2018-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Toxics |
| spelling | doaj.art-61849355d2b540a592bb407c7c66f0712022-12-22T03:24:28ZengMDPI AGToxics2305-63042018-07-01634010.3390/toxics6030040toxics6030040Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young ChildrenInger Aakre0Sigrun Henjum1Elin Lovise Folven Gjengedal2Camilla Risa Haugstad3Marie Vollset4Khalil Moubarak5Tecber Saleh Ahmed6Jan Alexander7Marian Kjellevold8Marianne Molin9Institute of Marine Research, 5817 Bergen, NorwayDepartment of Nursing and Health Promotion, Faculty of Health Sciences, OsloMet-Oslo Metropolitan University, 0310 Oslo, NorwayFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1433 Aas, NorwayFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1433 Aas, NorwayFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1433 Aas, NorwaySaharawi Ministry of Public Health, 37000 Rabouni, AlgeriaSaharawi Ministry of Public Health, 37000 Rabouni, AlgeriaDivision of Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, 0403 Oslo, NorwayDepartment of Nursing and Health Promotion, Faculty of Health Sciences, OsloMet-Oslo Metropolitan University, 0310 Oslo, NorwayDepartment of Nursing and Health Promotion, Faculty of Health Sciences, OsloMet-Oslo Metropolitan University, 0310 Oslo, NorwayPoor water quality has been reported along with a variety of negative health outcomes in the Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria. We assessed the concentration of elements in drinking water and urine in refugee women and children. Twenty-four samples of distributed public drinking water were collected, along with urine samples from 77 women and 296 children. Using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, we analyzed water and urine for 31 and 10 elements, respectively. In addition, the water samples were analyzed for five anions by ion-exchange chromatography. Data were described according to two areas: zone 1 with purified water and water with naturally better quality, and zone 2 with only partially purified water. Most elements in drinking water had significantly higher concentration in zone 2 compared with zone 1. Sodium, chloride, nitrite, and nitrate were the parameters that exceeded the WHO Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality. Among both women and children, urinary concentration of vanadium, arsenic, selenium, lead, iodine, and uranium exceeded reference values, and most of the elements were significantly higher in zone 2 compared to zone 1. Even though water purification in the Saharawi refugee camps has increased during the last years, some elements are still exceeding the WHO guidelines for drinking water quality. Moreover, urinary exposure of some elements exceeded reference values from the literature. Further effort should be made to improve the water quality among the Saharawi refugees.http://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/6/3/40drinking waterurinetrace elementschemical elementsthyroid dysfunction |
| spellingShingle | Inger Aakre Sigrun Henjum Elin Lovise Folven Gjengedal Camilla Risa Haugstad Marie Vollset Khalil Moubarak Tecber Saleh Ahmed Jan Alexander Marian Kjellevold Marianne Molin Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children Toxics drinking water urine trace elements chemical elements thyroid dysfunction |
| title | Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children |
| title_full | Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children |
| title_fullStr | Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children |
| title_full_unstemmed | Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children |
| title_short | Trace Element Concentrations in Drinking Water and Urine among Saharawi Women and Young Children |
| title_sort | trace element concentrations in drinking water and urine among saharawi women and young children |
| topic | drinking water urine trace elements chemical elements thyroid dysfunction |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/6/3/40 |
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