Lead exposure remains an important public health problem. Contaminated foods may act as a source of lead exposure, while certain nutrients may reduce lead absorption. We examined the cross-sectional associations of dietary patterns and the intake of several nutrients and foods with blood (Pb-B) and urinary (Pb-U) lead concentrations in children (5–8 y) from Montevideo, Uruguay. From two 24-hour recalls completed by caregivers, we derived the mean daily intake of select nutrients and food groups (dairy, milk, fruit, root vegetables, foods rich in heme and non-heme iron), as well as “nutrient dense” and “processed” food patterns. Pb-B (n = 315) was measured using atomic absorption spectrometry; Pb-U (n = 321) using ICP-MS. Pb-U was adjusted for specific gravity and log-transformed to approximate a normal distribution. Iron deficiency (ID) and dietary variables were tested as predictors of Pb-B and log-Pb-U in covariate-adjusted regressions. Median [5%, 95%] Pb-B and Pb-U were 3.8 [0.8–7.8] μg/dL and 1.9 [0.6–5.1] μg/L, respectively; ~ 25% of Pb-B above current U.S. CDC reference concentration of 5 μg/dL. ID was associated with 0.75 μg/dL higher Pb-B, compared to non-ID (p < 0.05). Consumption of root vegetables was not associated with Pb-B or log-Pb-U. Higher scores on the nutrient-dense pattern were related with higher Pb-Bs, possibly due to consumption of green leafy vegetables. Dietary intake of iron or iron-rich foods was not associated with biomarkers of lead. Conversely, children consuming more calcium, dairy, milk and yogurt had lower Pb-B and log-Pb-U. Our findings appear consistent with existing recommendations on including calcium-rich, but not iron- or vitamin-C-rich foods in the diets of lead-exposed children, especially where the consumption of these foods is low.

铅暴露仍然是重要的公共卫生问题。受污染的食物可能会导致铅暴露，而某些营养物质可能会减少铅的吸收。我们检查了 来自乌拉圭蒙得维的亚儿童（5至8岁）的饮食模式以及几种营养物质和食物与血液（Pb-B）和尿液（Pb-U）铅浓度的横断面关联。从看护人完成的两次24小时召回中，我们得出了某些营养素和食物组（奶制品，牛奶，水果，块根类蔬菜，富含血红素和非血红素铁的食物）以及“营养密集型”食品的平均每日摄入量和“加工”食品模式。使用原子吸收光谱法测量Pb-B（n  =  315）；铅-铀（n  = 321）使用ICP-MS。调整Pb-U的比重，并进行对数转换以近似正态分布。在协变量校正后的回归中，将铁缺乏症（ID）和饮食变量作为Pb-B和log-Pb-U的预测指标进行了测试。Pb-B和Pb-U的中位数[5％，95％]分别为3.8 [0.8-7.8]μg/ dL和1.9 [0.6-5.1]μg/ L； 比目前的美国CDC参考浓度 5μg/ dL高约25％的Pb-B 。 与非ID相比，ID与Pb-B高0.75μg / dL相关（p  < 0.05）。食用根菜类蔬菜与Pb-B或log-Pb-U无关。营养密集型评分较高与Pb-Bs较高有关，这可能是由于食用绿叶蔬菜引起的。饮食中铁或富含铁的食物的摄入与铅的生物标志物无关。相反，摄入更多钙，奶，牛奶和酸奶的儿童的Pb-B和log-Pb-U较低。我们的发现似乎与现有建议相一致，即在含铅儿童的饮食中，特别是在这些食物的消费量较低的情况下，将富含钙的食物而不是富含铁或维生素C的食物。