Methylmercury (MeHg) is a contaminant present in fish which exerts a severe impact on health predominantly exhibiting neurotoxicity that might irreversibly affect fetal neurodevelopment. Fish consumption in Portugal is the third highest in the world, particularly high in regions with fishing tradition such as the Madeira Archipelago. Therefore, this study aimed at assessing the risk of exposure to MeHg in a population of pregnant women residing in Madeira. Blood samples from pregnant women (533) and umbilical cord (194) were collected from volunteer participants collected at primary health services in Madeira (Portugal) and analyzed for total mercury (HgT) level. A food-frequency questionnaire was used to estimate exposure and indices of risk while HgT in blood were correlated with estimated exposure. Analysis of HgT levels in blood indicated that 30% of pregnant women surpassed the maximum safe level of 10 µg/L recommended by the WHO, which was derived from the consumption of predatory fish, rich in MeHg. In addition, HgT levels in cord blood were 1.3 fold higher than in maternal blood, indicating the high risk of exposure to MeHg in this population. It is thus important to provide nutritional advice concerning fish consumption as a food choice in order to reduce fetal exposure and potential neurologic damage.

中文翻译：

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使用接触生物标志物和食物频率调查表对马德拉岛（葡萄牙）孕妇和新生儿中甲基汞的风险评估。

甲基汞（MeHg）是鱼类中存在的一种污染物，会对健康产生严重影响，主要表现为神经毒性，可能会不可逆地影响胎儿神经发育。葡萄牙的鱼类消费量是世界第三高，特别是在马德拉群岛等具有捕鱼传统的地区。因此，本研究旨在评估居住在马德拉岛的孕妇人群中暴露于甲基汞的风险。孕妇（533）和脐带血（194）的血液样本来自在马德拉（葡萄牙）的初级卫生服务机构收集的志愿者参与者，并分析了总汞（HgT）水平。使用食物频率问卷来估计暴露和风险指数，而血液中的HgT与估计的暴露相关。对血液中HgT水平的分析表明，有30％的孕妇超过了WHO推荐的最大安全水平10 µg / L，这是由于食用富含MeHg的掠食性鱼类而产生的。此外，脐带血中的HgT水平比母体血液中高1.3倍，表明该人群中暴露于MeHg的风险很高。因此，重要的是要提供有关鱼类食用的营养建议作为食物选择，以减少胎儿接触和潜在的神经系统损害。