Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia
Abstract Background The ger (“tent city”) areas in Mongolia are a product of rapid urbanization and transitional economic development combine with lack of institutional, administrative and financial capacity of governments to cope with the pace. These areas have become traps for inequities in social...
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doaj-535a8fd7b33343cca4c8893109bcf0b62020-11-25T02:51:52ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582019-02-0119111110.1186/s12889-019-6486-xEnvironmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, MongoliaErdenechimeg Erdenebayar0Keilah Dos Santos1Alexjandria Edwards2Nyam-Osor Dugersuren3Chimedsuren Ochir4Jerome Nriagu5Department of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Mongolian National University of Medical SciencesUniversity of MichiganUniversity of MichiganDepartment of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Mongolian National University of Medical SciencesSchool of Public Health, Mongolian National University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of MichiganAbstract Background The ger (“tent city”) areas in Mongolia are a product of rapid urbanization and transitional economic development combine with lack of institutional, administrative and financial capacity of governments to cope with the pace. These areas have become traps for inequities in social and environmental services and the associated effects on human health. Disparities in childhood lead exposure in such communities are largely unexplored. Methods We measured the concentrations of lead in blood of children, aged 4–7 years, in Erdenet (Orkhon Province) and Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul Province), the second and third largest cities in Mongolia. A survey instrument was used to gather information on influencing factors on lead exposure and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess a spectrum of behavioral problems among the children. Results The mean blood lead level (BLL) of children in the two cities was found to be 3.8 ± 2.6 μg/dL (range: < 1.5–17.2 μg/dL) and 27.8% of the children had BLLs ≥5 μg/dL. Average BLL of children in Erdenet (a mining center) was significantly higher than that for children in Darkhan, and there was statistically significant difference between average BLL of children who live in ger district (4.2 ± 2.8 μg/dL) compared to those of children in housing units within the city (3.2 ± 2.4 μg/dL). In spite of the low values, BLLs was significantly associated with a number of effects on the spectrum of behavioral disorders, specifically with the scores for hyperactivity, conduct disorder and pro-social behavior. Conclusions This study shows that childhood lead poisoning is common especially in ger communities of the urban areas of Mongolia. It contributes evidence showing that BLL low as 3.8 μg/dL can selectively activate some effects from a spectrum of likely behavioral disorders in children.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-019-6486-xBlood leadLead exposureEnvironmental justiceSocial inequityBehavioral problemsGer community |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Erdenechimeg Erdenebayar Keilah Dos Santos Alexjandria Edwards Nyam-Osor Dugersuren Chimedsuren Ochir Jerome Nriagu |
spellingShingle |
Erdenechimeg Erdenebayar Keilah Dos Santos Alexjandria Edwards Nyam-Osor Dugersuren Chimedsuren Ochir Jerome Nriagu Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia BMC Public Health Blood lead Lead exposure Environmental justice Social inequity Behavioral problems Ger community |
author_facet |
Erdenechimeg Erdenebayar Keilah Dos Santos Alexjandria Edwards Nyam-Osor Dugersuren Chimedsuren Ochir Jerome Nriagu |
author_sort |
Erdenechimeg Erdenebayar |
title |
Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia |
title_short |
Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia |
title_full |
Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia |
title_fullStr |
Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of Darkhan and Erdenet, Mongolia |
title_sort |
environmental injustice and childhood lead exposure in peri-urban (ger) areas of darkhan and erdenet, mongolia |
publisher |
BMC |
series |
BMC Public Health |
issn |
1471-2458 |
publishDate |
2019-02-01 |
description |
Abstract Background The ger (“tent city”) areas in Mongolia are a product of rapid urbanization and transitional economic development combine with lack of institutional, administrative and financial capacity of governments to cope with the pace. These areas have become traps for inequities in social and environmental services and the associated effects on human health. Disparities in childhood lead exposure in such communities are largely unexplored. Methods We measured the concentrations of lead in blood of children, aged 4–7 years, in Erdenet (Orkhon Province) and Darkhan (Darkhan-Uul Province), the second and third largest cities in Mongolia. A survey instrument was used to gather information on influencing factors on lead exposure and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess a spectrum of behavioral problems among the children. Results The mean blood lead level (BLL) of children in the two cities was found to be 3.8 ± 2.6 μg/dL (range: < 1.5–17.2 μg/dL) and 27.8% of the children had BLLs ≥5 μg/dL. Average BLL of children in Erdenet (a mining center) was significantly higher than that for children in Darkhan, and there was statistically significant difference between average BLL of children who live in ger district (4.2 ± 2.8 μg/dL) compared to those of children in housing units within the city (3.2 ± 2.4 μg/dL). In spite of the low values, BLLs was significantly associated with a number of effects on the spectrum of behavioral disorders, specifically with the scores for hyperactivity, conduct disorder and pro-social behavior. Conclusions This study shows that childhood lead poisoning is common especially in ger communities of the urban areas of Mongolia. It contributes evidence showing that BLL low as 3.8 μg/dL can selectively activate some effects from a spectrum of likely behavioral disorders in children. |
topic |
Blood lead Lead exposure Environmental justice Social inequity Behavioral problems Ger community |
url |
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12889-019-6486-x |
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