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National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

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Your Environment. Your Health.

Publication Detail

Title: Protective effects of B vitamins and antioxidants on the risk of arsenic-related skin lesions in Bangladesh.

Authors: Zablotska, Lydia B; Chen, Yu; Graziano, Joseph H; Parvez, Faruque; van Geen, Alexander; Howe, Geoffrey R; Ahsan, Habibul

Published In Environ Health Perspect, (2008 Aug)

Abstract: An estimated 25-40 million of the 127 million people of Bangladesh have been exposed to high levels of naturally occurring arsenic from drinking groundwater. The mitigating effects of diet on arsenic-related premalignant skin lesions are largely unknown.The purpose of this study was to clarify the effects of the vitamin B group (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, pyridoxine, and cobalamin) and antioxidants (vitamins A, C, and E) on arsenic-related skin lesions.We performed a cross-sectional study using baseline data from the Health Effects of Arsenic Longitudinal Study (HEALS), 2000-2002, with individual-level, time-weighted measures of arsenic exposure from drinking water. A total of 14,828 individuals meeting a set of eligibility criteria were identified among 65,876 users of all 5,996 tube wells in the 25-km(2) area of Araihazar, Bangladesh; 11,746 were recruited into the study. This analysis is based on 10,628 subjects (90.5%) with nonmissing dietary data. Skin lesions were identified according to a structured clinical protocol during screening and confirmed with further clinical review.Riboflavin, pyridoxine, folic acid, and vitamins A, C, and E significantly modified risk of arsenic-related skin lesions. The deleterious effect of ingested arsenic, at a given exposure level, was significantly reduced (ranging from 46% reduction for pyridoxine to 68% for vitamin C) for persons in the highest quintiles of vitamin intake.Intakes of B-vitamins and antioxidants, at doses greater than the current recommended daily amounts for the country, may reduce the risk of arsenic-related skin lesions in Bangladesh.

PubMed ID: 18709164 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Adult; Antioxidants/administration & dosage; Antioxidants/pharmacology*; Arsenic*; Ascorbic Acid/administration & dosage; Ascorbic Acid/pharmacology; Bangladesh; Cross-Sectional Studies; Environmental Exposure; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Precancerous Conditions/chemically induced; Precancerous Conditions/prevention & control*; Risk Factors; Skin Diseases/chemically induced; Skin Diseases/prevention & control*; Vitamin A/administration & dosage; Vitamin A/pharmacology; Vitamin B Complex/administration & dosage; Vitamin B Complex/pharmacology*; Vitamin E/administration & dosage; Vitamin E/pharmacology

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