Arsenic

Universidad Autónoma de
San Luis Potosí
Applications of the knowledge of the
presence of fluorides and/or arsenic in
drinking water and its health effects
Dra. María Deogracias Ortiz Pérez
mdortiz@uaslp.mx
Fluoride and arsenic in drinking
water
Adapted from Inheriting the World: The Atlas of Children's Health and
the Environment © WHO 2004
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/en/
Health effects
FLUORIDE
•Dental Fluorosis : 65 % children in San Luis Potosi City
•Crippling Skeletal Fluorosis : Occupational exposure
•Reproductive: FSH, free testosterone, inhibin-B in exposed workers
•Neurological effect: impairments of visual spatial organization in children
ARSENIC
•Skin lesions: 0.014 mg/Kg/día
•Cardiovascular effects
• Mutagenic and carcinogenic effects: 0.050 mg/L
•Central and peripheric damage to the nervous system
• Enzymatic inhibition
Local Action
• MULTIDISCIPLINAR AND INSTITUTIONAL TEAM
PREVENTION IS URGENT TO DECREASE HEALTH EFFECTS
Compromises
9Quantification of the contamination level through fluoride and/or
arsenic in drinking water from the State of San Luis Potosí.
9 To encourage and support a modification of water laws in the
State concerning not only the availability of water, but also its
quality.
9 Creation of a council that finances research about the quality
of water.
9To put forward a federal communication campaign directed to
the general population to inform about water contamination with
fluoride and arsenic .
9To achieve the modification of the permissible fluoride and
arsenic levels in water to 0.7 mg F/L and to 10 µg As/L in the
Mexican normative.
ARSENIC
1 4.0
1 2.0
1 0.0
8 .0
6.0
4.0
2.0
City of San Luis
Potosí, S.L.P.
México
2004-2005
FLUORIDE
4.0
Fluoride
mg/L
Arsenic
µg/L
< 0.7
<5
0.71 a 1.5
5 a 10
1.5 a 3.0
10 a 12
3.1 a 4.2
12 a 14
NOM 127 = 1.5
NOM 127= 25
3.5
3 .0
2.5
2.0
1 .5
1.0
0 .5
FLUORIDE
3.1 to 5.43 mg/L
FLUORIDE
1.51 to 3.0 mg/L
0.71 to 1.5 mg/L
< 0.7 mg/L
FLUORUROS
13 municipios
60 localities
Arsenic µg/L
ARSENIC
25 to 150
10.1 to 25
< 10
26 localities
Number of habitants that could be exposed to
fluoride and arsenic in drinking water in rural areas
F-
As
12, 840
13, 080
5,070
4,633
☺
☺
61,730
22,770
☺
As > 10 µg/L F- > 0.7 mg/L
As
As > 25 µg/L
F-
F- > 1.5 mg/L
21,417
41,747
113,703
15,060
9,450
☺
☺
41,630
☺
Urine fluoride in children
Localities of San Luis Potosi State
Margination
level
Locality
Municipality
Santo
Domingo
Santo
Domingo
low
La
Reforma
Salinas de
Hidalgo
high
Santa
Matilde
Santo
Domingo
medium
El Barril
Villa de
Ramos
Fluoride in
water
(mg/L)
LC 95% ±
n
Mean
mgF-/g
creatinine
Range
mgF/g
creatinine
% > 1.5
mg F/g*
creatinine
4.81 ± 0.029
31
4.98
1.56 – 15.79
100
4.32 ± 0.021
33
7.57
1.67 – 20.97
100
2.35 ± 0.034
32
4.46
1.35 – 9.73
93.93
1.55 ± 0.063
29
2.27
0.61 – 4.59
82.75
high
NOM-127
* Fluoride concentration in water ≤ 1.5 mg/L.
1.5
CONAPO, 2004
El Barril, Villa de Ramos
San Luis Potosí
Water fluoride = 1.55 mg/L,
September, 2004
Elementary school
NOM-127= 1.5 mg/L
Fluoride Monitoring of purified water,
San Luis Potosí City
90
80
70
60
50
% Mayor
ppm
> 0. 70.7
mg/L
40
30
20
10
0
15-IX 18-XI 15-I
1998 1998 1999
25-III 14-VI 22-IX 7-XII
1999 1999 1999 1999
17-II 15-VI 15-I 30-V- 28-XI- 21-II2000 2000 2001 2001 2001 2002
NOM-041 1998-2002 0.7 mg Fluoride/L
% Menor
0.7 ppm
< 0.7 mg/L
In Mexico…
Fluoride
Arsenic
Fluoride
Arsenic
8-624 µg/L
180 µg/L
5 mg/L
150 µg/L
14 a 1000 µg/L
5, 10, 12 mg/L
4, 6, 12 mg/L
4, 6 mg/L
http://mapserver.inegi.gob.mx/geografia/espanol/datosgeogra/basicos/estados/Capitales.cfm?c=510
Final Proposal of the
Multidisciplinar Team
• Monitoring the quality of drinking water in states of
Mexico.
•Local information to the population about quality of
water in order to prevent health effects.
•To provide the localities with purified water at low
costs. This goal has been already achieved in the most
contaminated locality of San Luis Potosí.