Combination effects of toxic chemicals and elements among children/adolescents - an integration of epidemiological methodology and bio-testing - CETCHAA

Background

The project is unique in Sweden and the results will be an important basis for the work to achieve Sweden's environmental quality objective “A non-toxic environment”. The more than 90 chemicals investigated are not only a problem in Sweden but also globally. The results are therefore also important for the long-term work to achieve the UN's global sustainability goals, including “Good health and well-being”, “Clean water and sanitation for all”, “Reduced inequality, and ‘Sustainable consumption and production’.

Project overview

The project focuses on early life exposures and effects on the health of children and adolescents. This period of life is a sensitive 'window' for health effects as the body is still developing. Knowledge about the health of children and adolescents in relation to the chemical mixtures they are exposed to is limited. The three main parts of the project are:

• Epidemiological studies where we investigate which chemical mixtures children and young people are exposed to in Sweden and what effects these mixtures may have on health
  Laboratory tests of how identified chemical mixtures affect important health processes in the body.
• Assessment of the health risks of the chemical mixtures to which children and young people are exposed.

The project is carried out in close collaboration with the Swedish Food Agency (Livsmedelsverket), through their surveys of first-time mothers', and their children's, exposure to persistent chemicals - POPUP, and the food habits survey Riksmaten ungdom 2016-17.