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How does dioxin affect human health?
November 10, 1999In an EU-funded project involving four partners , a study was made of 159 Austrian chemical workers who had been exposed to dioxin when producing herbicide between 1969 and 1973. Mortality and morbidity were analysed in 1996. All had exhibited chloracne, and analysis of related health-insurance data revealed 30 deaths, significant time off work for sickness, and treatment for skin disease, as well as neurological, gastrointestinal and liver disease. 56 of the survivors participated in standardised health checks which were also offered to non-chemical workers by the same team. In addition, 50 of the exposed workers volunteered to undergo various blood and urine tests. The data collected were compared with those of 100 workers with no dioxin exposure. Neurological and gastrointestinal symptoms were found more frequently among those exposed to dioxin and the level of liver enzymes in their blood was higher. The effects of dioxin exposure and alcohol on liver functions were found to be independent of each other.
The study also shows a higher dioxin concentration in the blood of workers with a history of liver disease. Multivariate analyses indicate chronic liver damage after high dioxin exposure at a young age. 48% of those exposed excreted abnormal porphyrins in their urine. This abnormality correlated with higher dioxin concentrations and higher levels of liver enzymes in the blood. It was also established that the half-life of dioxin (usually 7 years in the human body) increases some years after contamination. Finally, in two subjects who had lost a considerable amount of weight between 1990 and 1996, the concentration of dioxin in the blood actually increased due to its release from fat deposits. For this reason, the authors discourage rapid weight loss, even in the third decade after poisoning, and recommend continuation of preventive check-ups.
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Paris (IRD)
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