Lars Rylander and colleagues from the University of Lund, Sweden, studied the incidence of type 2 diabetes in196 fishermen and 184 fishermen's wives, and analysed levels in their blood of the POP residue CB-153, and DDE, the main by-product of DDT. Levels of both residues reflect exposure to POPs.
Rylander et al.'s results show that 6% of men and 5% of women who took part in the study have diabetes. Those that were found to have type 2 diabetes have significantly higher blood levels of both CB-153 and DDE than non-diabetics in the group of fisherman and fisherman's wives, which suggests high exposure to POPs. A statistical analysis of the results shows that exposure to CB-153 and DDE is significantly associated with a high prevalence of diabetes.
Article: A cross-sectional study of the association between persistent organochlorine pollutants and diabetes
Lars Rylander, Anna Rignell-Hydbom and Lars Hagmar
Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source, in press
Environmental Health