Studies of lead and cadmium exposure in Glasgow, U.K.

Domestic water and whole blood samples were collected early in 1981 from two hundred volunteers living in the Glasgow area of Scotland, U.K. The concentration of lead in the water and blood samples, and of cadmium in the blood, was measured. The blood lead and cadmium concentrations were compared to those obtained in the Survey of 1979. There has been a fall in blood lead concentrations since the 1979 Survey. In contrast, the blood cadmium levels had remained similar. This diminution in blood lead concentration is attributed to a fall in water lead concentration caused by raising the pH of the water supply in the Glasgow area. The main determinant for cadmium in blood appears to be cigarette smoking habits, which had not changed.