Chemical Characterization and Assessment of Public Health Risk due to Inhalation of PM2.5 in the City of Salamanca, Guanajuato.

In this study, we conducted an analysis of health risks faced by residents of Salamanca, Mexico, who were exposed to fine particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 µm (PM2.5) through inhalation. The characterization and analysis of these particulate matter samples were undertaken. A total of 131 samples were collected from two different sites: 65 from the Red Cross site (RC) and 66 from the Integral Family Development site (DIF) in 2014-2015. These samples were analyzed for a set of chemical components, including metals and ions. Non-cancerous health risk levels associated with PM2.5 exposure through the human respiratory system, as per the WHO benchmark (assigned a value of 1), revealed notable risk values for two elements: Manganese (Mn) with a range of 1.19-2.12 in the adult population and 1.59-2.84 in the child population, and Nickel (Ni) with a uniform risk value of 1.39 for both evaluated population groups. However, concerns arose regarding potential non-cancerous effects as the cumulative risk levels for various assessed elements showed elevated indices. These ranged from 3.81 to 4.4 in adults and 4.48-5.24 in children. This study provided comprehensive data on composition and its potential impact on human health, offering valuable insights for the implementation of mitigation measures aimed at reducing inhalation-related exposure.

Adverse childhood experiences and crime outcomes in early adulthood: A multi-method approach in a Brazilian birth cohort.

This study aimed to investigate alternative approaches to a cumulative risk score in the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and crime. Using data from the 1993 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort (n = 3236), we measured 12 ACEs up to 15 years, and past-year violent and non-violent crime at 22 years. We used four analytical approaches: single adversities, cumulative risk, latent class analysis, and network analysis. When examined individually, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and domestic violence were associated with both crime outcomes, whereas maternal mental illness and discrimination were associated with violent crime only, and parental divorce and poverty with non-violent crime only. There was a cumulative effect of ACEs on crime. The class with child maltreatment and household challenges was associated with both crime outcomes; exposure to household challenges and social risks was associated with violent crime only. In network models, crime showed conditional associations with physical abuse, maternal mental illness, and parental divorce. Although cumulative ACEs did associate with crime, some individual and combinations of ACEs showed particularly strong and robust effects, which were not captured by the cumulative score. Many ACEs are closely connected and/or cluster together, and the usefulness of the ACE score needs to be further evaluated.

Childhood adversity increases risk of psychotic experiences in patients with substance use disorder.

INTRODUCTION: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) increase the risk of psychotic experiences (PE), but little is known about heterogeneities of this association in different developmental stages, dimensions, or whether they are affected by substance use disorder (SUD). This study examines the association between different types of ACEs at various developmental stages and lifetime PE in patients with SUD in Chile. METHODS: We included 399 consenting adults in outpatient or residential SUD treatment programs. Sociodemographic data and information about PE and ACEs were obtained by trained clinical psychologists. RESULTS: Patients reporting PE experienced more ACEs compared to patients without PE (4.2 versus 3.4). They also experienced more complex adversities (41.8% versus 25.1%), had more psychiatric comorbidities (85% versus 70.4%), and reported using more substances (mean 4.5 versus 3.9). Adjusted association between ACEs and PE showed the highest OR for arrests (1.88), sexual abuse (1.81), alcohol abuse by parents (1.48), school exclusion (1.39), foster or residential care (18.3). CONCLUSION: Early exposure to ACEs is a risk factor for later PE among patients with SUD. Type of ACE and the period when they occurred is important, suggesting the existence of critical periods where the individual is more susceptible to adverse environmental stimuli.

Aplicação dos princípios do RISK21 na avaliação do risco de inseticidas da classe dos piretróides / The use of RISK21 principles in the risk assessment of pyrethroids

A avaliação do risco é um processo científico e sistemático que incorpora quantitativamente o perigo e a exposição a diversos agentes. O processo de avaliação do risco tem evoluído nos últimos anos, indo além da exposição a únicos agentes e vias de exposição para a caracterização do risco cumulativo a múltiplos agentes. As metodologias para avaliação do risco cumulativo não são harmonizadas o que pode tornar o processo complexo. Nesta linha, a abordagem do RISK21 promovida pelo Health Environmental Science Institute (HESI) pode contribuir para desmistificar o tema. A exposição combinada da ingestão de resíduos de praguicidas através da dieta e do uso residencial de produtos a base de piretróides pela população brasileira não são conhecidas. Os piretróides são praguicidas utilizados na lavoura, bem como em ambiente doméstico no controle de pragas. O mecanismo de toxicidade destes agentes é bem conhecido e de relevância para a saúde humana, pois atuam sobre a permeabilidade iônica dos canais de sódio sensíveis a voltagem (CSSV), produzindo efeitos na excitabilidade das terminações nervosas. Como os seres humanos são potencialmente expostos a estes agentes, portanto, torna-se importante compreender os riscos cumulativos da exposição a estes praguicidas pela população brasileira. O objetivo deste trabalho foi conduzir a avaliação do risco dos piretróides registrados no Brasil com base nos princípios do RISK21. A abordagem em etapas proposta pelo RISK21 demonstrou que o risco da ingestão crônica e aguda de resíduos de piretróides foi considerado aceitável. Além disso, não foi observada qualquer preocupação toxicológica decorrente da exposição residencial a estes agentes. Quando combinados os cenários da dieta aguda e residencial, também não foram observados níveis de preocupação, portanto, o risco foi considerado aceitável. A avaliação do risco dos piretróides registrados para o uso agrícola e residencial no Brasil com base nos principios do RISK21 foi uma importante etapa neste trabalho, uma vez que foi possível avaliar o risco e preocupações para cada um dos praguicidas de maneira rápida e visual. Além disso, mesmo considerando premissas altamente conservadoras, observou-se que a população exposta de maneira combinada a estes agentes não demonstrou um nível de preocupação para o cenário brasileiro

Risk assessment is a scientific and systematic approach that quantitatively incorporates hazard and exposure to agents' evaluation. The risk assessment process has evolved in recent years, going beyond exposure to single agents and pathways to characterize multiple agents' cumulative risk. Cumulative risk assessment methodologies are not harmonized, which can make the process complex. In this line, the RISK21 approach promoted by the Health Environmental Science Institute (HESI) can demystify the subject. The combined exposure of residue intake through diet and residential use of pyrethroid-based products by the Brazilian population is unknown. Pyrethroids are pesticides used in the crop as well as in a domestic environment in pest control. The mechanism of toxicity of these agents is well known and relevant to human health, as they act on the ionic permeability of voltage-sensitive sodium channels (VSSC), producing effects on the excitability of nerve endings. As human beings are potentially exposed to these agents, it is essential to understand the cumulative risks derived from the exposure to these pesticides by the Brazilian population. The objective of this research was to conduct the risk assessment based on the principles of RISK21 of pyrethroids registered in Brazil. The stepwise approach proposed by RISK21 demonstrated that the risk of chronic and acute ingestion of pyrethroid residues was considered acceptable. Furthermore, no toxicological concern stemming from residential exposure to these agents was observed. When acute and residential diet scenarios were combined, no levels of concern were also observed, so the risk was considered acceptable. The risk assessment based on the principles of RISK21 of pyrethroids registered for agricultural and residential use in Brazil was an essential step in this research since it was possible to assess the risk and concerns for each of the pesticides in a fast and visual way. Moreover, from highly conservative premises, it was observed that the population exposed in combination with these agents did not demonstrate a level of concern for the Brazilian scena

A flow scheme for cumulative assessment of pesticides for adverse liver effects.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is developing approaches to cumulative risk assessment by assigning pesticides to cumulative assessment groups (CAGs). For assignment to CAGs, EFSA relies on common toxic effects (CTEs) on the target system. The developed flow scheme for assignment to liver CAGs sequentially assesses the consistency of the CTE, its adversity, its potential to be secondary to other toxicities, its human relevance, and the relation of the NOAEL for the CTE to the overall NOAEL. If the responses to all questions are "yes", allocation to a CAG is supported; "no" stops the process.

Cumulative socio-demographic risk factors and sleep outcomes in early childhood.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To examine associations between cumulative socio-demographic risk factors, sleep health habits, and sleep disorder symptoms in young children. METHODS: Two hundred five caregiver-child dyads (child mean age ± SD: 3.3 ± 1.1 years; 53.7% girls; 62.9% black, 22.4% non-Hispanic/Latinx white, 4.4% Hispanic/Latinx; 85.4% maternal caregiver reporter) completed caregiver-rated sleep measures (Brief Child Sleep Questionnaire [BCSQ]; Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire [PSQ] snoring subscale), which were used to generate indexes of poor sleep health habits, pediatric insomnia symptoms, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) symptoms. A cumulative risk index was created reflecting caregiver, family, and neighborhood risks. RESULTS: Overall, 84.5% of children had ≥ 1 poor sleep health habit, 62.9% had ≥ 1 insomnia symptom, and 40.0% had ≥ 1 OSA symptom. Poisson regression indicated that each increase in the number of cumulative risk factors was associated with a 10% increase in poor sleep health habits, a 9% increase in insomnia symptoms, and an 18% increase in OSA symptoms. Specific caregiver risks (depressive symptoms, lower educational attainment) and family risks (single caregiver, crowded home) were most predictive of poor sleep outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Poor sleep health habits and sleep disorder symptoms are highly prevalent in early childhood, particularly among families experiencing cumulative socio-demographic risks. Findings underscore the need for targeted screening and prevention for modifiable sleep behaviors and efforts to tailor such strategies for at-risk children and families, especially those living in crowded conditions, or with caregivers who are single or have a lower educational attainment or depressive symptoms.

Stress of Language Brokering and Mexican American Adolescents' Adjustment: The Role of Cumulative Risk.

This study focused on early adolescents' stress of language brokering and examined the moderating role of family cumulative risk in the relation of language brokering to adjustment problems. Data came from self-reports of 604 low-income Mexican American adolescent language brokers (54% female; X ¯ age = 12.4 ; SD = 0.97; 75% born in the United States) and their parents (99% foreign-born) in central Texas. Path analyses revealed that brokering stress, but not frequency, was positively associated with adolescents' adjustment problems, including depressive symptoms, anxiety, and delinquency. We also found that the relation between stress of brokering for mothers and adolescents' depressive symptoms was stronger among families with a high cumulative risk. Further, with a high cumulative risk, adolescents exhibited delinquent behaviors regardless of the levels of stress from translating for fathers. Current findings underscore the importance of examining family contexts in assessing the consequences of language brokering for Mexican American early adolescents' well-being.

Maternal Adverse Childhood Experience and Infant Health: Biomedical and Psychosocial Risks as Intermediary Mechanisms.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the mechanisms accounting for the transfer of risk from one generation to the next, especially as they relate to maternal adverse childhood experiences and infant physical and emotional health outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: Participants were 501 community mother-infant dyads recruited shortly after the birth and followed up at 18 months. Mothers retrospectively reported on their adverse childhood experiences. The main outcome measures were parent-reported infant physical health and emotional problems. Potential mechanisms of intergenerational transmission included cumulative biomedical risk (eg, prenatal and perinatal complications) and postnatal psychosocial risk (eg, maternal depression, single parenthood, marital conflict). RESULTS: Four or more adverse childhood experiences were related to a 2- and 5-fold increased risk of experiencing any biomedical or psychosocial risk, respectively. There was a linear association between number of adverse childhood experiences and extent of biomedical and psychosocial risk. Path analysis revealed that the association between maternal adverse childhood experiences and infant physical health operated specifically through cumulative biomedical risk, while the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and infant emotional health operated specifically through cumulative psychosocial risk. This pattern was not explained by maternal childhood disadvantage or current neighborhood poverty. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal adverse childhood experiences confer vulnerability to prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal psychosocial health. The association between adverse childhood experiences and offspring physical and emotional health operates through discrete intermediary mechanisms.

Approaches for grouping of pesticides into cumulative assessment groups for risk assessment of pesticide residues in food.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is developing approaches to cumulative risk assessment of pesticides by assigning individual pesticides to cumulative assessment groups (CAGs). For assignment to CAGs, EFSA recommended to rely on adverse effects on the specific target system. Contractors to EFSA have proposed to allocate individual pesticides into CAGs relying on NOAELs for effects on target organs. This manuscript evaluates the assignments by applying EFSAs criteria to the CAGs "Toxicity to the nervous system" and "Toxicity to the thyroid hormone system (gland or hormones)". Assignment to the CAG "Toxicity to the nervous system" based, for example, on neurochemical effects like choline esterase inhibition is well supported, whereas assignment to the CAG "Toxicity to the thyroid hormone system (gland or hormones)" has been based in the examined case studies on non-reproducible effects seen in single studies or on observations that are not adverse. Therefore, a more detailed effects evaluation is required to assign a pesticide to a CAG for a target organ where many confounders regarding effects are present. Relative potency factors in cumulative risk assessment should be based on benchmark doses from studies in one species with identical study design and human relevance of effects on specific target organs should be analyzed to define minimal margins of exposure.

Childhood Adversity and Early Initiation of Alcohol Use in Two Representative Samples of Puerto Rican Youth.

Early alcohol use is associated with multiple negative outcomes later in life, including substance use disorders. Identification of factors related to this very early risk indicator can help inform early prevention efforts. This study prospectively examined the relationship between childhood adversities and early initiation of alcohol use (by age 14) among Puerto Rican youth, the Latino subgroup at highest risk for alcohol use disorders in adulthood. The data come from the Boricua Youth Study, a longitudinal study of Puerto Rican youth in two sites (South Bronx, New York, and the standard metropolitan area of San Juan, Puerto Rico). We focus on youth who were ages 10 and older at Wave 1 [M age at Wave 1 (SE) = 11.64(0.05), N = 1259, 48.85 % females]. Twelve childhood adversities were measured at Wave 1 and include 10 adverse childhood experiences commonly studied and two additional ones (exposure to violence and discrimination) that were deemed relevant for this study's population. Early initiation of alcohol use was determined based on youth report at Waves 1 through 3 (each wave 1 year apart). Cox proportional hazards models showed that, when considered individually, adversities reflecting child maltreatment, parental maladjustment, and sociocultural stressors were related to early initiation of alcohol use. Significant gender interactions were identified for parental emotional problems and exposure to violence, with associations found among girls only. Adversities often co-occurred, and when they were considered jointly, physical and emotional abuse, parental antisocial personality, and exposure to violence had independent associations with early alcohol use, with a stronger influence of exposure to violence in girls compared to boys. The accumulation of adversities, regardless of the specific type of exposure, increased the risk for starting to drink at a young age in a linear way. The associations between childhood adversities and early alcohol use were generally consistent across sociocultural contexts, in spite of differences in the prevalence of exposure to adversity. Our findings highlight the importance of targeting multiple adversities and expanding the notion of adversity to capture the experiences of specific groups more adequately.