Alterations of the menstrual cycle of young adults not occupationally exposed to a mixture of pesticides from an agricultural area of San Luis Potosí, Mexico. A pilot study

Abstract

Persistent organic pollutants are a group of chemical compounds of global concern due to the health damages caused by the exposure to them. Their capacity as endocrine disrupters is one of their main characteristics, being women in reproductive age the most vulner-able population. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of exposure to a mixture of pesticides in the menstrual cycle of a sample of 29 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 years old from El Refugio, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, a community whose predominant activity is agriculture. The participants were trained to record in a diary/ logbook all the events related to their menstrual cycle. Serum levels of sex hormones were measured by chemiluminescence, and plasma concentrations of organochlorine (OC) pesticides and the level of dialkyl phosphates metabolites (DAPs) of organophos-phorus agrochemicals presented in urine were measured through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Around 41.6 % of the participants presented some alteration in their hormonal levels, mainly of follicle-stimulating hormone and progesterone. Of these, OC pesticides in plasma were detected in 62 % (ΣOC = 1651.25 ng/g of lipid), and 66 % had detectable levels of DAPs (ΣDAP = 153.82 mg/g of creatinine). Together, these results suggest damage to the endocrine system that could be generated by exposure to a mixture of OC and organophosphorus pesticides could generate.