Table 3.
Associations of various independent variables with blood mercury concentrations based on univariable General Linear Models (266 matched pairs).
| Variables | Category | Yes | No | P-Value ** | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean Hg * (μg/L) | N | Mean Hg * (μg/L) | N | ||||
| ASD status | Autism Spectrum Disorder | 0.62 | 266 | 0.76 | 266 | <0.01 | |
| Child’s age (months) | Age ≥ 72 | 1.07 | 157 | 0.57 | 375 | 0.05 | |
| Child’s sex | Male | 0.71 | 434 | 0.62 | 98 | 0.16 | |
| Socioeconomic status (SES) | Own a car | 0.64 | 256 | 0.73 | 276 | 0.20 | |
| Maternal age a (at child’s birth) | ≥35 years | 0.55 | 82 | 0.71 | 444 | 0.06 | |
| Parental education levels b (at child’s birth) | At least one of the parents had education beyond high school | 0.63 | 284 | 0.75 | 230 | 0.06 | |
| Source of drinking water c | Piped water | 0.69 | 495 | 0.65 | 36 | 0.79 | |
| Fruits and vegetables consumption d | Root vegetables | Yam, sweet potato, or dasheen | 0.75 | 328 | 0.60 | 203 | 0.03 |
| Carrot or pumpkin | 0.70 | 435 | 0.65 | 96 | 0.60 | ||
| Leafy vegetables | Lettuce | 0.75 | 286 | 0.62 | 245 | 0.10 | |
| Callaloo, broccoli, or pak choi | 0.74 | 415 | 0.55 | 116 | 0.02 | ||
| Cabbage | 0.77 | 285 | 0.61 | 246 | 0.03 | ||
| Fruits | Tomatoes | 0.77 | 347 | 0.56 | 184 | <0.01 | |
| Ackee | 0.75 | 301 | 0.62 | 230 | 0.08 | ||
| Avocado | 0.76 | 283 | 0.62 | 248 | 0.06 | ||
| Green banana | 0.74 | 333 | 0.61 | 198 | 0.06 | ||
| Fried plantains | 0.74 | 417 | 0.53 | 114 | <0.01 | ||
| Seafood consumption | High seafood consumption (more than 6 meals per week) | 0.87 | 134 | 0.63 | 398 | <0.01 | |
| Ate salt water fish | 0.79 | 355 | 0.52 | 177 | <0.01 | ||
| Ate fresh water fish (pond fish, tilapia) | 0.76 | 181 | 0.65 | 351 | 0.19 | ||
| Ate sardine, mackerel (canned fish) | 0.74 | 427 | 0.50 | 105 | <0.01 | ||
| Ate tuna (canned fish) | 0.79 | 172 | 0.64 | 360 | 0.07 | ||
| Ate salted fish (pickled mackerel) | 0.73 | 389 | 0.58 | 143 | 0.03 | ||
| Ate shellfish (lobsters, crabs) | 0.87 | 50 | 0.67 | 482 | 0.14 | ||
| Ate shrimp | 0.80 | 76 | 0.67 | 456 | 0.19 | ||
| Genes e | GSTT1 (I *) f | 0.70 | 384 | 0.66 | 134 | 0.61 | |
| GSTM1 (I *) f | 0.70 | 382 | 0.67 | 138 | 0.71 | ||
| GSTP1 (Ile/Ile) g | 0.77 | 132 | 0.66 | 394 | 0.17 | ||
| GSTP1 (Val/Val) g | 0.59 | 111 | 0.72 | 415 | 0.14 | ||
| GSTP1 (Ile/Val) g | 0.69 | 283 | 0.69 | 243 | 0.97 | ||
* Mean Hg indicates the geometric mean of mercury = Exp. [Mean (ln Hg)]; ** P-values are based on GLMs that compare geometric mean blood mercury concentrations between children who had the characteristic described (in the “Yes” column) and those who did not (in the “No” column); The “Yes” column includes participants who had the characteristic described for the categories in each variable; The “No” column includes participants who did not have the characteristic described for the categories in each variable; a Maternal age was missing for 6 participants; b Parental education level was missing for 18 participants; c Source of drinking water was missing for one participant; d Fruits and vegetables consumption was missing for one participant; e Results based on 259 matched pairs for GSTT1, 260 pairs for GSTM1, and 263 pair for GSTP1; f I* indicates the homozygote (I/I) or a heterozygote (I/D) for GSTT1 and GSTM1; g GSTP1 has three categories (Ile/Ile, Ile/Val, and Val/Val).