Table 2.
Median (interquartile range) levels of blood metals according to characteristics of study participants, NHANES 2011–2014
| Blood cadmium (μg/L) | Blood lead (μg/L) | Blood manganese (μg/L) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics of participants | n (%) | Median (IQR) | Median (IQR) | Median (IQR) |
| Gender | ||||
| Male | 869 (49) | 0.35 (0.20–0.57) | 16.60 (11.50–24.80) | 8.37 (6.38–10.40) |
| Female | 908 (51) | 0.40 (0.27–0.62) | 13.30 (9.30–18.90) | 9.08 (7.27–11.50) |
| Age at screening (years) | ||||
| 60–69 | 957 (54) | 0.35 (0.24–0.58) | 13.70 (9.60–20.90) | 8.79 (7.06–10.99) |
| 70–79 | 543 (31) | 0.38 (0.26–0.59) | 15.30 (10.40–21.70) | 8.71 (7.06–11.18) |
| ≥80 | 277 (15) | 0.45 (0.29–0.65) | 17.30 (11.60–25.60) | 8.52 (6.39–10.87) |
| Education level | ||||
| Less than 9th grade | 199 (11) | 0.38 (0.25–0.62) | 14.30 (8.80–23.90) | 8.90 (7.08–10.63) |
| 9–11th grade | 232 (13) | 0.44 (0.27–0.75) | 15.40 (10.90–24.50) | 8.40 (6.82–10.49) |
| High-school graduate | 431 (24) | 0.39 (0.24–0.66) | 14.00 (10.10–23.10) | 8.44 (6.82–10.78) |
| Some college or AA degree | 498 (28) | 0.38 (0.26–0.57) | 14.50 (10.10–20.40) | 8.61 (6.91–10.81) |
| College graduate or above | 417 (24) | 0.34 (0.25–0.51) | 14.90 (10.60–21.10) | 9.17 (7.38–11.51) |
| Poverty to income ratio | ||||
| Quartile 1 | 408 (23) | 0.42 (0.26–0.73) | 15.25 (10.10–23.90) | 8.92 (7.13–11.51) |
| Quartile 2 | 410 (23) | 0.38 (0.25–0.63) | 14.70 (10.20–22.00) | 8.75 (6.88–10.87) |
| Quartile 3 | 405 (23) | 0.38 (0.25–0.58) | 13.80 (10.10–21.00) | 8.63 (6.99–10.49) |
| Quartile 4 | 413 (23) | 0.34 (0.24–0.50) | 14.90 (10.40–20.60) | 8.72 (6.96–11.24) |
| Missing | 141 (8) | 0.41 (0.26–0.67) | 14.20 (9.50–21.20) | 8.56 (6.8–10.92) |
| Race/Hispanic origin | ||||
| Mexican American | 137 (8) | 0.32 (0.23–0.45) | 11.50 (8.50–16.30) | 9.05 (7.75–11.11) |
| Other Hispanic | 181 (10) | 0.36 (0.25–0.60) | 13.70 (9.50–20.00) | 9.33 (7.65–11.54) |
| Non-Hispanic White | 897 (50) | 0.37 (0.25–0.58) | 14.70 (10.20–22.00) | 8.70 (6.91–10.87) |
| Non-Hispanic Black | 417 (24) | 0.38 (0.24–0.60) | 15.90 (11.20–24.00) | 7.65 (6.28–9.76) |
| Other race—including multiracial | 145 (8) | 0.56 (0.37–0.82) | 15.20 (10.40–20.40) | 11.24 (8.87–13.11) |
| ADII | ||||
| Quartile 1 | 445 (25) | 0.41 (0.26–0.68) | 15.70 (10.40–24.10) | 8.51 (6.84–10.63) |
| Quartile 2 | 443 (25) | 0.40 (0.25–0.62) | 15.20 (10.10–22.70) | 8.53 (6.75–10.41) |
| Quartile 3 | 444 (25) | 0.36 (0.25–0.59) | 14.70 (10.40–21.50) | 8.73 (6.87–11.23) |
| Quartile 4 | 445 (25) | 0.36 (0.24–0.52) | 13.70 (9.90–19.10) | 9.24 (7.52–11.42) |
| HEI-2015 | ||||
| Quartile 1 | 445 (25) | 0.42 (0.25–0.68) | 15.35 (10.30–23.40) | 8.68 (6.91–10.55) |
| Quartile 2 | 444 (25) | 0.38 (0.25–0.62) | 14.75 (10.20–22.40) | 8.57 (6.85–10.91) |
| Quartile 3 | 444 (25) | 0.38 (0.25–0.60) | 15.50 (10.70–22.20) | 8.76 (6.85–10.93) |
| Quartile 4 | 444 (25) | 0.35 (0.25–0.51) | 13.60 (9.65–19.45) | 9.03 (7.25–11.41) |
AA indicates associate of arts.