Dietary determinants of cadmium exposure in the Strong Heart Family Study

- We evaluated the association of foods with urinary Cd levels in American Indians.
- Higher processed meat intake was associated with higher urinary Cd concentrations.
- Higher intake of dairy products and fruit juices was associated with lower Cd levels.
- Processed meat products are a potential dietary source of cadmium.

Urinary cadmium (Cd) concentrations in the Strong Heart Family Study (SHFS) participants are higher than in the general US population. This difference is unlikely to be related to tobacco smoking. We evaluated the association of consumption of processed meats and other dietary products with urinary Cd concentrations in the SHFS, a family-based study conducted in American Indian communities. We included 1725 participants with urine Cd concentrations (standardized to urine creatinine) and food frequency questionnaire data grouped in 24 categories, including processed meat. Median (IQR) urinary Cd concentrations were 0.42 (0.20-0.85) μg/g creatinine. The age, sex, smoking, education, center, body mass index, and total kcal adjusted geometric mean ratio (GMR) (95%CI) of urinary cadmium concentrations per IQR increase in each dietary category was 1.16 (1.04-1.29) for processed meat, 1.10 (1.00-1.21) for fries and chips, 0.87 (0.80-0.95) for dairy products, and 0.89 (0.82-0.97) for fruit juices. The results remained similar after further adjustment for the dietary categories associated with urinary Cd in the previous model except for fries and chips, which was no longer statistically significant. These findings revealed the potential importance of processed meat products as a dietary source of cadmium.