Researchers at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, have discovered high levels of arsenic, lead, mercury, and cadmium in the breast milk of both diabetic and non‑diabetic postpartum mothers. Their peer‑reviewed study, “Comparison of toxic heavy metals in the breast milk of diabetic and non‑diabetic postpartum mothers in Yenagoa, Nigeria,” was published in PLoS One on April 7, 2023. Arsenic, especially in its inorganic form, is highly toxic, with contaminated water used for drinking, food preparation, and irrigation posing the greatest public‑health threat. Lead is a naturally occurring toxic metal found in the earth’s crust. Mercury threatens human health, particularly the development of the child in utero and early in life, while cadmium exerts toxic effects on the kidneys, skeletal system, and respiratory system.
The study examined a cross‑section of 72 diabetic and 72 non‑diabetic postpartum mothers from three public hospitals in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State. The researchers found that concentrations of the four heavy metals in both groups exceeded the World Health Organization’s permissible limits, indicating a risk to the health of both mothers and their neonates. They suggested that heavy‑metal exposure could suppress cytokine production and lower immunity, as the metals bind to albumin and enter breast milk.
Yenagoa is a seaside town where residents commonly consume charcoal‑smoked fish, use heavy agricultural fertilizers, and engage in widespread clandestine crude‑oil refining. It is also the hub of legal crude‑oil exploration and petrochemical activities in the Niger Delta region and has suffered numerous oil spills since 1976, leading to environmental degradation and possible release of heavy metals. The research team wondered whether maternal diabetes might exacerbate the excretion of toxic metals into breast milk. A literature search of major databases such as MEDLINE, PubMed, and ProQuest revealed few peer‑reviewed publications on this topic, highlighting a knowledge gap.
Motivated by this gap, the team conducted the first study, to their knowledge, measuring heavy‑metal concentrations in the breast milk of diabetic lactating mothers. They concluded that further toxicological research on mother‑and‑child health is needed to validate their findings.
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