A recent scientific study revealed that pregnant women in Beijing have lithium concentrations in blood up to 20 times higher than those detected between mothers from other regions of the Asian country.
The study, published in February in the scientific journal Journal of Ecotoxicology and Public Health, was held between 2019 and 2023 with 393 healthy mothers (96 in Beijing and 297 in the central city of Changsha), the Hongkonés South China Morning Post said Wednesday.
Maternal blood and umbilical cord samples in the Chinese capital registered an average of 13.05 micrograms per liter (MCG/L) in 2019 and 11.23 mcg/l in 2021, exceeding the security threshold, set at 10 mcg/l.
Among the women of Changsha who participated in the studio, the average in 2023 was 0.61 mcg/l, data about twenty times lower than the one scored in Beijing.
Although the diet explained most of the exhibition in Changsha, 96% of the lithium detected in the Pena pregnant women could not be linked to sources known as food, water or air.
“This suggests the existence of a constant source and not identified in the capital,” said Hu Licaang, lead author of the investigation, cited by the newspaper.
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Scientists should still detect the effects of low doses of lithium on the body
Lithium carbonate, used in psychiatric treatments, can cause neurological and renal complications in high doses. However, the effects of a chronic exposure to low levels – as detected – are still clear, according to the study.
Scientists warn that up to 80% of the lithium extracted worldwide could be filtered in ecosystems, affecting urban and industrial areas.
In Beijing, despite which foods such as rice and vegetables showed concentrations slightly higher than those of Changsha, they do not justify the observed disparity, according to experts.
“The continuous lithium increase in the environment demands urgent attention to its possible impacts on fetal development,” said Hu.
The study was carried out at a time of strong lithium demand in China, mainly derived from the flourishing sector of electric vehicles in the Asian giant.
With EFE information
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