Dietary intake of methylmercury as a correlate of gestational length and birth weight among newborns in Greenland

Abstract

Between January 1983 and December 1986, a total of 376 mothers living in Godthaab and Thule, Greenland, were asked about their average weekly intake of marine food. The blood methylmercury concentrations of mothers and offspring were measured. Mean methylmercury concentrations in infants were found to be 40 percent higher than in mothers. High maternal and offspring methylmercury blood concentrations were found to be associated with low mean birth weight, but not with short gestational length.