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Human biomonitoring (HBM) data in Europe are often fragmented and collected in different EU countries and sampling periods. Exposure levels for children and adult women in Europe were evaluated over time. For the period 2000-2010, literature and aggregated data were collected in a harmonized way across studies. Between 2011-2012, biobanked samples from the DEMOCOPHES project were used. For 2014-2021, HBM data were generated within the HBM4EU Aligned Studies. Time patterns on internal exposure were evaluated visually and statistically using the 50th and 90th percentiles (P50/P90) for phthalates/DINCH and organophosphorus flame retardants (OPFRs) in children (5-12 years), and cadmium, bisphenols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in women (24-52 years). Restricted phthalate metabolites show decreasing patterns for children. Phthalate substitute, DINCH, shows a non-significant increasing pattern. For OPFRs, no trends were statistically significant. For women, BPA shows a clear decreasing pattern, while substitutes BPF and BPS show an increasing pattern coinciding with the BPA restrictions introduced. No clear patterns are observed for PAHs or cadmium. Although the causal relations were not studied as such, exposure levels to chemicals restricted at EU level visually decreased, while the levels for some of their substitutes increased. The results support policy efficacy monitoring and the policy-supportive role played by HBM.

Background: Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic metal, which the non-smoking population is mainly exposed to through diet. Current health-based guidance values are based on renal toxicity; however, emerging evidence suggests that bone and the cardiovascular system might be more sensitive to Cd exposure., Objective: To assess the association of urinary Cd (U-Cd) with incidence of fractures, myocardial infarction, heart failure, ischemic stroke and mortality in postmenopausal women., Methods: We used data from 4024 women, aged 56-85 in the population-based prospective Swedish Mammography Cohort-Clinical. U-Cd was measured by ICP-MS at baseline (2004-2009) and categorized into tertiles. Incident cases of the outcomes were ascertained via register linkage through 2019. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using Cox regression., Results: The median U-Cd at baseline was 0.33 µg/g creatinine (cr) (5-95 percentiles 0.15-0.77). We ascertained the following incident cases: 903 first fracture of any type, 149 myocardial infarction, 174 heart failure, 162 ischemic stroke and 545 total deaths during the approximately 11 years of follow-up. U-Cd was dose-dependently associated with risk of any fracture (HR: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.01 to 1.43, p trend : 0.04) and all-cause mortality (HR: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.10 to 1.74, p trend : <0.01) when comparing the highest tertile of U-Cd (median 0.54 µg/g cr) with the lowest (median 0.20 µg/g cr). No clear associations were observed for myocardial infarction, heart failure or stroke., Discussion: Long-term Cd exposure might be associated with risk of fractures and all-cause mortality at lower levels than previously suggested., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)