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Total Trihalomethanes in Public Drinking Water Supply and Birth Outcomes: A Cross-Sectional Study

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An Erratum to this article was published on 17 May 2014

Abstract

Reproductive effects of long-term, low-dose exposure to disinfectant by-products have not been consistently documented in large populations despite the known toxicity of high exposures and the wide-spread occurrence of low concentrations in public drinking water. We investigated the effect of low-dose exposure to total trihalomethanes (TTHM) on birth weight and gestational term in New York State. All singleton live births from 1998 through 2003 in 62 counties in New York State were linked with public water supply (PWS) system boundaries based on mother’s residential address on birth certificate. Using the data from public water supply system, TTHM measurements were assigned geographically and temporally to each birth record linked with PWS boundary. Individual level maternal information including mother’s race, ethnicity, education, employment status, smoking, age, along with adequacy of prenatal care utilization and infant’s gender was used in a logistic model to adjust for potential confounding. A small non-linear association was detected between TTHM exposure and low birth weight (<2,500 g) births (OR 1.14; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.08–1.21), preterm births (OR 1.14; 95 % CI 1.08–1.20) and for small for gestational age births (OR 1.10; 95 % CI 1.04–1.16) suggesting a small increase in risk for these birth outcomes with chronic low maternal exposure to drinking water containing trihalomethanes. Maternal exposure to TTHMs during pregnancy may be associated with low birth weight, preterm births and small for gestational age births.

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Abbreviations

CI:

Confidence interval

DBPs:

Disinfectant by-products

GIS:

Geographic Information System

LBW:

Low birth weight

NYC:

New York City

NYSDOH:

New York State Department of Health

OR:

Odds ration

SDWA:

Safe Drinking Water Act

SDWIS:

Safe Drinking Water Information System

SGA:

Small for gestational age

THM:

Trihalomethane

TTHM:

Total trihalomethane

PWS:

Public water system

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Acknowledgments

We thank Mr. Wayne Richter for providing the exposure data and his guidance in linking the health data with drinking water data. Mr. Thomas Hart and Mr. Thomas Becker for providing invaluable assistance with management, quality control, and extraction of THM data and Mr. Peter Berical for his key role in the development of public water system service boundaries. This research is supported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Environmental and Health Effects Tracking Grant # U50/CCU223284. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.

Conflict of interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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  1. Center for Environmental Health, New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY, USA

    Sanjaya Kumar, Steve Forand, Gwen Babcock & Syni-An Hwang

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  1. Sanjaya Kumar
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  2. Steve Forand
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Correspondence to Sanjaya Kumar.

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Kumar, S., Forand, S., Babcock, G. et al. Total Trihalomethanes in Public Drinking Water Supply and Birth Outcomes: A Cross-Sectional Study. Matern Child Health J 18, 996–1006 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-013-1328-4

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