Smoking effect on the cadmium and zinc concentration in smokers and nonsmokers

Abstract

Studies have shown that cigarette smoking affects the accumulation of some heavy metals in certain tissues and metabolism of essential elements. The aim of the study was to determine the differences in the concentrations of cadmium in the blood and urine and zinc in the urine of smokers and ex-smokers in relation to non-smokers, and to determine the possible influence of cadmium concentration on zinc excretion as an essential element. The study included 106 subjects. Subjects were regular smokers (n=51), ex-smokers (n=38) and non-smokers (n=17). Atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS) with an electrothermal atomizer was used to determine cadmium. Zinc was determined by AAS with a flame atomizer. There was a significant difference in the values of cadmium in the blood between the groups: smokers and non-smokers (p<0.001), smokers and ex-smokers (p <0.001), and between ex-smokers and non-smokers (p = 0.045). There is a significant positive and strong correlation in the level of zinc and cadmium in urine per gram of creatinine, and as the level of cadmium increases, the level of zinc also increases (rho=0.781; p=0.001). The data indicate that cigarette smoking has been shown to be a factor that can increase cadmium levels to an extent that will significantly increase zinc excretion, or its increased loss.