Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are ubiquitous in the indoor environment, owing
to their use in consumer products ranging from electronics to mattresses, furniture,
and carpets. People are exposed to PBDEs through inhalation of indoor air and ingestion,
and dermal absorption of dust particles present in the air. In this study, concentrations
of PBDEs were determined in indoor air and house dust collected from homes in Albany,
New York, USA. Based on the measured concentrations of PBDEs in indoor air and dust,
we estimated daily exposure dose (DED) of PBDEs. In addition, we used previously published
PBDE concentrations reported for breast milk from Massachusetts, USA [Johnson-Restrepo,
B., Addink, R., Wong, C., Arcaro, K., Kannan, K., 2007. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers
and organochlorine pesticides in human breast milk from Massachusetts. USA. J. Environ.
Monitor. 9, 1205-1212] and foodstuffs collected from Texas and Florida, USA [Schecter,
A., Päpke, O., Harris, T.R., Tung, K.C., Musumba, A., Olson, J., Birnbaum, L., 2006.
Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) levels in an expanded market basket survey of
U.S. food and estimated PBDE dietary intake by age and sex. Environ. Health Perspect.
114, 1515-1520, Johnson-Restrepo, B., Kannan, K., Addink, R., Adams, D.H., 2005b.
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers and polychlorinated biphenyls in a marine foodweb of
coastal Florida. Environ. Sci. Technol. 39, 8243-8250], in an estimation of dietary
exposure to PBDEs. The exposure assessment was performed for five age groups: infants
(<1yr), toddlers (1-5yr), children (6-11yr), teenagers (12-19yr), and adults (20yr).
The dust ingestion and air inhalation factors that we used were the US Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) exposure factors, while the daily food intake rates (g/day)
were derived from the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) food intake surveys. The
total DED of PBDEs was calculated by summation of the exposures from diet, indoor
air, and house dust. The average estimated DED of PBDEs was the highest for breastfed
infants (86.4ng/kg-bw/day), contributed primarily (91%) from the consumption of breast
milk. The average DED of PBDEs for toddlers, children, teenagers, and adults was respectively,
13.3, 5.3, 3.5, and 2.9ng/kg-bw/day. Ingestion and dermal absorption of house dust
are the major pathways of PBDE exposure in toddlers, children, teenagers, and adults
accounting for, on average, 56-77% of the total PBDE intake.