Exposure to arsenic, even in moderate quantities, can increase the risk of heart disease and this is more prominent in smokers, so says a study. Arsenic is a common element found in earth's crust and is present in huge amounts in ground water. It is already known that higher levels of arsenic can cause serious illness but now even moderate levels can pose great dangers, according to a study carried out by a team of researchers from the University School of Medicine and the University of Chicago.
The researchers wanted to find out the connection between arsenic exposure and cardiovascular diseases. Also they wanted to find out if smoking had a hand in aggravating the situation. So they conducted the study in Araihazar in Bangladesh where the ground water is already contaminated with arsenic. It involved nearly 11,746 participants whose urine samples were tested for arsenic. They were also physically examined at regular intervals of time and the study lasted for a duration of 6.6 years. The researchers also examined the samples of water drawn from the wells which the participants used. They found that nearly 30 percent of the deaths in the study population was due to moderate levels of arsenic (12 to 864 parts per billion or ppb) in drinking water.
The researchers also found that the risk of heart diseases due to drinking water with arsenic exemplified in smokers when compared to those who had never had a smoke. However, the researchers are not entirely sure as to how arsenic causes heart diseases. They opine it could be due to hardening of arteries (atherosclerosis).
"Exposure to arsenic in drinking water is adversely associated with mortality from heart disease, especially among smokers," said one of the researcher. "It is too late to identify exposure after diseases caused by arsenic have been diagnosed, because many are fatal," he added.
