Features of the bioelement status in Russian Emercom employees working in the Arctic zone

Relevance. Occupational activities of Russian Emercom employees in the Arctic zone are associated with prolonged nervous and emotional overload due to physical and climatic factors, as well as nutrition features. Taking into account regional peculiarities of different Russian territories, in particular, the prevalence of microelementoses of natural and man-made origin, it becomes obvious that research is needed to identify disorders related to micronutrient availability of essential bioelements and the load of toxic chemical elements in Russian Emercom employees working in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.

Intention. To establish regional features of the bioelement status in Russian Emercom employees working in the Arctic zone with such manifestations as deficiency of essential bioelements and incorporation of toxic elements.

Methodology. Bioelements were assessed in hair samples via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (Agilent 7900 ICP-MS). In total, 110 Russian Emercom employees aged from 20 to 60 years took part in the study (Group 1). Changes in metabolism of chemical elements were analyzed by age (20–30 vs 31–39 vs 40+ years) and the length of service in the Arctic zone (< 4 vs 5–9 vs 10+ years). A control group comprised 104 Emercom employees working in St. Petersburg and Leningrad region.

Results and Discussion. No bioelement differences were observed in Group 1 between fire-fighters (n = 30) and rescue workers (n = 80). When assessing the bioelement status in Russian Emercom employees, Group 1 showed deficiencies of cobalt, iodine, magnesium and selenium as well as excessive content of such toxic elements as nickel (in 9 % of employees), cadmium (10 %), silver (10 %), arsenic (5 %), aluminum (11 %) and lead (9 %). With age, toxic elements (aluminum, arsenic and lead) tended to accumulate, especially after 40 years. There were established increasing deficiencies of iodine, magnesium and selenium along with accumulation of aluminum, arsenic and lead in employees with 10-year and longer service in the Arctic zone.

Conclusion. Based on the bioelement data from Russian Emercom employees working in the Arctic, it is reasonable to take vitamin and mineral complexes containing iodine, magnesium, selenium and cobalt to prevent diselementoses. Besides, sorbents and high-fiber foods can help faster remove excess toxic elements. Assessment of chemical elements in biological material (hair) should be included in the follow-up examinations of employees working in the Far North. This will be especially relevant in case of long-term work and age 40+ years for adequate identification of risk groups and individual correction of metabolic disorders.

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