Occupational Exposures from Fish Smoking in Coastal Ghana

CHERYL WEYANT, Antwi-Boasiako Amoah, Ashley Bittner, Joseph Pedit, Samuel Codjoe, Pamela Jagger, University of Michigan

     Abstract Number: 546
     Working Group: Aerosol Exposure

Abstract
Occupational exposures in low-income countries are understudied and the associated health burdens likely under-counted. Brick making, charcoal production, food processing, and industrial cooking are common occupations in low-income countries that have significant combustion particulate matter (PM_2.5) exposure. To explore occupational exposures, we conducted a case-comparison study of 308 women who are occupational fish smokers and 152 women in other occupations (i.e. business, trade, or other jobs in the fishing industry) from the same communities in coastal Ghana. PM_2.5 and carbon monoxide (CO) were measured in a subset of the women (N = 26 and N = 152, respectively) for 24 hours during normal activities. Both PM_2.5 and CO exposures were more than doubled for fish smokers (490 vs. 190 µgm⁻³ for PM_2.5 and 6.6 vs. 3.0 ppm for CO). All PM_2.5 exposures were above the annual WHO safe guideline (10 µgm⁻³) and 92% were above the interim guideline (35 µgm⁻³). PM_2.5 exposures for fish smokers were four times greater than typical from household cooking with wood in Ghana. Even non-fish smokers had higher exposure than typical from cooking (2.6 times greater for CO and 1.5 times for PM_2.5), suggesting that fish smoking increases local ambient pollution. Better fish smoking ventilation would reduce exposure for workers; women who used open air smokers were exposed to less than half the CO compared to those using indoor smokers (5.6 ± 5.4 ppm compared to 12.0 ±10.0 ppm, p = 0.01). Fish smokers had significantly more respiratory and neurological symptoms and reduced vision compared to other local women. Nearly 50% of fish smokers could not see well enough to conduct normal activities (16% in women not engaged in fish smoking). Fish smoking is one of many occupations that uses polluting fuels and has high exposures for workers and surrounding communities.