The German Environmental Survey 1990/92 (GerES II): Primary Predictors of Blood Cadmium Levels in Adults

Abstract As part of the representative Environmental Survey in Germany in 1990–1992, investigators determined cadmium levels in blood provided by 3,965 subjects aged 25–69 yr. The investigators considered approximately 150 variables (i.e., demographics, household and occupational characteristics, environmental exposures, smoking habits, frequency of food consumption, and additional life-style features) as potential predictors in multivariate regression analysis. On the basis of the results of multivariate regression analysis, the authors derived 2 slightly different models for the prediction of blood cadmium levels in populations from West and East Germany. Both models included 3 primary predictors of blood cadmium levels. The 2 models explained 51.3% and 61.2% of the observed variance in blood cadmium levels in West and East Germany, respectively. The most important predictor was a specific indicator for smoking habits, which was determined from a separate mathematical model. In this model, the effect of smoking was considered, and the model accounted for the biological half-life of cadmium in blood.