Mitigation Efforts in Arsenic Exposure With Folic Acid Supplementation

Mitigation Efforts in Arsenic Exposure With Folic Acid Supplementation: Reducing Toxicity and Exploring the Impact on Lung Health

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects on folic acid supplementation in a population living in an environment with chronic arsenic exposure in Birmingham, Alabama.

Folic acid supplementation effects urinary arsenic excretion. In this project investigators propose to investigate if oral folic acid dietary supplementation can increase urinary arsenic metabolite excretion

Inclusion Criteria:

• ≥18 years of age
• Resident of the superfund site
• Clinically stable with no significant changes in general health status in the past 4 weeks prior to screening as assessed by the investigator
• Provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pregnancy
• Ongoing folic acid nutritional supplementation
• Methotrexate use
• Megaloblastic anemia
• Alcoholic liver disease
• Malabsorptive syndromes - celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease