ME and My Shadow

Everyone Exposed to Methyleugenol Whether you intend to or not, chances are you will consume approximately 6 micro-grams of methyleugenol (ME) today, according to a report in this month's issue by Dana B. Barr and colleagues of a study designed to measure ME in human blood _ serum [EHP 108:323-328]. ME is a compound that occurs naturally in a variety of spices and herbs, including clove oil, nutmeg, allspice, and walnuts. In both its natural and synthetic forms, it is an FDA-approved additive , and it is widely used as a flavoring agent in desserts, condiments, and cigarettes , as an attractant in insecticides, and as a fragrance in perfumes and soaps. Because of its structural similarity to other flavorants that are known to be carcinogenic such as safrole and estragole, ME has come under suspicion of carcino-genicity. Recent research, some of which was conducted by the National Toxicology Program at the NIEHS, has shown clearly that ME causes cancer in laboratory rodents and suggests that it may be a human carcinogen as well. To accurately evaluate the level of risk associated with a compound, both toxicologic and human exposure data are required. The investigators-collaborating teams from the ational Center for Environmental Health at the Centers for Disease Control FIavor fears. New information reveals widespread exposure to methyleugenol, a flavoring agent that may well be carcinogenic to humans. and Prevention and from the NIEHS-used extremely sophisticated tools and carefully planned methodologies to arrive at the conclusion that low-level exposure to ME is virtually ubiquitous in the U.S. adult 4 population. They analyzed serum sam-fl ples from 206 adults who had participated in the Third National Health* and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), conducted between 1988 and 1994. With the U sensitivity and accuracy afforded by isotope dilution gas chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry, they detected ME in 98% of the samples. They then used pertinent questionnaire data from NHANES III to analyze the laboratory results for statistical significance among a wide variety of variables. Unfortunately, none of those demographic and lifestyle variables were statistically significant markers of ME exposure. The fact that there were no clear "smoking guns" correlating to ME exposure led the authors to conclude that it comes from a variety of sources, including air, water, and foods containing naturally occurring ME. They also believe these findings are a good indicator of the prevalence and expected serum concentrations …