Lead in drinking water from water coolers and in fingernails from subjects in Kuwait City, Kuwait

In response to concerns raised by the Kuwait Ministry of Public Health (KMPH) about the high lead levels in some commercial water coolers, samples of drinking water and fingernails were collected from 129 healthy donors (77 males and 52 females) during the period December 1994-February 1995. The mean nail lead levels for females and males were 5.50 +/- 7.76 and 5.08 +/- 14.65 mu g/g, respectively, and the difference between these means was not significant (P = 0.25), A positive correlation was found between lead levels in drinking water and lead in fingernails from both males and females. However, the effect of water lead levels on lead levels in fingernails of females was more significant (P = 0.002) than that on levels in fingernails of males (P = 0.21). Contrasted with all other coolers, water from one brand of coolers, Al-Hassawi, appears to contribute significantly to lead exposures among households with lead levels ranging between 15.89 and 70.30 mu g/l and a mean of 32.09 +/- 13.23 mu g/l.