Development of General Exposure Factors for Risk Assessment in Korean Children

Abstract

There has been an increasing need for the risk assessment of external environmental hazards in children because they are more sensitive to hazardous chemical exposure than adults. Therefore, the development of general exposure factors is required for appropriate risk assessment in Korean children. This study aimed to determine the general exposure factors among Korean children aged ≤18 years. We developed the recommended exposure factors across five categories: physiological variables, inhalation rates, food and drinking water intake, time–activity patterns, and soil and dust ingestion. National databases were used, and direct measurements and questionnaire surveys of representative samples were performed to calculate the inhalation rate, water intake, and soil ingestion rate. With regard to the time–activity patterns, the daily inhalation rates ranged from 9.49 m3/day for children aged 0–2 years to 14.98 m3/day for those aged 16–18 years. This study found that Korean children spent an average of 22.64 h indoors, 0.63 h outdoors, and 0.73 h in-transit on weekdays. The general exposure factors of Korean children were studied for the first time, and these results could be used to assess children’s exposure and risk. They also suggest the differences compared with the results of international results.