Lead Shot Contamination in Edible Portions of Game Birds and Its Dietary Implications

ABSTRACT Lead exposure for First Nation Cree of the Mushkegowuk region (western James Bay area of northern Ontario, Canada) through ingestion of game hunted with lead shot is of concern and was investigated in this study. All lead concentrations in tissues of mammals (n = 45) and fish (n = 30) harvested in the Mushkegowuk Territory were at a level below the guideline set by Health Canada for human consumption of fish protein (i.e., <0.5 μg/g wet weight [ww]). No guidelines exist for game birds and mammals. However, livers of 2% (5/233) of the game birds collected showed lead concentrations> 0.5 μg/g …