This study applied neutrosophic statistics to analyze Pb and tHg concentrations in 70 breast milk samples from lactating mothers living near industrial zones in Lahore, Pakistan. The authors collected interval-form data (minimum–maximum pairs per age group) and used neutrosophic methods to represent indeterminacy that classical mean-±-SD statistics cannot capture. The headline finding is elevated Pb and Hg in women from industrial areas, with Pb ranging approximately 0.85–2.87 ppb (µg/L) and tHg ranging approximately 2.87–16.85 µg/L across age groups, with both metrics showing wider uncertainty ranges than classical statistics would express.
Key numbers
Concentrations reported as intervals [minimum, maximum] across age groups 25–40 years (n = 70 total, ~4–5 per age group):
- Pb: range across all age-group intervals = [0.845, 2.890] µg/L; classical means by age group = 1.583–2.620 µg/L (±0.27–0.94 SD)
- tHg: range across all age-group intervals = [2.873, 16.853] µg/L; classical means by age group = 9.097–13.249 µg/L (±1.11–6.50 SD)
Note: the Hg concentrations reported here (median class means ~10–13 µg/L) are substantially higher than most literature values for non-heavily-contaminated populations (typically 1–5 µg/L), which is consistent with the industrial-zone setting but warrants caution; the small per-age-group n and lack of speciation (total vs. methylmercury) limit comparability.
The study references a prior companion dataset (Ahmad et al. 2023, Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res.) that provides the underlying raw concentration data on which these neutrosophic calculations are applied.
Methods (brief)
Analytical method: Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (FAAS). Sample prep: 2 mL breast milk per sample dried at 50°C, diluted with 5 mL distilled water, organic matter removed, precipitates filtered. Metals measured: Pb and tHg only. No speciation. No LOD/LOQ values reported in this paper (those appear in the referenced Ahmad et al. 2023 companion study). The neutrosophic contribution is methodological rather than a source of new primary data; the concentration values themselves come from FAAS analysis on the 70 samples.
Implications
Certification: Breast milk is a biomonitoring matrix for maternal exposure, not a certified food product. The high tHg values from industrial Lahore are consistent with industrial-area exposure patterns relevant to certifying supply chains in contaminated regions. The reported Pb values (means ~1.6–2.6 µg/L) are at the elevated end of published ranges for breast milk.
Courses: Useful as an illustrative case study for how industrial pollution in Pakistan drives heavy metal accumulation in breast milk. The neutrosophic framing is a methodological curiosity; the substantive lesson is that lactating women in industrial zones show elevated Pb and tHg.
App: Breast milk is not a consumer product in the wiki’s app model; this source supports the biomonitoring and health sections but does not contribute to ingredient-level contamination profiles.
Microbiome: Pb and tHg exposure at the concentrations reported can disrupt infant gut microbiome development, particularly affecting taxa that are sensitive to neurotoxic metals. Cross-link to relevant microbiome pages when they exist.