We all carry household, agricultural and industrial chemicals (or their breakdown products) in our bodies; sometimes called our "body burden" of chemicals. Biomonitoring is the direct measurement of this burden of substances in human tissues, such as blood or urine. The US and Germany have national biomonitoring programs to measure contaminants in the child and adult populations. Canada began a biomonitoring program during 2007. Canadian body burdens are likely similar to levels that have been found in Americans. For example, of those Americans tested, 100 percent had detectable levels of pesticide residues in their bodies. Children who eat organic food have been found to have lower pesticide body burdens than those eating a conventional diet. Phthalates, chemicals found in many cosmetics (nail polish, shampoos), soft plastic toys and tubing are found in most people. Children routinely have higher levels of phthalate metabolites (break-down products) in their urine compared to adults. PCBs are still commonly found in human tissue. Levels have dropped since production of these substances was discontinued in the 1970s. Their persistence in the environment is apparent in biomonitoring results. Six percent of American women of child-bearing age have levels of mercury in their blood at or above the level of concern for fetal development. Closer investigation shows even higher numbers of women with elevated levels if they live near coastlines or are from cultural backgrounds that value a diet high in fish content. Although continuing a multi-year downward trend, a significant proportion of American children still carry levels of lead in their blood tht are above health levels of concern.

The following collection aggregates content on this website about this topic. The US Centers for Disease Control is in its fifth round of national biomonitoring. Four reports have been published, as of mid-2009. Two additional reports by the CDC have focused specifically on children. Several NGOs have also conducted biomonitoring studies or provide kits for measuring personal levels of certain contaminants.