Understanding Human Exposure (Biomonitoring Study)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) are conducting a follow-up biomonitoring study (measuring chemicals in the body) for individuals who play on synthetic turf fields with tire crumb rubber infill. The biomonitoring study will be a larger-scale assessment of exposure potential for individuals who use or play on synthetic turf fields with tire crumb rubber infill.
CDC/ATSDR will collect information from at least 150 people who participate in physical activities on selected synthetic turf fields (indoor and outdoor) with tire crumb rubber infill and 50 people who participate in physical activities on selected natural grass fields.
Research participants will be asked to
- Respond to a questionnaire including information like the types of physical activities they do on the fields, how much time they spend on the field, and in what ways they come into physical contact with the field surfaces; and
- Provide a urine sample before and after practice on the field.
Research participants will spend about 50 minutes total on the study.
The responses to the questionnaire will be kept private and confidential, and no individual information will be released. The urine samples will be collected and tested at laboratories at the CDC to evaluate levels of specific groups of chemicals in the urine. The questionnaire data and the laboratory results will be linked for research purposes only, meaning that researchers will be able to see a participant’s questionnaire answers and their urine sample results, but no one else can.
CDC/ATSDR researchers will analyze the data and prepare a report with the results. The results will be released along with the Final Report Part 2. The report will be posted on the web page when finalized.