Exposure To Coal Mine Dust Predisposes Mine Workers to Oxidative Stress and Diabetes Mellitus

Exposure to coal mine dust has several health implications and diseases of the respiratory and cardiovascular have been reported. This study intended to investigate the effect of exposure to coal mine dust on the levels of plasma glucose (PG) and serum antioxidants in the miners. The levels of fasting PG (FPG), postprandial PG (PPG), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidise (GPX), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) of the miners exposed to coal mine dust for 10 and 20 years were compared to those of the controls. The observations of the study reveal that the miners remain unaffected during the 10 year exposure period and their glycemic status was under control. But high PPG levels (p < 0.001) were seen in miners exposed to coal mine dust for 20 years and thus prolonged exposure may predispose them to Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The low levels of SOD and GPX and high TBARS indicated that oxidative stress may be the underlying cause for this predisposition to diabetes.