Protective Roles of Some Leafy and Non-leafy Vegetables against the Severity of Arsenic-induced Skin Lesions among Women Living in Rural Bangladesh: A Case Control Study

Arsenicosis is common among villagers as they drink more contaminatedwater since the arsenic-crisis in Bangladesh. Supplementation of vitamins and micronutrients in counteracting arsenic toxicity has been proved for arsenic treatment. This study was intended to assess protective and beneficial roles of some commonly eaten vegetables on the development and severity of arsenicinduced skin lesions. A case-control study among (N=122) adult rural-women (62 cases had various forms of arsenical skin-lesions e.g. melanosis/keratosis/ mixed-lesions and 60 sex-age-matched healthy-controls) was conducted in Shaharstee Upazilla of Chandpur district, Bangladesh. Socio-demographic data recorded in a pre-tested-questionnaire, ‘per-day vegetables ingestion’ of cases and controls were measured qualitative and quantitatively (24-hour recall-methods, food-frequency/week and food history-record/week). Multiple logistic regression/MLR analyses were performed to find out protective roles of some dietary leafy-vegetables/LVs and non-leafy vegetables/NLVs on arsenicosis and their influences on the degree of severity of arsenicosis also determined. Abstinence from taking some LVs/NLVs among cases than controls is associated with increased risk for arsenicosis (P<0.05). Amongst all most-frequently eaten vegetables (n=17) per day Momordica diocia has the highest skin protective role on arsenicosis [Adjusted odds ratio/AOR 8.2, 95% CI (2.11-31.9), P=