Abstract
The German Environmental Survey (GerES) is a large-scale population study which has repeatedly been carried out in Germany. GerES I was conducted in 1985/1986 followed by GerES IIa in 1990/1991 (West Germany) and GerES IIb in 1991/1992 (East Germany). GerES III is currently run in both parts of Germany. The main goal of the surveys is to analyse and document the extent, distribution and determinants of the exposure to environmental pollutants of the German general population. Field work is conducted using a combination of several tools, including questionnaires, interviews, human biomonitoring, and indoor and outdoor environmental samplings. This paper describes the design of GerES II, and gives a general outline of the field work and the analytical procedures used. In GerES II, about 4000 adults were representatively selected from the German population with regard to age, gender and community size. Approximately 700 children were also included. Arsenic, cadmium, copper, chromium, lead, and mercury were determined in blood, morning urine and/or scalp hair. In addition, samples were taken and analysed to characterise exposure in the domestic environment (indoor air, house dust, drinking water). The contribution to exposure of food was also studied. Exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) was determined by personal sampling.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 6 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $43.17 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
SEIFERT, B., BECKER, K., HOFFMANN, K. et al. The German Environmental Survey 1990/1992 (GerES II): a representative population study. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 10, 103–114 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jea.7500075
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jea.7500075
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Levels of arsenic, mercury, cadmium, copper, lead, zinc and manganese in serum and whole blood of resident adults from mining and non-mining communities in Ghana
Environmental Science and Pollution Research (2016)
-
BIOAMBIENT.ES study protocol: rationale and design of a cross-sectional human biomonitoring survey in Spain
Environmental Science and Pollution Research (2013)
-
Multimedia measurements and activity patterns in an observational pilot study of nine young children
Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology (2008)
-
Characterisation of urban inhalation exposures to benzene, formaldehyde and acetaldehyde in the European Union
Environmental Science and Pollution Research (2008)
-
The EXPOLIS study: implications for exposure research and environmental policy in Europe
Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology (2004)