Exposure of pregnant women to neonicotinoids in Wenzhou City, East China: A biomonitoring study

[Display omitted] •At least one neonicotinoid or metabolite was detected in 93.5% of urine samples.•DM-ACE, CLO, THM, and DM-CLO were dominant neonicotinoids and metabolites.•Certain basic characteristics of pregnant women influenced neonicotinoid exposure.•Multiple food categories were identified as potential exposure sources.•A low health risk was found based on current safety thresholds. China produces and consumes a large amount of neonicotinoids. A non-negligible exposure to neonicotinoids might occur for Chinese pregnant women, but relevant data remain limited. To investigate the exposure to neonicotinoids by urinary biomonitoring in pregnant women from Wenzhou City, East China. We selected 432 pregnant women in Wenzhou City in 2022. A total of eight parent neonicotinoids and four metabolites were determined in single spot urine by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Basic characteristics, physical activity, pre-pregnant body mass index, and intake of drinking water and food were investigated by the questionnaire. Health risk was assessed by hazard quotient (HQ) and hazard index (HI) based on human safety thresholds derived from different health endpoints. Neonicotinoids and their metabolites in urine had a detection frequency between 0 % and 80.1 %. At least one neonicotinoid or metabolite was detected in 93.5 % of urine samples. Except for clothianidin (51.2 %) and N-desmethyl-acetamiprid (80.1 %), the detection frequencies of other neonicotinoids and metabolites ranged from 0 % to 43.8 %. The summed concentrations of all neonicotinoids and their metabolites ranged from