Sargassum Health Study Launched in Quintana Roo

CHETUMAL, Mexico — The Quintana Roo Council of Humanities, Sciences, and Technologies (COQHCYT) has announced the initiation of funding for a research project to analyze sargassum leachates among the populations of Mahahual and Xcalak. The project will be conducted by researchers from the Division of Health Sciences of the Autonomous University of Quintana Roo (UAQROO) to determine potential health effects on residents of the coastal zone.

The Director General of COQHCYT, Cristopher Malpica Morales, emphasized the importance of promoting and supporting research projects that generate applied scientific knowledge, in this case for the protection of the health of the Quintana Roo population.

During the 40th edition of the radio program "ConCiencia," broadcast by COQHCYT in alliance with the Quintana Roo System of Social Communication (SQCS), Dr. María de Lourdes Rojas Armadillo from the Division of Health Sciences of UAQROO shared the progress of her research. The research is focused on protecting vulnerable populations through the development of medical protocols to help prevent ailments caused by leachates generated from sargassum on the coasts.

The research team for this project is comprised of investigators from the Division of Health Sciences of UAQROO: María de Lourdes Rojas Armadillo, Maribel Rodríguez Aguilar, Ana Cristina Jiménez Ruano, Marco Antonio Hernández Avila, Ángel Daniel Herrera España, and Juan Miguel Torres Chávez.

These actions are promoted within the framework of the New Agreement for the Well-being and Development of Quintana Roo, advocated by Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa, seeking to address and participate in health problems that may affect the population.

The main objective is to determine the association between exposure to sargassum leachates and whether the emission of gases produced during the decomposition of the algae causes alterations or health effects in people who collect sargassum or who live and/or work within two kilometers of the accumulation zones in Mahahual and Xcalak in the municipality of Othón P. Blanco.

In Mexico, since 2019, the "Agenda for Science, Technology and Innovation for the Attention, Adaptation and Mitigation of the Arrival of Pelagic Sargassum to Mexico" was created. It is led by the Secretariat of Science, Humanities, Technology and Innovation, with Quintana Roo participating through COQHCYT, which drives this project's research in several strategic lines, monitoring, addressing, and mitigating the arrival of sargassum to the coasts.

The researcher explained that leachates are the result of liquids from the decomposition of sargassum on the beaches; after 48 hours, these residues emanate gases composed of hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and methane, all posing potential health risks.

Dr. María de Lourdes Rojas reported that these gases represent a risk when inhaled and/or enter the food chain, especially through the consumption of contaminated seafood.

Among the consequences of exposure to these gases produced by decomposing sargassum are severe effects on respiratory and renal functions, as well as difficulty breathing, agitation, confusion, nausea and vomiting, high blood pressure, and loss of consciousness.