Washington, July 1 (IANS) Consuming beverages may leave a chemical imprint in your hair that could be used to track your travels over time, says a study.
The findings are believed to be the first concerted effort to describe the use of beverages as a potential tool in investigating the geographic location of people.
Lesley Chesson of IsoForensics, Utah and colleagues explain that the body removes hydrogen and oxygen atoms from water and beverages containing water, and incorporates them into proteins, including the protein in hair.
Hydrogen and oxygen exist in different forms, or isotopes. The proportions of those isotopes vary in a predictable way geographically, with higher values in low-latitude, low-elevation or coastal regions and lower values elsewhere.
Since manufacturers usually use local or regional water sources in producing beverages, isotope patterns in hair could serve as a chemical ‘fingerprint’ to pinpoint the geographic region where a person has been living.
The scientists analysed isotope patterns in bottled water, soda pop and beer from 33 cities and found that patterns in the beverages generally matched those already known for the tap water, says a release of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
They noted that the isotope pattern in beverages tend to vary from city to city in ways that give each city a characteristic ‘iso-signature.’
The finding may help trace the origin of drinks or help criminal investigators identify the geographic travels of crime suspects and other individuals through analysis of hair strands, the study suggests.
These findings appear in ACS’ bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
