Strontium isotope ratios of human hair record intra-city variations in tap water source

The oxygen (18O/16O) isotope analysis of hair is commonly applied to reconstruct an individual’s residence history. However, region-of-origin as determined from oxygen isotope values (δ18O) alone is often spatially indistinct. Adding additional geochemical recorders can refine region-of-origin estimates. In this capacity, strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotope analysis has attracted increased interest. While 87Sr/86Sr reflects the influences of local geology, 87Sr/86Sr of hair includes both external environmental signals as well as the internal dietary indicators. To better understand the impact of these contributions to the spatial signal encoded within 87Sr/86Sr of hair, human hair was collected from three locations within Salt Lake City, Utah along with the donor’s sex. The 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O of hair and local tap water were measured. There were no significant relationships between sex and either δ18O or 87Sr/86Sr of hair, nor between collection location and the δ18O of hair. However, we found significant associations between collection location and 87Sr/86Sr of hair. These findings suggest that interactions with local water may be an important source of Sr to human hair and that the 87Sr/86Sr of hair may have the capacity to record differences in 87Sr/86Sr of tap waters on small spatial scales.