{"title":"Metal contaminants in rice imported to Iran: A comprehensive assessment of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risks","authors":"Samira Eslamizad , Maryam Alehashem","doi":"10.1016/j.jtemb.2024.127568","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Rice is a staple food in Iran, where significant imports from India and Pakistan are necessary to meet demand. However, imported rice has been found to contain harmful levels of heavy metals, posing health risks.</div></div><div><h3>Objectives</h3><div>This study aimed to assess the levels of 34 metals in imported rice and evaluated the associated health risks for the Iranian population.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Sixty samples of rice imported into the Iranian market from India, Pakistan, and Thailand were analyzed for 34 metals using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The metals included carcinogenic elements-Arsenic (As), Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), and Cadmium (Cd)-and non-carcinogenic: Sodium (Na), Iron (Fe), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Magnesium (Mg), Platinum (Pt), Silicon (Si), Gold (Au), Boron (B), Bismuth (Bi), Tungsten (W), Tin (Sn), Molybdenum (Mo), Chromium (Cr), Barium (Ba), Strontium (Sr), Aluminum (Al), Selenium (Se), Manganese (Mn), Cobalt (Co), Antimony (Sb), Titanium (Ti), Lanthanum (La), Lithium (Li), Vanadium (V), Beryllium (Be), Palladium (Pd), and Mercury (Hg). The health risks associated with the consumption of rice were assessed through the Target Hazard Quotient (THQ), Hazard Index (HI), Incremental Lifetime Cancer Risk (ILCR), cumulative cancer risk (∑ILCR), and Margin of Exposure (MOE) approaches.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The analysis revealed that the Cd level in 1 sample and Pb levels in 5 samples exceeded the maximum concentrations established by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran. The risk of cancer in adults exposed to As and Cd at mean concentrations was found to be higher than 1 in 100,000, while for Pb and Ni, the risk was greater than 1 in 10,000. In children, the ILCR for As and Cd at mean concentrations exceeded 10⁻⁴, indicating a moderate risk level, and for Pb and Ni, it reached 1 in 1000, emphasizing the need for enhanced public health safety measures. Additionally, ∑ILCR from all metals in both adults and children exceeded the 10⁻⁴ threshold. The MOE values for mean, median, and 90th percentile exposure to As, Pb, and Ni were below 10,000 in adults and children, indicating a significant health concern from rice consumption.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>These findings highlight the potential health risks of consuming rice contaminated with heavy metals, particularly arsenic. Therefore, special attention should be directed towards monitoring and reducing toxic metal levels in imported rice, with interventions aimed at mitigating these risks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49970,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology","volume":"87 ","pages":"Article 127568"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6000,"publicationDate":"2024-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0946672X24001883","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Rice is a staple food in Iran, where significant imports from India and Pakistan are necessary to meet demand. However, imported rice has been found to contain harmful levels of heavy metals, posing health risks.
Objectives
This study aimed to assess the levels of 34 metals in imported rice and evaluated the associated health risks for the Iranian population.
Methods
Sixty samples of rice imported into the Iranian market from India, Pakistan, and Thailand were analyzed for 34 metals using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The metals included carcinogenic elements-Arsenic (As), Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), and Cadmium (Cd)-and non-carcinogenic: Sodium (Na), Iron (Fe), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Magnesium (Mg), Platinum (Pt), Silicon (Si), Gold (Au), Boron (B), Bismuth (Bi), Tungsten (W), Tin (Sn), Molybdenum (Mo), Chromium (Cr), Barium (Ba), Strontium (Sr), Aluminum (Al), Selenium (Se), Manganese (Mn), Cobalt (Co), Antimony (Sb), Titanium (Ti), Lanthanum (La), Lithium (Li), Vanadium (V), Beryllium (Be), Palladium (Pd), and Mercury (Hg). The health risks associated with the consumption of rice were assessed through the Target Hazard Quotient (THQ), Hazard Index (HI), Incremental Lifetime Cancer Risk (ILCR), cumulative cancer risk (∑ILCR), and Margin of Exposure (MOE) approaches.
Results
The analysis revealed that the Cd level in 1 sample and Pb levels in 5 samples exceeded the maximum concentrations established by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran. The risk of cancer in adults exposed to As and Cd at mean concentrations was found to be higher than 1 in 100,000, while for Pb and Ni, the risk was greater than 1 in 10,000. In children, the ILCR for As and Cd at mean concentrations exceeded 10⁻⁴, indicating a moderate risk level, and for Pb and Ni, it reached 1 in 1000, emphasizing the need for enhanced public health safety measures. Additionally, ∑ILCR from all metals in both adults and children exceeded the 10⁻⁴ threshold. The MOE values for mean, median, and 90th percentile exposure to As, Pb, and Ni were below 10,000 in adults and children, indicating a significant health concern from rice consumption.
Conclusion
These findings highlight the potential health risks of consuming rice contaminated with heavy metals, particularly arsenic. Therefore, special attention should be directed towards monitoring and reducing toxic metal levels in imported rice, with interventions aimed at mitigating these risks.
期刊介绍:
The journal provides the reader with a thorough description of theoretical and applied aspects of trace elements in medicine and biology and is devoted to the advancement of scientific knowledge about trace elements and trace element species. Trace elements play essential roles in the maintenance of physiological processes. During the last decades there has been a great deal of scientific investigation about the function and binding of trace elements. The Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology focuses on the description and dissemination of scientific results concerning the role of trace elements with respect to their mode of action in health and disease and nutritional importance. Progress in the knowledge of the biological role of trace elements depends, however, on advances in trace elements chemistry. Thus the Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology will include only those papers that base their results on proven analytical methods.
Also, we only publish those articles in which the quality assurance regarding the execution of experiments and achievement of results is guaranteed.