MİKOTOKSİNLERE DİYETLE MARUZİYETİ AZALTMAK İÇİN FARKINDALIK DÜZEYİ VE DAVRANIŞSAL ALIŞKANLIKLARININ DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ

Objective: Mycotoxins are known as secondary fungal metabolites that cause biochemical, physiological, and/or pathological changes in many species, including animals and plants. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), these substances contaminate about 25% of all food in the world. Mycotoxins are responsible for many different disorders affecting the gastrointestinal, urogenital, vascular, renal, and nervous systems, as well as cancers. Key strategies for preventing and controlling exposure to mycotoxins include controlling toxin formation, implementing surveillance and monitoring programs to prevent human exposure, detoxifying the mycotoxins through biological, chemical, and physical means, and promoting dietary diversification. Although exposure cannot be avoided entirely, implementing monitoring programs is crucial to minimize it. In general, prevention of exposure to mycotoxins should receive greater emphasis. This study aims to provide information about mycotoxins and raise awareness about mycotoxin exposure. Material and Method: This cross-sectional survey study was conducted with voluntary participants in Turkey between January 25, 2023-July 25, 2023, via electronic questionnaire. The questionnaire included socio-demographic data, income status, general dietary habits, frequency of consumption of mycotoxin-rich foods, knowledge about mycotoxins, and implementation of measures to prevent mycotoxin exposure. Result and Discussion: A total of 796 participants (52.6% female, 46.7% male, and 0.6% other) were included in the study. This study concludes that the participants considered both the price and quality of food to be important factors. The study indicates that a high percentage of participants are unaware of the concept of mycotoxin and the associated health risk. A statistically significant change was found between whether the participants were knowledgeable about nutrition and whether they knew the concept of mycotoxin (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in participants' knowledge of healthy nutrition and knowledge of the health hazards of mycotoxins. (p<0.05). The results indicate a requirement for comprehensive management against mycotoxins and mycotoxin exposure, which can cause several health problems in humans.