Risk of Mercury Ingestion from Canned Fish in Poland

Health risks associated with mercury intake from rice and rice products

The main route of human exposure to toxic contaminants is through the consumption of contaminated food. To protect against potential negative health effects of rice consumption, the concentration of total mercury (THg) in rice and rice products sold in Poland was determined, and a consumer risk assessment was carried out. In this study, the concentration of THg in selected types of rice and rice products was determined and assessed. The determinations were carried out using atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) in a DMA-1 mercury analyzer. Based on the estimated daily intake (EDI), target hazard quotient values (THQ), and tolerable weekly intake (TWI), the toxicological risk associated with the intake of total mercury and methylmercury (MeHg) from the products tested was also estimated. The analysis indicated that the highest Hg content was in rice cakes and the lowest in white rice and rice noodles. Total mercury content was found to be below the maximum permitted level. The estimated daily intake (EDI) and target hazard quotient (THQ) values for THg and MeHg in rice and rice products were lower than 1. These findings suggest that the food items examined pose no health risk.

Assessment of Toxic Element Contamination in Honey, Milk, and Eggs from Algiers (Algeria) Using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS): Exploring Health Implications of Pollution

Consumption of foods such as milk, honey, and eggs contaminated with toxic elements above established norms poses a health risk to the population. This study explores the potential of products from beehives, poultry, and dairy as indicators of environmental pollution caused by toxic substances (Pb, Cd, Hg), seeks contamination sources, evaluates the exposure level, and assesses health risks. Through the analysis of samples from three distinct regions in Algiers, including 30 milk, 30 honey, and 30 poultry egg samples, the study assesses levels of toxic elements (lead, cadmium, and mercury) using ICP-MS and analyzes consumer exposure risk. The analysis of honey reveals levels of Pb (0.282 μg/g) > Cd (0.161 μg/g) > Hg (0.017 μg/g), the analysis of eggs shows levels of Pb (0.399 μg/g) > Cd (0.239 μg/g) > Hg (0.027 μg/g), and the results in milk show levels of Cd (0.250 μg/g) > Pb (0.131 μg/g) > Hg (0.019 μg/g). The risk analysis indicates a risk associated with milk consumption for both adults and children, whereas for honey and eggs, the risk is limited to children only in polluted areas. Future research should expand to other toxic elements in different food matrices in both northern and southern Algeria to evaluate the health risk for African and European consumers.

Determination of toxic metals in canned tuna sold in developed and developing countries: Health risk assessment associated with human consumption

This study investigated toxic metal levels in a total of 222 canned tuna sampled from 36 countries (developed and developing) during 2017-2019. For this purpose, four toxic metals (Cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Under the optimized conditions, the limit of detection (LOD) and the limit of quantification (LOQ) of the instrument ranged from 0.025 to 0.18 and from 0.54 to 0.045 ppb, respectively, with recoveries in the range of 98 %-108 %. Moreover, noncancer risk using the target hazard quotient (THQ) of each of the four toxic metals was assessed, and cancer risk using the target cancer risk (TCR) of inorganic arsenic (iAs) was evaluated. The THQ values of Hg were higher than the limits of safe (THQ ˃1) and TCR showed the carcinogenic risk for iAs for consumers when consuming more than one meal of canned tuna per week.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Diet Review

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal disease related to upper and lower motor neurons degeneration. Although the environmental and genetic causes of this disease are still unclear, some factors involved in ALS onset such as oxidative stress may be influenced by diet. A higher risk of ALS has been correlated with a high fat and glutamate intake and β-methylamino-L-alanine. On the contrary, a diet based on antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds, such as curcumin, creatine, coenzyme Q10, vitamin E, vitamin A, vitamin C, and phytochemicals could reduce the risk of ALS. However, data are controversial as there is a discrepancy among different studies due to a limited number of samples and the many variables that are involved. In addition, an improper diet could lead to an altered microbiota and consequently to an altered metabolism that could predispose to the ALS onset. In this review we summarized some research that involve aspects related to ALS such as the epidemiology, the diet, the eating behaviour, the microbiota, and the metabolic diseases. Further research is needed to better comprehend the role of diet and the metabolic diseases in the mechanisms leading to ALS onset and progression.