Sareh Nezami; Akram Fatemi
Abstract
Abstract Background and Aim:Theexcessive consumption of nitrogen fertilizers leads to the production of vegetables with high concentrations of nitrate. High nitrate concentration in crops causes a variety of diseases, especially due to the production of carcinogen nitrosamine in adults. Because of the ...
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Abstract Background and Aim:Theexcessive consumption of nitrogen fertilizers leads to the production of vegetables with high concentrations of nitrate. High nitrate concentration in crops causes a variety of diseases, especially due to the production of carcinogen nitrosamine in adults. Because of the increase in cancerous and non-cancerous diseases caused by the consumption of foods containing high nitrate, a detailed and comprehensive assessment of the state of nitrate accumulation in vegetables is required. This study was conducted to evaluate the risk of nitrate in high-consumption vegetables in Kermanshah. Materials and Methods: In this study, 120 samples of five kilograms of high-consumption vegetables were sampled in different months of each season and sent to the laboratory. Samples included tomato, cucumber, potato, onion (yellow, white, red), lettuce, celery, watercress, and spinach or beet leaves. After sample preparation and extraction, the nitrate concentration was determined by a spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 410 nm. Results:The nitrate concentration in all vegetables was less than the WHO and ISRI standard limits in winter. But in the summer, the concentration of nitrate in celery, cress, and sugar beet leaves exceeded the standard limits. The hazard quotient (HQ) was less than 1 in all vegetables and both seasons. In summer, the highest HQ values were observed in cress (0.425), beet leaves (0.363), and celery (0.135), in sequence. In the winter, the highest amount of HQ was seen in cress (0.190). Conclusion:According to the HQ values (less than 1) in all vegetables, the possibility of exposure to non-carcinogenic diseases caused by nitrate from eating vegetables in this study is not serious, but it is necessary to monitor the concentration of nitrate in consumed vegetables at different intervals.
Soheil Sobhanardakani; Lobat Taghavi
Abstract
Background & Objective: Nowadays due to the environmental pollution, health risk of foodstuffs consumption especially citrus species as an integral part of human diet has become a serious challenge. Therefore, this study was carried out for analysis and health risk assessment of As and Zn in some ...
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Background & Objective: Nowadays due to the environmental pollution, health risk of foodstuffs consumption especially citrus species as an integral part of human diet has become a serious challenge. Therefore, this study was carried out for analysis and health risk assessment of As and Zn in some widely used citrus samples marketed in Hamedan city in 2015. Materials and Methods: In this analytical study, 48 samples of citrus species (orange, grapefruit, lemon and tangerine) were randomly collected from four wholesale centers of Hamedan city. After samples preparation using acid digestion method, the concentrations of elements in samples were determined using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP–OES) in three replications. the gained experimental results were analyzed by SPSS 20 software using Shapiro-Wilk Test, One Sample T Test, one-way ANOVA and Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient. Results:The results showed that the maximum mean concentration (mg/kg) of As and Zn were 0.09±0.07, and 0.26±0.09 for grapefruit and lemon samples respectively. Also the computed health risk assessment showed that there is no potential risk for children and adult to consume the studied citrus. Conclusion: Although based on the obtained results, controlled consumption of studied citrus species has not adverse effect on the consumers’ health, due to the increased use of agricultural inputs especially phosphorus fertilizers, sewage sludge and wastewater by farmers and orchardists, regular periodic monitoring of chemical pollutants such as pesticides and other toxic metals (Hg, Pb, Cd and Cr) content are recommended for food safety especially in imported foodstuffs.