Health risk assessment and levels of toxic metals in fishes (Oreochromis noliticus and Clarias anguillaris) from Ankobrah and Pra basins: Impact of illegal mining activities on food safety

Composition of nutrients, heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and microbiological quality in processed small indigenous fish species from Ghana: Implications for food security

“…Kwaansa-Ansah, Nti [114] reported cadmium concentrations in marine fish fillets from Ghana ranging from 0.007 to 0.019 mg/kg, which are in accordance with the findings in this study, with only anchovy having higher concentrations. Kortei, Heymann [115] reported cadmium concentrations in fillet of two freshwater species from below detection limit up to 0.08 mg/kg, which is higher compared to the samples analyzed in this study. Analytical data on heavy metal content including cadmium concentration in whole small fish for human consumption is scarce.…”

“…Consequently, future studies need to investigate sources of contamination including regional difference. No scientific papers analyzing the lead content of whole fish in Ghana were found for direct comparison, but studies of lead in muscle tissue of several freshwater species ranged from 0.04 to 0.42 mg/kg [ 115 ], 0.060–0.085 mg/kg in fillet of marine species [ 114 ] and levels lower than 0.2 mg/kg in fillet of catfish and bigeye grunt [ 120 ]. The lead concentration in dried fish products from our study was higher than levels reported for fresh fish, which is mainly caused by the reduced water content in the fish due to processing [ 121 ].…”

“…Data on mercury concentration in whole small fish as food for humans is scarce in the scientific literature, which limits the basis for comparison. However, scientific reports on mercury concentrations in fish fillet from the Gulf of Guinea and Ghana have reported mercury concentrations of 0.19 mg/kg up to 0.61 mg/kg in fillet of local marine and freshwater fish [ 34 , 115 , 120 , 127 ]. The aforementioned studies found higher concentrations of mercury than in the present study, even though the water content was reduced by processing.…”

A human health risk assessment of heavy metal ingestion among consumers of protein powder supplements

“…Arsenic in surface freshwater sources, including in rivers and lakes is usually detected at concentrations of <10 μg/L, however, high concentrations (up to 5 mg/L) have been reported near anthropogenic sources. Foods that contain As include marine fish, mussels, and certain crustaceans (which may contain concentrations of up to 100 mg/kg) [ 19 , 20 ]. Other food sources that contain inorganic As include meats, poultry, dairy products and cereal.…”

“…The dietary intake of Hg is mainly through aquatic organisms and contaminated drinking water [ 20 , 23 , 26 , 28 , 29 ]. It was noted that the estimated average daily intake of inorganic Hg compounds in the general population from food and drinking water were 4.2 μg/day and 0.05 μg/day, respectively [ 28 ].…”