Heavy metal content in vegetables and fruits cultivated in Baia Mare mining area (Romania) and health risk assessment

Abstract

Information about heavy metal concentrations in food products and their dietary intake are essential for assessing the health risk of local inhabitants. The main purposes of the present study were (1) to investigate the concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb, and Cd in several vegetables and fruits cultivated in Baia Mare mining area (Romania); (2) to assess the human health risk associated with the ingestion of contaminated vegetables and fruits by calculating the daily intake rate (DIR) and the target hazard quotient (THQ); and (3) to establish some recommendations on human diet in order to assure an improvement in food safety. The concentration order of heavy metals in the analyzed vegetable and fruit samples was Zn > Cu > Pb > Cd. The results showed the heavy metals are more likely to accumulate in vegetables (10.8-630.6 mg/kg dw for Zn, 1.4-196.6 mg/kg dw for Cu, 0.2-155.7 mg/kg dw for Pb, and 0.03-6.61 mg/kg dw for Cd) than in fruits (4.9-55.9 mg/kg dw for Zn, 1.9-24.7 mg/kg dw for Cu, 0.04-8.82 mg/kg dw for Pb, and 0.01-0.81 mg/kg dw for Cd). Parsley, kohlrabi, and lettuce proved to be high heavy metal accumulators. By calculating DIR and THQ, the data indicated that consumption of parsley, kohlrabi, and lettuce from the area on a regular basis may pose high potential health risks to local inhabitants, especially in the area located close to non-ferrous metallurgical plants (Romplumb SA and Cuprom SA) and close to Tăuții de Sus tailings ponds. The DIR for Zn (85.3-231.6 μg/day kg body weight) and Cu (25.0-44.6 μg/day kg body weight) were higher in rural areas, while for Pb (0.6-3.1 μg/day kg body weight) and Cd (0.22-0.82 μg/day kg body weight), the DIR were higher in urban areas, close to the non-ferrous metallurgical plants SC Romplumb SA and SC Cuprom SA. The THQ for Zn, Cu, Pb, and Cd was higher than 5 for <1, <1, 12, and 6% of samples which indicates that those consumers may experience major health risks.

Levels of zinc, copper, cadmium, and lead in fruits and vegetables grown and consumed in Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia

“…The levels were in the order arugula > spinach > lettuce > tomato > apricot > fig. The higher levels of zinc in this study were noticed in leafy vegetables compared to fruits and fruity vegetable samples, which is consistent with similar notes reported previously (Roba et al 2015). Zinc is considered as an essential plant micronutrient, and it has a long biological half-life in plants (Nagajyoti et al 2010).…”

A Deep Dive Into the Chronic Air Pollution Reality in Baia Mare. Part Iii: Air Pollution Effects on the Local Population Between 1980 and 2006

“…This paper, the final part of a complex three-part work, aims to present the consequences of air pollution on public health in Baia Mare between 1980 and 2006. Our work brings up to date and enlarges the bulk of information provided by the very few papers that cover the subject of air pollution effects on public health in Baia Mare (Lacatusu et al, 1996;Dobra and Viman, 2006;Nadisan, 2006;Jelea and Jelea, 2007;Oroian, 2010;Roba et al, 2016;Smical, Muntean and Torok, 2016). In a previous paper, the first of this series, we presented an overview of historical air pollution sources in Baia Mare .…”

Validation and quantitative analysis of cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, and lead in snake fruit by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy

“…National Standard of the People's Republic of China (2012) set the maximum levels of Cr and Ni in foods were 0.5 mg/kg and 1.0 mg/kg, respectively. Meanwhile, maximum level of Cu in fruit was 5 mg/kg according to Romanian Ministry of Agriculture Food and Forestry Order (Roba et al, 2016). The results showed that the levels of Cr, Cu, and Ni in commercially snake fruit samples were acceptable.…”

“…Based on LoD values, ICP-AES was sensitive enough for analysis of these heavy metals because LoD values were lower than maximum values of heavy metals allowed to be present in fruit products, i.e. 0.5 µg/g (Roba et al, 2016).…”