ABSTRACT
This study estimates mercury and methylmercury levels in fish and fishery products commercialized in the city of Barcelona, Spain, from 2001 to 2007. Combining data of mercury levels in food with the consumption data of 2158 people (as the median of two 24-h recall), the total mercury intake of the Catalonian population was calculated. Mercury was detected in 32.8% of analysed samples. The general population average weekly intake of total mercury in the Catalonian population was 0.783 microg kg(-1) of body weight. This value is clearly lower than the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) provisional tolerable weekly intakes (PTWI) of 5 microg kg(-1) of body weight. The fish group was the main contributor to this value, mainly due to predatory species.
Subject(s)
Food Contamination/analysis , Mercury/adverse effects , Mercury/analysis , Methylmercury Compounds/adverse effects , Methylmercury Compounds/analysis , Seafood/adverse effects , Seafood/analysis , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Child , Eating , Female , Fish Products/adverse effects , Fish Products/analysis , Humans , Male , Mercury/administration & dosage , Methylmercury Compounds/administration & dosage , Middle Aged , Pregnancy , Shellfish/adverse effects , Shellfish/analysis , Spain , Young AdultABSTRACT
This study explored the potential use of seven congeners of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs-7) as indicator compounds for the presence of dioxins and PCBs in food samples, as part of the routine surveillance programme of a public health agency. Samples of 24 foodstuffs with high fat content were collected (ten fresh fish, six dairy products, five meat and three eggs). Duplicate analyses were performed. A research laboratory tested samples for seven polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (PCDDs), ten dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and twelve dioxin-like PCBs, with limits of detection in the range of ng kg(-1) (ppt). The public health services official control laboratory tested samples for PCBs-7, with a limit of quantification of 5 µg kg(-1) (ppb). The research laboratory detected the presence of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in all samples; fish samples had the highest levels (0.04-10.3 pg WHO-TEQ g(-1)). The public health service official control laboratory detected PCBs-7 only in five samples, which were all fish. Comparing the results in the two laboratories there seems to be an association between the detection of PCB-7 and the presence of higher levels of PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs. The use of PCB-7 as an indicator compound may be a practical surveillance strategy for those foodstuffs with higher concentrations of dioxin-like congeners.
Subject(s)
Dioxins/analysis , Food Contamination/analysis , Polychlorinated Biphenyls/analysis , Animals , Chickens/metabolism , Dairy Products/analysis , Dairy Products/toxicity , Dioxins/toxicity , Eating , Eggs/analysis , Eggs/toxicity , Environmental Monitoring , Environmental Pollutants/analysis , Environmental Pollutants/toxicity , Fishes/metabolism , Food Analysis/methods , Humans , Maximum Allowable Concentration , Meat/analysis , Meat/toxicity , Polychlorinated Biphenyls/toxicity , Public Health , SpainABSTRACT
This paper reports concentration levels of 22 chlorinated organic compounds (both primary compounds and metabolites) in food marketed in the city of Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) in 2001-06. Samples included meat products, fish and seafood, eggs, milk and dairy, vegetal oils, cereal products and derivates, vegetables, fresh fruits, dry fruits, spices, formula and baby food, tea and wine. Levels of chlorinated organic compounds were determined by gas chromatography with selective detectors: electron capture (ECD), flame photometric (FPD) and confirmation with mass-spectrometry. Chlorinated organic pesticides were detected in 7 of the 1,484 samples analyzed in the 2001-06 period (0.5%): 1 dairy product, 1 fruit, 1 olive oil and 4 vegetables. Specific pesticides detected are lindane and endosulfan alpha, beta or sulphate. A decrease in both the proportion of samples with detectable residues and in the variety of chlorinated pesticides found is visible when comparing these results with those of the previous 1989-2000 period. These results suggest the gradual disappearance of regulated chlorinated organic pesticides as a consequence of the growing worldwide implementation of current regulatory agreements.
Subject(s)
Food Contamination/analysis , Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated/analysis , Pesticides/analysis , Chromatography, Gas , Food Analysis , Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated/chemistry , Pest Control/legislation & jurisprudence , Pesticides/chemistry , SpainABSTRACT
This study reports on the concentrations of eight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in food samples collected in the city of Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) from 2003 to 2004. Food samples included meat products, fish (fresh and smoked), other seafood (cephalopods, crustaceans, and bivalves), vegetable oil, and tea. Concentrations of benz[a]anthracene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, benzo[g,h,i]perylene, benzo[alpha]pyrene, benzo[e]pyrene, dibenz[a,h]anthracene, and indeno[1,2,3-c,d]pyrene were determined by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. PAHs were detected in most tea samples (94%), which had the highest concentration of total PAHs (mean concentration of 59 microg/kg). Other food groups with a high presence of PAHs were bivalves (present in 34% of the samples; mean value of 2.7 microg/kg) and meat products (present in 13% of the samples; mean value of 1.7 microg/kg). The PAHs detected most frequently were benzo[e]pyrene and benzo[b]fluoranthene. No sample had levels above current regulation standards. Nevertheless, the frequent presence of PAHs in bivalves, tea samples, and meat products, together with the fact that dietary sources are the main exposure to these carcinogenic compounds, suggests the need for some monitoring scheme to follow up on these trends.
