[Nutritive value of daily food rations reproduced in several regions of Poland. Part VII. Evaluation of cobalt, chromium, nickel and selenium intakes]. / Wartosc odzywcza calodziennych racji pokarmowych odtwarzanych w kilku regionach kraju. Cz. VII. Ocena pobrania kobaltu, chromu, niklu i selenu.

On the basis of the data of the Chief Census Bureau, concerning the consumption of more than 80 food products, we reproduced in years 1987 and 1988 in Lublin, Olsztyn, Poznan, Warszawa and Wroclaw the food rations characteristic of manual workers' families and of other families with medium incomes. In samples of these diets, chromium, cobalt and nickel were determined by the ASA method, and selenium-spectrophotometrically. Daily intakes were: for cobalt 15-32 micrograms, chromium 65-187 micrograms, nickel 138-316 micrograms and selenium 93-233 micrograms. It was found that the investigated food rations cover the requirements of these elements, and create no risk of their excess in food. The present results indicate that the levels of the investigated elements are mainly related to the kind of food products and to their composition, whereas they depend to a lesser extent on the region in which the food ration has been reproduced.

[Evaluation of cadmium, mercury and lead intake with reproduced weekly food rations]. / Ocena pobrania kadmu, rteci i olowiu z tygodniowymi odtworzonymi racjami pokarmowymi.

In Lublin, Olsztyn, Poznan, Warszawa and Wroclaw, weekly food rations characteristic of families other than those of manual workers, with medium incomes, were reproduced. Food rations comprised ca. 90 food products whose average weekly intakes were established consistently with the results of questionnaires of the Chief Census Bureau. Namely, from these results we calculated and prepared the average weekly food rations (from 11 470 g to 14 732 g), in which cadmium, mercury and lead were assayed by the ASA method. These average food rations afforded weekly intakes of 105-147 micrograms Cd, 441-931 micrograms Pb and 50.5-119.0 micrograms Hg. According to these results, the average food rations from the above-mentioned cities are moderately contaminated with the heavy metals tested, because in no case 50% of the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) were exceeded. The present results are lower than those obtained in the same year for families of manual workers; this is probably due to the fact that in the families of manual workers, as compared with other families, the weight of meals is usually higher. It is noteworthy that in the cities with greater numbers of industrial plants the contents of the metals tested, particularly of mercury and lead, in food are higher.

[Evaluation of heavy metal contamination of potatoes from various regions of Poland]. / Ocena skazenia metalami ciezkimi krajowych ziemniaków pochodzacych z róznych rejonówn Polski.

Mercury, cadmium and lead contents were determined in 210 samples of potatoes of five cultivars, originating from four regions of Poland (Tarnobrzeg Province, Southern Region, Middle-Eastern Region, Poznan Province). Analysis was performed by the ASA method. Cadmium and lead were determined by the extraction technique, after metal complexing with APDC. Methyl isobutyl ketone was the organic phase. "Dry" mineralization of samples for cadmium and lead determinations was performed in a muffle furnace at 400 degrees C. Mercury was assayed by the cold vapour technique after "wet" mineralization with sulphuric and nitric acid in a Bethe apparatus. Mean mercury content was ca. 5.5 micrograms/kg for the samples from the uncontaminated regions; samples from the Southern Region contained on the average 12.9 micrograms/kg, i.e. twice more. Cadmium contents in potatoes from all the investigated regions were increased by an average of 0.029-0.064 mg/kg. Lead content in single samples was between 0.015-0.500 mg/kg; mean Pb contents in samples from the Southern Region, as compared with the Lublin region, were about twice higher. Hg, Cd and Pb contents were determined in the same samples of peeled potatoes and of their peels, this allowing for evaluation of the distribution of the investigated heavy metals in the tuber. It was found that lead occurs in the peels in 60-70%, and in the pulp in only 30-40%. As concerns cadmium and mercury, these metals appear in the tuber in 70-80%, and the peels in only 25-30%.

[Evaluation of cadmium, mercury and lead intake with daily food rations]. / Ocena pobrania kadmu, rteci i olowiu z calodziennymi odtworzonymi racjami pokarmowymi.

Using the data of the Central Statistical Bureau concerning the consumption of about 90 basic food products daily food rations were reproduced as taken by medium-income worker families. The diets were reproduced in Lublin, Olsztyn, Poznan, Warsaw and Wroclaw determining in them cadmium, mercury and lead by atomic absorption spectrophometry. It was found that weekly intake of cadmium with food rations was in the range from 133 to 189 mcg, that of lead was 504 to 952 mcg, and mercury from 61.6 to 154.0 mcg. The obtained results were not exceeding 50% PTWI for any of these metals but they were rather higher than those in previous years, which indicates increasing contamination of food products with toxic elements. In areas with higher industrialization level the dietary intake of metals was as a rule higher than in areas with lower accumulation of industry.