Concentrations and human health implications of heavy metals in market foods from a Chinese coal-mining city

- Metal levels in marketed foodstuffs from a coal-mining city were investigated.
- Low-to-moderate heavy metal pollution is present in foods.
- Concentrations of Cd, Pb, Cr and Cu in some samples exceeded their safe limits.
- The overall risk from exposure to multiple metals in foods is unacceptable.

Concentrations of heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb and Sb) in vegetables, meat and fish purchased from traditional agri-product markets in Huainan, China, were measured. Concentrations of the eight metals in most of the measured samples were lower than their respective maximum allowable concentrations (MACs), except for Pb, Cd, Cr and Cu in some of the samples exceeded safe limits. Based on local food consumption, the intake of individual metals was estimated to be less than their respective recommended limits. However, the overall target hazard quotient (THQ) for the eight metals was 1.07 based on the digestion of leafy vegetables and 2.12 based on the consumption of all of the investigated foods. The results of this study suggest that the overall risk from exposure to multiple metals in foods should be of concern, even though low-to-moderate heavy metal pollution is present in foods from Huainan markets.