Background:
Contamination of soil and agricultural products by heavy metals resulting
from rapid industrial development has caused major concern. Dietary exposure to heavy metals has
been associated with toxic and adverse health effects. The main threats to human health from heavy
metals are associated with exposure to Pb, Cd and Hg. The aim of this study was to monitor the presence
of heavy metals, minerals and trace elements in cereals consumed by Dhaka city residents.
Methods:
One hundred and sixty cereal samples were collected for eight (08) composited samples
and analyzed for the determination of sixteen elements. Heavy metals were analyzed by Inductively
Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), and other elements were determined by Atomic Absorption
Spectrometry (AAS).
Results:
The average concentrations of elements in cereals fall within the safe limit except for Pb,
Cr, Na and Mg, which exceeded the safe limits. The daily intake of Cd (23.0 μg), Hg (63.0 μg) and
As (13.6 μg) through cereals was below the risk level except for Pb (634.0 μg) and Cr (263.1 μg).
The dietary intake of Na (1860.0 mg), Mg (347.0 mg) and Mn (4600.0 μg) exceeded the toxic level
while K (829 mg) was below the RDA.
Conclusion:
As the main meal of average Bangladeshi people is boiled rice served with some vegetables,
our findings indicate that the residents of Dhaka city are at risk from Pb and Cr contamination
and their dietary need for some important minerals and trace elements is not fulfilled by cereals.
Concentrations of toxic metals and essential trace elements vary among individual neurons in the human locus ceruleus