Cluster approach to the study of population health risks posed by contamination of food products with heavy metals

View or download the full article: 
PDF icon health-risk-analysis-2024-1-5.pdf
UDC: 
613.26; 614.31
DOI: 
10.21668/health.risk/2024.1.05.eng
Authors: 

D.O. Gorbachev

Organization: 

Samara State Medical University, 89 Chapaevskaya St., Samara, 443099, Russian Federation

Abstract: 

Food products are a source of energy and essential substances but also of anthropogenic contaminants such as heavy metals. The aim of the study was to assess population health risks posed by contamination of food products with heavy metals, taking into account peculiarities of food preferences. An epidemiological study of actual nutrition of adult population of Samara region was conducted, the sample size was 1,856 people.

At the first stage, using factor analysis, respondents' adherence to a certain model of food preferences was established; at the second stage, 5 homogeneous groups (clusters) of people with similar types of nutrition were formed using cluster analysis. The first cluster included individuals with maximum commitment to a high level of consumption of all studied foods; the second cluster was characterized by commitment to consumption of high-calorie foods such as baked goods, confectionery, sausages, potatoes, eggs, and cheese. Individuals from the cluster 3 showed a distinct preference for consumption of vegetables, fruit and dairy products. Individuals from the cluster 4 had no special preferences for any of the studied foods. The fifth cluster included people who had maximum preference for meat and meat products, smoked meats, pickles and salted fish. The content of cadmium, mercury, lead, and arsenic in food products was assessed via atomic absorption and photometric methods. The study relied on using social and hygienic monitoring data from the Samara Regional Rospotrebnadzor (Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights and Human Wellbeing) collection. Risk assessment of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects was carried out in each of the five formed clusters taking into account modern methodological approaches.

It was found that in all food clusters, the hazard coefficients for intake of contaminants in median concentrations and in the 90th percentile did not exceed permissible levels. In all clusters, the endocrine system was most at risk (HI = 1.68 ÷ 1.25). For all clusters, carcinogenic risk (for median concentrations) was created by arsenic both at the individual and the population level. The risk was the highest for people whose diets were characterized by high levels of consumption of high-calorie products. Cluster approach makes it possible to identify the most vulnerable groups of population in terms of risk burden for making managerial decisions and carrying out preventive measures.

Keywords: 
contamination, heavy metals, cluster analysis, public health risks, actual nutrition, food preferences, carcinogenic risk, non-carcinogenic risk
Gorbachev D.O. Cluster approach to the study of population health risks posed by contamination of food products with heavy metals. Health Risk Analysis, 2024, no. 1, pp. 47–58. DOI: 10.21668/health.risk/2024.1.05.eng
References: 
  1. Balali-Mood M., Naseri K., Tahergorabi Z., Khazdair M.R., Sadeghi M. Toxic Mechanisms of Five Heavy Metals: Mercury, Lead, Chromium, Cadmium, and Arsenic. Front. Pharmacol., 2021, vol. 12, pp. 643972. DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.643972
  2. Mahmood A., Malik R.N. Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals via Consumption of Contaminated Vegetables Collected from Different Irrigation Sources in Lahore, Pakistan. Arab. J. Chem., 2014, vol. 7, pp. 91–99. DOI: 10.1016/j.arabjc.2013.07.002
  3. Khan A., Khan S., Khan M.A., Qamar Z., Waqas M. The Uptake and Bioaccumulation of Heavy Metals by Food Plants, Their Effects on Plants Nutrients, and Associated Health Risk: A Review. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. Int., 2015, vol. 22, no. 18, pp. 13772–13799. DOI: 10.1007/s11356-015-4881-0
  4. Nkansah M.A., Agorsor P.-I., Opoku F. Heavy Metal Contamination and Health Risk Assessment of Mechanically Milled Delicacy Called Fufu. Int. J. Food Contam., 2021, vol. 8, pp. 6. DOI: 10.1186/s40550-021-00085-y
  5. Tchounwou P.B., Yedjou C.G., Patlolla A.K., Sutton D.J. Heavy Metal Toxicity and the Environment. Exp. Suppl., 2012, vol. 101, pp. 133–164. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-7643-8340-4_6
  6. Pratush A., Kumar A., Hu Z. Adverse effect of heavy metals (As, Pb, Hg, and Cr) on health and their bioremediation strategies: a review. Int. Microbiol., 2018, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 97–106. DOI: 10.1007/s10123-018-0012-3
  7. Li G., Xiong C., Xu W., Mei R., Cheng T., Yu X. Factors Affecting the Aluminum, Arsenic, Cadmium and Lead Concentrations in the Knee Joint Structures. Front. Public Health, 2021, vol. 9, pp. 758074. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.758074
  8. Igbokwe I.O., Igwenagu E., Igbokwe N.A. Aluminium Toxicosis: A Review of Toxic Actions and Effects. Interdiscip. Toxicol., 2019, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 45–70. DOI: 10.2478/intox-2019-0007
  9. Fu Z., Xi S. The Effects of Heavy Metals on Human Metabolism. Toxicol. Mech. Methods, 2020, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 167–176. DOI: 10.1080/15376516.2019.1701594
  10. Kim H.S., Kim Y.J., Seo Y.R. An overview of carcinogenic heavy metal: Molecular toxicity mechanism and prevention. J. Cancer Prev., 2015, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 232–240. DOI: 10.15430/JCP.2015.20.4.232
  11. Witkowska D., Słowik J., Chilicka K. Heavy Metals and Human Health: Possible Exposure Pathways and the Competition for Protein Binding Sites. Molecules, 2021, vol. 26, no. 19, pp. 6060. DOI: 10.3390/molecules26196060
  12. Frolova O.A., Bocharov E.P., Akhtyamova L.A. Risk assessment from exposure to chemical contaminants in food. Gigiena i sanitariya, 2016, vol. 95, no. 8, pp. 743–748. DOI: 10.18821/0016-9900-2016-95-8-743-748 (in Russian).
  13. Tarmaeva I.Yu., Efimova N.V., Baglushkina S.Yu., Belykсh A.I. Contamination of food raw materials and foodstuffs in Irkutsk region. ZNiSO, 2017, no. 10 (295), рp. 43–45. DOI: 10.35627/2219-5238/2017-295-10-43-45 (in Russian).
  14. Bogdanova O.G., Efimova N.V., Bagaeva E.E., Tarmaeva N.A. Risk assessment for public health associated with nitrate content in crop products. Voprosy pitaniya, 2021, vol. 90, no. 3 (535), pp. 40–49. DOI: 10.33029/0042-8833-2021-90-3-40-49 (in Russian).
  15. Eliseev Yu.Yu., Chekhomov S.Yu., Eliseeva Yu.V. Comparative Assessment of Nitrate Concentrations in Vegetables Grown on Commercial and Subsistence Farms in the Saratov Region. ZNiSO, 2021, no. 3, pp. 52–56. DOI: 10.35627/2219-5238/2021-336-3-52-56 (in Russian).
  16. Zuo T.-T., Jin H.-Y., Chen A.-Z., Zhang L., Kang S., Li A.-P., Gao F., Wei F. [et al.]. Novel Integrated Tiered Cumulative Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Food Homologous Traditional Chinese Medicine Based on a Real-Life-Exposure Scenario. Front. Pharmacol., 2022, vol. 13, pp. 908986. DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.908986
  17. Gorbachev D.O. The use of software complex "Nutri-prof" in the assessment of actual nutrition and nutritional status of the population. Journal of New Medical Technologies, eEdition, 2019, no. 5, pp. 100–104. DOI: 10.24411/2075-4094-2019-16482 (in Russian).
  18. Boev V.M., Kryazheva E.A., Begun D.N., Borshchuk E.L., Kryazhev D.A. Hygienic assessment of population health risks caused by combined oral introduction of heavy metals. Health Risk Analysis, 2019, no. 2, pp. 35–43. DOI: 10.21668/health.risk/2019.2.04.eng
  19. Setko A.G., Mryasova J.K., Turin A.V. Risk of health disorders in children casued by consumption of contaminated food products. Health Risk Analysis, 2018, no. 4, pp. 89–95. DOI: 10.21668/health.risk/2018.4.10.eng
  20. Bakirov A.B., Daukaev R.A., Larionova T.K., Fazlieva A.S., Kurilov M.V., Allayarova G.R., Afonkina S.R., Zelenkovskaya E.E. The results of research work on the assessment of food safety in the diet of residents of an industrially developed region. Meditsina truda i ekologiya cheloveka, 2021, no. 4 (28), pp. 7–14. DOI: 10.24412/2411-3794-2021-10401 (in Russian).
  21. Chekhomov S.Yu., Eliseeva Yu.V., Pichugina N.N., Eliseev Yu.Yu. Potential risk for health of rural population related to consumption of local food products containing residual amounts of heavy metals. Saratovskii nauchno-meditsinskii zhurnal, 2020, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 934–939 (in Russian).
  22. Tikhonova Yu.L. Comparative analysis of chemical contamination of baby foods and primary pediatric morbidity. Rossiiskii vestnik gigieny, 2021, no. 3, pp. 28–32. DOI: 10.24075/rbh.2021.021 (in Russian).
  23. Tikhonova Yu.L., Milushkina O.Yu., Bokareva N.A., Kozyreva F.U. Hygienic aspects of food safety for infant nutrition. Voprosy detskoi dietologii, 2022, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 51–60. DOI: 10.20953/1727-5784-2022-4-51-6 (in Russian).
  24. Bogdanova O.G., Efimova N.V., Molchanova O.A. Analysis of health risks associated with food safety. Gigiena i sanitariya, 2021, vol. 100, no. 12, pp. 1481–1486. DOI: 10.47470/0016-9900-2021-100-12-1481-1486 (in Russian).
  25. Di Bella C., Traina A., Giosuè C., Carpintieri D., Lo Dico G.M., Bellante A., Del Core M., Falco F. [et al.]. Heavy Metals and PAHs in Meat, Milk, and Seafood from Augusta Area (Southern Italy): Contamination Levels, Dietary Intake, and Human Exposure Assessment. Front. Public Health, 2020, vol. 8, pp. 273. DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2020.00273
  26. Pajević S., Arsenov D., Nikolić N., Borišev M., Orčić D., Župunski M., Mimica-Dukić N. Heavy metal accumulation in vegetable species and health risk assessment in Serbia. Environ. Monit. Assess., 2018, vol. 190, no. 8, pp. 459. DOI: 10.1007/s10661-018-6743-y
  27. Boev V.M., Borshchuk E.L., Kryazhev D.A., Savina E.K. Malignant tumors of the rectum, rectosigmoid connections and colon and hygienic evaluation of carcinogenic chemicals entering the oral route. ZNiSO, 2017, no. 6 (291), pp. 13–17. DOI: 10.35627/2219-5238/2017-291-6-13-17 (in Russian).
  28. Loud J.T., Murphy J. Cancer Screening and Early Detection in the 21st Century. Semin. Oncol. Nurs., 2017, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 121–128. DOI: 10.1016/j.soncn.2017.02.002
Received: 
30.11.2023
Approved: 
25.01.2024
Accepted for publication: 
05.03.2024

You are here

Home