Arsenic in the human food chain: The Latin American perspective
Journal
Science of the Total Environment
Journal Volume
429
Pages
92-106
Date Issued
2012
Author(s)
Abstract
Many regions of Latin America are widely reported for the occurrence of high arsenic (As) in groundwater and surface water due to a combination of geological processes and/or anthropogenic activities. In this paper, we review the available literature (both in English and Spanish languages) to delineate human As exposure pathways through the food chain. Numerous studies show that As accumulations in edible plants and crops are mainly associated with the presence of high As in soils and irrigation waters. However, factors such as As speciation, type and composition of soil, and plant species have a major control on the amount of As uptake. Areas of high As concentrations in surface water and groundwater show high As accumulations in plants, fish/shellfish, livestock meat, milk and cheese. Such elevated As concentrations in food may result in widespread health risks to local inhabitants, including health of indigenous populations and residents living close to mining industries. Some studies show that As can be transferred from the water to prepared meals, thereby magnifying the As content in the human diet. Arsenic speciation might also change during food preparation, especially during high temperature cooking, such as grilling and frying. Finally, the review of the available literature demonstrates the necessity of more rigorous studies in evaluating pathways of As exposure through the human food chain in Latin America. ? 2011 Elsevier B.V.
Subjects
Arsenic; Arsenic speciation; Food chain; Human diet; Livestock; Vegetables
SDGs
Other Subjects
Anthropogenic activity; Arsenic speciation; As speciation; As uptake; Edible plants; Exposure pathways; Food chain; Food preparation; Geological process; High temperature; Human diet; Human food chain; Irrigation waters; Latin America; Latin americans; Livestock; Plant species; Spanish language; Arsenic; Groundwater; Irrigation; Nutrition; Soils; Surface waters; Vegetables; Water supply; Chemical contamination; 5 methyltetrahydrofolate homocysteine methyltransferase; arsenic; biological marker; choline dehydrogenase; copper; DNA methyltransferase; drinking water; glutaredoxin; glutaredoxin 1; glutathione transferase; gold; homocysteine methyltransferase; methyltransferase; peroxiredoxin 2; unclassified drug; arsenic; bioaccumulation; chemical composition; geoaccumulation; groundwater pollution; health impact; health risk; human activity; pollution exposure; soil pollution; speciation (chemistry); anthropology; bladder cancer; Brazil; Costa Rica; DNA damage; DNA repair; El Salvador; environmental exposure; environmental impact; environmental monitoring; gene linkage disequilibrium; genetic polymorphism; genetic susceptibility; genotoxicity; geographic distribution; human; hydrophilicity; kidney cancer; liver cancer; lung cancer; Mexico; mining; Nicaragua; oxidative stress; priority journal; review; river basin; sedimentation; single nucleotide polymorphism; skin cancer; South and Central America; systematic review; water analysis; water contamination; water supply; world health organization; Arsenic; Food Chain; Groundwater; Humans; Latin America; Water Pollutants, Chemical; Water Supply; Latin America
Type
journal article