Article
Mercurial Contamination: A Consumer Health Risk Assessment Concerning Seafood From a Eutrophic Estuary in Southeastern Brazil
Registro en:
RODRIGUES, Paloma de Almeida et al. Mercurial Contamination: A Consumer Health Risk Assessment Concerning Seafood From a Eutrophic Estuary in Southeastern Brazil. Frontiers in Marine Sciences, v. 9, Article 765323, p. 1 - 10, May 2022.
2296-7745
10.3389/fmars.2022.765323
Autor
Rodrigues, Paloma de Almeida
Ferrari, Rafaela Gomes
Rosário, Denes Kaic Alves do
Hauser-Davis, Rachel Ann
Santos, Luciano Neves dos
Conte Junior, Carlos Adam
Resumen
Mercury (Hg) contamination has increased in the last decades, resulting in human
consumption concerns mainly in developing countries. In this context, this study aimed
to carry out a health risk assessment regarding the consumption of swimming crabs,
shrimp and squid species caught in different regions of the Guanabara Bay, Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil. For this purpose, we used calculations that indicated the Estimated
Monthly Intake (EMI), Maximum Monthly Intake Rate (IRmm) and Hazard Quotient (HQ). As
the target population, the mean weight corresponding to men and women children aged
12 years, young people aged 24 years, and middle-aged people (adults) aged 54 years
were used, taking into account the female and male gender. In the studied seafood, the
EMI (0.0001 to 0.0006 mg.kg.month-1) was below the monthly intake limit and IRmm
(10.3 to 34.8 kg month-1) indicates that large quantities of seafood can be consumed by
the population studied, unless the safe limit of monthly intake of the contaminant is
reached. The hazard quotient (0.4 to 1.4) indicate potential risks health of children eating
swimming crabs and squid and young women eating swimming crabs. Our study also
highlights the importance of risk assessments, as even when seafood contains Hg
concentrations below established limits, consumption variables must be taken into
account, so as not to underestimate the potential health risks.