Health-risk assessment of organochlorine pesticides and heavy metals in selected staple foods from Abeokuta, Southwestern Nigeria

Adekola, Mukaila Babatunde; Taiwo, Mathew Adewale; Towolawi, Taofik; Oyebanji, Felicial Funmilola; Olatunde, Amudalat Kofoworola; Iyanda, Christiana Temitope; Ajayi, Evans Oluwatobi; Uwajeh, Lilian Nkechi; Agbaje, Beatrice Adeshola; Osho, Sulaimon Adeniran; Adeyemi, Victor Toluwani

doi:10.21608/ejar.2024.178348.1315

	Health-risk assessment of organochlorine pesticides and heavy metals in selected staple foods from Abeokuta, Southwestern Nigeria
Egyptian Journal of Agricultural Research
Article 6, Volume 102, Issue 1, March 2024, Page 55-66 PDF (515.13 K)
Document Type: Original Article
DOI: 10.21608/ejar.2024.178348.1315
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Authors
Mukaila Babatunde Adekola ¹; Mathew Adewale Taiwo²; Taofik Towolawi³; Felicial Funmilola Oyebanji²; Amudalat Kofoworola Olatunde²; Christiana Temitope Iyanda²; Evans Oluwatobi Ajayi²; Lilian Nkechi Uwajeh²; Beatrice Adeshola Agbaje²; Sulaimon Adeniran Osho²; Victor Toluwani Adeyemi²
¹Department of Environmental Toxicology, College of Environmental Resources Management, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
²Department of Environmental Management and Toxicology, College of Environmental Resources Management, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
³Department of Environmental Management and Toxicology, College of Environmental Resources Management, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria
Abstract
This study examined the levels and health threat assessment of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and heavy metal (HM) residues in five selected foodstuffs—sorghum, maize, rice, garri (processed fried cassava), and beans—randomly collected from three markets within the Abeokuta metropolis in southwestern Nigeria. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) methods were used to analyze the foodstuffs for OCPs and HMs, respectively. The collected data were analyzed using simple descriptive and inferential statistics. Health risk indices, including non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic effects, were estimated for organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and heavy metals (HMs) in food samples. The findings revealed that the concentrations of OCPs and HMs in many food samples exceeded the recommended dietary allowances. The risk index values of OCPs and estimated HMs in each foodstuff exceed the permissible limit of 1.0, indicating potential negative health impacts, although not cancer-causing. Dieldrin was the largest contributor to adverse health effects, ranging from 10 to 98%, while Pb had the highest contribution, with values between 43 and 54%. The combined cancer risk of OCPs and HMs was above the allowable limit of 1 x 10^-4, suggesting a potential risk for cancer development. The data on OCPs and HMs in the analyzed foodstuffs represent direct threats to public health.
Keywords
Food toxicity; Pesticides; Metals; Health risk; Staple foods; Food composition; Food Analysis


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