Health Risks of Heavy Metals for Population via Consumption of Greenhouse Vegetables in Hamadan, Iran

Background & Aims of the Study: The last 25 years have seen a remarkable increase inpublic concern about food contamination. Food and water are the main sources of ouressential metals.These are also the media through which we are exposed to various toxicmetalsAs such, this study aimed to assess the risks arising from the use of greenhousevegetables, cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers in Hamadan Province.Materials & Methods: Soil and plant samples were digested using wet digestion method(HClO4/HNO3, 2:1) ratio solution, and the concentrations of total As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Znwere determined using Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICPAE).Results: High concentrations of elements As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn were found in vegetablessampled from overused phosphate fertilized soils, which increased the daily intake ofmetals in food. The Health risk assessment values of all tested vegetables (pepper,cucumber and tomato) were below 1 in As and Cd. The health risk index (HRI) value above1 indicated a relative health risk through the ingestion of contaminated vegetables .Conclusions: Heavy metal concentrations should be periodically monitored in vegetablesgrown in contaminated soils. This study found that long-term fertilizer use led to a growingaccumulation of heavy metals (HMs) in soils. It would also be beneficial to implementeffective remediation technologies to minimize possible impacts on human health.