Analysis of Heavy Metals in Honey from North-Western Regions of Iran

Authors

1 Department of Food Health and Safety, School of Health, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran

2 Department of Food Hygiene and Quality Control, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran

3 D.V.M student, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

Abstract

In the present study, the concentrations of three heavy metals including lead (Pb), zinc (Zn) and arsenic (As) in 72 different honey samples collected from North-Western regions of Iran were investigated using atomic absorption spectroscopy method. All metals were detected in 88.88% of the honey samples. The range of metals contamination in honey samples was 0.01 to 11.09 ppm. Zn was the most abundant metal, with an average concentration of 4.41±2.4 ppm. The mean levels of Pb (0.12 ppm) and Zn (6.84 ppm) in honey samples of East Azerbaijan Province was significantly higher than average level of these metals in honeys from other provinces. Based on the results of this study and compared with recommended daily intakes, the heavy metal content of honey samples was not harm and is unlikely to cause any intoxication following honey consumption.

Keywords

References

  1. Saghaei S., Ekici H., Demirbas M., Yarsan E., Tumer I., 2012. Determination of the Metal Contents of Honey Samples from Orumieh in Iran. Kafkas Univ Vet Fak Derg. 18(2), 281-284.
  2. Erbilir F., Erdogrul O., 2005. Determination of heavy metals in honey in Kahramanmaras, City, Turkey. Environ Monitor Ass. 109, 181-187.
  3. Sobukola O.P., Adeniran O.M., Odedairo A.A.; Kajihausa O.E., 2010. Heavy metal levels of some fruits and leafy vegetables from selected markets in Lagos, Nigeria. Afr J Food Sci. 4(2), 389 ââ‚‌“ 393.
  4. Zaidi M.I., Asrar A., Mansoor A., Farooqui M.A., 2005. The heavy metal concentrations along roadsides trees of Quetta and its effects on public health. J Appl Sci. 5(4), 708-711.
  5. Sathawara N.G., Parikish D.J., Agrwal Y.K., 2004. Essentials heavy metals in environmental samples from western Indian. Bull Environ Cont Toxicol. 73, 756-761.
  6. Divrikli U., Saracoglu S., Soylak M., Elci L., 2003. Determination of trace heavy metal contents of green vegetables samples from Kayseri- Turkey by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. Fresenius Environ Bull. 12, 1123-1125.
  7. Anonymous: http://www.farmna.ir/Pages/News-7496.html. Accessed: 24 May 2011.
  8. Tuzen M., Soylak M., Trace heavy metal levels in microwave digested honey samples from Middle Anatolia, Turkey. J Food Drug Anal. 13(4), 343-347(2005).
  9. Alissandrakis E., Tarantilis P.A., Harizanis P.C., Polissiou M., 2007. Aroma investigation of unifloral Greek citrus honey using solid-phase microextraction coupled to gas chromatographic- mass spectrometric analysis. Food Chem. 100, 396ââ‚‌“404.
  10. Pisani A., Protano G., Riccobono F., 2008. Minor and trace elements in different honey types produced in Siena County (Italy). Food Chem. 107, 1553ââ‚‌“1560.
  11. Yılmaz H., Yavuz O., 1999. Content of some trace metals in honey from south-eastern Anatolia. Food Chem. 65, 475-476.
  12. Yarsan E., Karacal F., Ibrahim I.G., Dikmen B., Koksal A., Das Y,K., 2007. Contents of some metals in honeys from different regions in Turkey. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol. 79, 255-258.
  13. Uren A., Serifoglu A., Sarıyahya Y., 1998. Distribution of elements in honeys and effects of a thermoelectric power plant on the element contents. Food Chem. 61, 185-190.
  14. Demirezen D,. Aksoy A., 2005. Determination of heavy metals in bee honey using by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). GU J Sci. 18(4), 569-575.
  15. Fredes C., Montenegro G., 2006. Heavy metals and other trace elements contents in Chilean honey. Cien Inv Agr. 33 (1), 50-58.
  16. Frazzoli C., Dââ‚‌™Ilio S., Bocca B., 2007. Determination of Cd and Pb in honey by SF-ICP-MS: Validation figures and uncertainty of results. Analytical Letters. 40, 1992-2004.
  17. Antonescu C., Mateescu C., 2001. Environmental pollution and its effects on honey quality. Roum Biotechnol Lett. 6 (5), 371-379.
  18. Devillers J., Dore, J.C., Marenco M., Poirier-Duchene F., Galand N., Viel C., 2002. Chemometrical analysis of 18 metallic and nonmetallic elements found in honeys sold in France. J Agric Food Chem. 50, 5998-6007.
  19. Adebiyi F.M., Akpan I., Obiajunwa E.I., Olaniyi H.B., 2004 Chemical/physical characterization of Nigerian honey. Pak J Nutr. 3(5), 278-281.
  20. Akbaria B., Gharanfolib F., Hassanzadeh Khayyatc M., Khashyarmaneshc Z., Rezaee R., Karimi G., 2012. Determination of heavy metals in different honey brands from Iranian markets. Food Additives Contam. Part B, 1ââ‚‌“7.
  21. World Health Organization. 1993. Evaluation of certain food additives and contaminants. WHO Technical Report Series, Number 837. Geneva: World Health Organization.
  22. Mantovi P., Bonazzi G., Maestri E., Marmiroli N., 2003. Accumulation of copper and zinc from liquid manure in agricultural soils and crop plants. Plant Soil. 250(2), 249ââ‚‌“257.
  23. Marcovecchio J.E., Botte S.E., Freije R.H., 2007. Heavy metals, major metals, trace elements. In: Nollet LML, editor. Handbook of water analysis. 2nd ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press. Pp. 275ââ‚‌“311.
  24. Ahmed F.E., 1999. Trace metal contaminants in food. In: Moffat CF, Whittle KJ, editors. Environmental contaminants in food. Sheffield: CRC Press. Pp.146ââ‚‌“214.
Journal of Chemical Health Risks

Volume 5, Issue 4
Summer 2015

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 05 January 2016
  • Revise Date: 24 January 2021
  • Accept Date: 29 October 2018

Share

How to cite

Statistics