Human exposure to heavy metals and possible public health risks via consumption of wild edible mushrooms from Slovak Paradise National Park, Slovakia

• Published in: Journal of environmental science and health. Part B, Pesticides, food contaminants, and agricultural wastes Vol. 50; no. 11; pp. 833 - 843
• Main Authors: Árvay, Július, Tomáš, Ján, Hauptvogl, Martin, Massányi, Peter, Harangozo, ľuboš, Tóth, Tomáš, Stanovič, Radovan, Bryndzová, štefánia, Bumbalová, Monika
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 02.11.2015; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Agaricales - chemistry; Bioaccumulation; Cadmium - analysis; Consumption; contamination; Edible mushroom; Food contamination & poisoning; Food Contamination - analysis; Heavy metals; human health; Humans; Lead - analysis; Mercury - analysis; Metals, Heavy - analysis; Metals, Heavy - pharmacokinetics; Mushrooms; Nonnative species; Parks, Recreational; Public Health; Risk Assessment; Russula vesca; Slovakia; Spectrophotometry, Atomic; Vegetables; Slovakia; risk assessment; Edible mushroom; heavy metals; human health; contamination
• ISSN: 0360-1234; 1532-4109
• DOI: 10.1080/03601234.2015.1058107

The contamination level of 92 samples (12 species) of wild edible mushrooms and underlying substrates with heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn) in the Slovak Paradise National Park that borders with a region of historical mining and processing of polymetallic ores, were determined. The collected samples were analyzed using of atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The metals were determined separately in hymenophore (H) and rest of fruit bodies (RFB). Bioaccumulation factor as well as ratio of metal content in H and RFB were calculated. Cadmium and lead contents in hymenophore exceeded statutory limits of the EU (Cd: 0.5 mg/kg dry weight (dw), Pb: 1.0 mg/kg dw) for edible mushrooms in 96% and 83% of the samples, respectively. The risk from the consumption of the collected mushroom species was calculated based on the provisionally tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) values, and the highest health risk arising with consumption of particularly Macrolepiota procera, Marasmius oreades and Russula vesca from the observed area was demonstrated. It was shown that average weekly consumption of tested mushrooms species results the threat of exceeding of PTWI limits in the case of cadmium values (by 164%, 86% and 4% of PTWI for M. oreades, R. vesca and R. puellaris, respectively) and of mercury (by 96% of PTWI for M. procera) but not lead.