Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

  • Volume 35
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  • Pages.3.1-3.11
  • /
  • 2023
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  • 1225-3618(pISSN)
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  • 2052-4374(eISSN)
The Korean Society of Occupational & Environmental Medicine (대한직업환경의학회)
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Risk assessment of heavy metals in tuna from Japanese restaurants in the Republic of Korea

  • Seong-Jin Bae (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Yeungnam University Hospital) ;
  • Kyu-Sik Shin (Graduate School of Environment & Public Health Studies, Yeungnam University) ;
  • Chulyong Park (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Yeungnam University Hospital) ;
  • Kiook Baek (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Yeungnam University Hospital) ;
  • So-Young Son (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Yeungnam University Hospital) ;
  • Joon Sakong (Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Yeungnam University Hospital)
  • Received : 2022.06.24
  • Accepted : 2022.12.26
  • Published : 2023.12.31
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Abstract

Background: Studies on the risk of mercury (Hg) in Korean fishery products focus primarily on total Hg levels as opposed to methylmercury (MeHg) levels. None of the few studies on MeHg in tuna investigated tuna from Japanese restaurants. Few have evaluated lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) in tuna. Thus, this study aimed to conduct a risk assessment by evaluating heavy metal concentrations in tuna from Japanese restaurants. Methods: Thirty-one tuna samples were collected from Japanese restaurants in the Republic of Korea. They were classified according to region and species. The concentration of heavy metals in the samples was analyzed using the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety Food Code method. The rate of exceedance of maximum residue levels (MRLs) and the risk compared to the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) set by the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives (%PTWI) were evaluated for risk assessment. Results: The mean of MeHg, Pb, Cd and As concentrations were 0.56 ± 1.47 mg/kg, 33.95 ± 3.74 ㎍/kg, 14.25 ± 2.19 ㎍/kg and 1.46 ± 1.89 mg/kg, respectively. No sample exceeded the MRLs of Pb and Cd, but 9.7% of the samples exceeded the MRL of MeHg. The %PTWIs of MeHg, Pb, Cd and As were 4.2037, 0.0162, 0.0244 and 1.1627, respectively. The %PTWI of MeHg by age group and sex was highest among men aged 19-29 years (10.6494), followed by men aged 30-49 years (7.2458) and women aged 19-29 years (4.8307). Conclusions: We found that 3 out of 31 samples exceeded the MRL of MeHg. The %PTWI of MeHg showed significant differences based on age and sex, and the value was likely to exceed a safe level depending on individuals' eating behaviors. Therefore, improved risk management for MeHg is required.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This work was supported by the 2022 Yeungnam University Research Grant (Grand No. 222A480008). This research was supported by the Inha University Hospital's Environmental Health Center for Training Environmental Medicine Professionals funded by the Ministry of Environment, Republic of Korea (2021).

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