Essential elements in the different types of fruits, soil, and water samples collected from Markazi province, Iran: a health risk assessment study

Abstract

Fruits could contain elements in various concentrations, which can have both positive and negative impacts on human health. The concentrations of essential elements, including Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Manganese (Mn), and Chromium (Cr) in five types of fruits, namely, peach, apple, grape, nectarine, and golden plum, and the soil and irrigation water from six industrial zones of Markazi province, Iran, were evaluated using an inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) technique. The noncarcinogenic risk was assessed by determining the target hazard quotient and the Monte Carlo simulation model. The highest concentrations of Fe, Mn, and Cr were observed in golden plum, while the highest concentrations of Cu and Zn were noted in grape and apple, respectively. The order of the mean of concentrations of elements in the soil and water samples were Fe > Mn > Zn > Cu > Cr. The transfer factor (TF) results indicate that studied fruits could not absorb a high amount of these elements from the soil (TF < 1). Target hazard quotient values of these elements in both adults and children were ranked as Cr > Cur > Fe > Mn > Zn. The target hazard quotient was 95% and total target hazard quotient was <1, meaning that the consumption of fruits is safe for consumers.