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. 2019 Sep 14;24(1):59.
doi: 10.1186/s12199-019-0812-x.

Health risk assessments of arsenic and toxic heavy metal exposure in drinking water in northeast Iran

Hosein Alidadi  1   2 , Seyedeh Belin Tavakoly Sany  3   2 , Batoul Zarif Garaati Oftadeh  4   5   6 , Tafaghodi Mohamad  7   8 , Hosein Shamszade  9 , Maryam Fakhari  8
Affiliations

Health risk assessments of arsenic and toxic heavy metal exposure in drinking water in northeast Iran

Hosein Alidadi et al. Environ Health Prev Med. .

Abstract

Background: Arsenic and heavy metals are the main cause of water pollution and impact human health worldwide. Therefore, this study aims to assess the probable health risk (non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk) for adults and children that are exposed to arsenic and toxic heavy metals (Pb, Ni, Cr, and Hg) through ingestion and dermal contact with drinking water.

Method: In this study, chemical analysis and testing were conducted on 140 water samples taken from treated drinking water in Mashhad, Iran. The health risk assessments were evaluated using hazard quotient (HQ), hazard index (HI), and lifetime cancer risk (CR).

Results: The results of the HQ values of arsenic and heavy metals for combined pathways were below the safety level (HQ < 1) for adults, while the HI for children were higher than the safety limit in some stations. Likewise, Cr showed the highest average contribution of HItotal elements (55 to 71.2%) for adult and children population. The average values of total carcinogenic risk (TCR) through exposure to drinking water for children and adults were 1.33 × 10-4 and 7.38 × 10-5, respectively.

Conclusion: Overall, the CRtotal through exposure to drinking water for children and adults was borderline or higher than the safety level of US EPA risk, suggesting the probability of carcinogenic risk for the children and adults to the carcinogenic elements via ingestion and dermal routes. Therefore, appropriate purification improvement programs and control measures should be implemented to protect the health of the residents in this metropolitan city.

Keywords: Arsenic; Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects; Heavy metal pollution; Human health risk assessment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Location of Mashhad, Khorasan Razavi, Iran
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Estimated average daily dose (ADD) for drinking water through ingestion and dermal contact by adult and children
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Contribution of input variables on drinking water HI for two age groups
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Estimated total carcinogenic risk (total) for drinking water through ingestion and dermal contact by adult and children
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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