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. 2021 Nov 23;10(12):2900.
doi: 10.3390/foods10122900.

Acrylamide in Baby Foods: A Probabilistic Exposure Assessment

Francesco Esposito  1 , Agata Nolasco  2 , Francesco Caracciolo  2 , Salvatore Velotto  3 , Paolo Montuori  1 , Raffaele Romano  2 , Tommaso Stasi  4 , Teresa Cirillo  2
Affiliations

Acrylamide in Baby Foods: A Probabilistic Exposure Assessment

Francesco Esposito et al. Foods. .

Abstract

Acrylamide (also known as 2-propenamide) (AA) is a toxicant that develops in food during high-temperature cooking, and its occurrence is common in biscuits and baked snacks. AA is known for its in vivo neurotoxic and carcinogenic effects, and it is considered a potential carcinogen for humans. Infants may be exposed to AA as early as during weaning through baked food such as biscuits. This study set out to ascertain the concentration of AA in food products intended for infants to assess the dietary exposure to this food contaminant. AA levels were determined through GC/MS and bromination, and dietary exposure was evaluated by a probabilistic method based on Monte Carlo simulation. The results showed that the probability of a carcinogenic exposure is 94%, 92%, and 87%, respectively, for 6-, 12-, and 18-months infants, suggesting the need to delay the introduction of baked products in the diet of weaned infants. It should be noted, however, that these conclusions were drawn considering the biscuits as the primary source of exposure.

Keywords: acrylamide; biscuits; dietary exposure; margin of exposure; weaned infants.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Observed (a) and simulated (b) distribution of acrylamide levels in whole and ground biscuits.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Distribution of MOE values for neurotoxic risk among infants at 6 (a), 12 (b) and 18 (c) months.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Histogram of simulated (a) and cumulative distribution function of simulated (b) MOE values for carcinogenic risk among 6 months infants considering a BMDL10 = 0.17 mg/kg bw/day.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Histogram of simulated (a) and cumulative distribution function of simulated (b) MOE values for carcinogenic risk among 12 months infants considering a BMDL10 = 0.17 mg/kg bw/day.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Histogram of simulated (a) and cumulative distribution function of simulated (b) MOE values for carcinogenic risk among 18 months infants considering a BMDL10 = 0.17 mg/kg bw/day.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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