Lead, Cadmium, and Arsenic in Raw Cow’s Milk in a Central Andean Area and Risks for the Peruvian Populations

Abstract

Milk and its derivatives are basic foods in Peru, especially for children. The Junín region, in the central Andes, is one of the leading dairy basins. However, the safety of milk is affected by mining–metallurgical activities, wastewater dumping, organic residues, and inappropriate use of organophosphate fertilizers in agriculture whose contaminants reach the food chain, putting human health at risk. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the bioaccumulation of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and arsenic (As) in milk produced on a representative farm in central Peru, which uses phosphorous agrochemicals and is adjacent to a small mineral concentrator and a municipal solid waste dump, and to evaluate the potential risk for the Peruvian population of 2–85 years considering three levels of daily intake by age, which constitutes the innovative contribution of the study. These three elements were quantified by flame atomic absorption spectrometry following standardized procedures. The mean contents of Pb (0.062 mg/kg), Cd (0.014 mg/kg), and As (0.030 mg/kg) in milk exceeded the maximum limits allowed by international standards. At all ages, the target quotient hazard followed a descending order of As > Pb > Cd, being > 1 in the case of As. The hazard index was >1 for children under 7, 9, and 11 years of age in the scenarios of low, medium, and high milk intake. The information is valid for formulating policies to prevent adverse health effects and develop standards and awareness programs, monitoring, and control of heavy metals in milk in Peru.

Concentration of heavy metals in pasteurized and sterilized milk and health risk assessment across the globe: A systematic review

“…In these five studies, As levels are in the safe range and were not reported beyond the local standard limits of the studied countries and EU and FAO/WHO standards. Although the number studies related to measuring As in pasteurized and sterilized milk across the world was so limited; several studies evaluated As concentration in raw cow’s milk which report higher values than ours from Córdoba, Argentina with mean concentration between 0.0003 and 0.0105 mg/kg [ 8 ]; in Iran, in the range of 0.015 to 0.026 mg/kg [ 89 ], in Alabria, Italy, reporting an average As content of 0.038 mg/kg of raw milk, in Slovakia, with mean concentration of As < 0.03 mg/kg [ 8 , 10 ]. All these low concentrations of As in raw cow’s milk and pasteurized and sterilized milk are indicative that As use in the transformation of dairy products is safe for consumer and it does not pose health risks for human consumption.…”

“…It was also evidenced that Cd generally comes from phosphate fertilizers that contain up to 53.2 mg/kg of Cd [ 9 ]. Besides, equipment used in the production and packaging process is the likely other source of contamination [ 8 , 10 ]. The contamination of containers and equipment used in milking and pasteurization processes and environmental contamination were accounted to be among the factors affecting the elevated Cd concentration in the collected milk samples in their study [ 8 , 10 ].…”

“…Consuming at least three of dairy products per day has a beneficial impact on energy and nutrient intakes as well as of vitamin D, magnesium, and calcium, compared with intakes of people who consumed fewer servings of dairy products per day [6]. Unsafe food containing harmful bacteria (Salmonella, Vibrio cholerae, enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli, and Campylobacter), viruses (Hepatitis A), parasites (tapeworms, Ascaris, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and Entamoeba histolytica) or chemical substances (Persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals, mycotoxins, and radioactive nucleotides) causes more than 200 diseases such as diabetes, respiratory problems, hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, and colorectal and bladder cancer [7][8][9]. It also promotes the immune system, good bone health, and the prevention of dental caries [8,10].…”

“…Based on the literature, the most reported contaminantes that treatens the safety of milk are pathogenic micoorganisms (14.57%), heavy metals (22.18%), antibiotics (22.18%), pesticides (22.05%), and mycotoxins (9.97%). Therefore, heavy metals are stand out among contaminants [7][8][9].…”

Assessing the Health Risk and Trophic Transfer of Lead and Cadmium in Dairy Farming Systems in the Mantaro Catchment, Central Andes of Peru

“…In the central Peruvian Andes, La Oroya, one of the most polluted cities on the planet, has been the center of polymetallic metallurgical complexes for over 100 years, although there are few environmental impact studies and little attention paid to the risk of bioaccumulation in milk products from the surrounding areas [13,[34][35][36], especially in local populations, with little epidemiological and scientific evidence on the state of contamination of the soil-pasture-milk system and risk due to milk consumption. Specifically, the middle basin of the Mantaro River has an agricultural vocation and is the major supplier of milk and dairy products to the great city of Lima, from which processed products go to the entire country.…”