Note. Speciation of Arsenic in Licorice Confectionery Products and Estimation of Health Risks

Abstract

Total-arsenic (T-As) and arsenic (As) species were determined by HPLC-HG-AAS in ten different confectionery products: nine throat pearls and an industrial licorice extract. The Spanish legislation sets a maximum total-As content in confectionery products at 0.1mg/g. T-As concentrations were above the permitted maximum limit (mean of 0.219±0.008mg/g). All As was present in the form of toxic inorganic species. The daily consumption of licorice-confections in Spain is 1.1g and leads to a daily intake of inorganic-As of 0.23mg (0.2% of the tolerable daily intake of inorganic As for a teenager). These experimental results proved that even though high total-As concentrations were found in licorice throat pearls and that all the As found was present as inorganic species, no significant risks for health are expected just by considering this As source.

Total and Inorganic Arsenic in Iranian Rice

“…The methodology used for the extraction of the As species was that first described by Heitkemper and others () and later by Signes and others () and Munera‐Picazo and others (, ). 1 g of milled and dried samples was treated with 3 mL of 2 M TFA.…”

Atomic spectrometry update. Advances in atomic emission, absorption, and fluorescence spectrometry, and related techniques

“…They confirmed the predominantly inorganic nature of As in the whole samples by XANES. Signes et al 334 determined As species in ten different Spanish licorice confectionery products. They found total concentrations (0.219 AE 0.008 mg g À1 ) above the permitted maximum limit of 0.1 mg g À1 , but concluded that as the daily consumption of licorice confections in Spain is 1.1 g, the daily intake of inorganic As of 0.23 mg from this source is only 0.2% of the tolerable daily intake of inorganic As for a teenager.…”