The practice of irrigating crops with untreated industrial and sewage effluents, and freshwater contaminated with leachates from landfills and acid mine drainage, is increasingly becoming one of the major sources of toxic chemicals in the food chain. This is in addition to the extensive use of chemicals in agriculture and the situation of agricultural lands within the vicinity of solid and hazardous waste sites, mining sites and general industrial sites. These practices may be a result of the growing world population which has to be matched by growths in agriculture, industrialization and urbanization. Unfortunately, land not limitless. In this study, we determined the levels the levels of cadmium and lead in rice imported into the U.S. from different regions of the world. The levels of the two elements were significantly higher than the toxicity reference doses of the elements for all age and sex categories.

Inadvertent exposure of chemical toxicants to humans through food: A case for cadmium and lead in rice

245th National Meeting (2013)

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