Occurrence and dietary exposure to metals and pesticides in Citrus fruits: A probabilistic assessment of risk to health of Iranian consumers

The present study assessed the risk posed by simultaneous oral exposure to a mixture of 20 pesticides and seven metals in 405 Citrus fruit samples [(15 cultivars of orange, tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, and sweet lemon) x (3 zones of Iran) x (3 orchards in each zone) x (3 spots in each orchard)]. The levels of metals and pesticides in Citrus fruits were quantified by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), respectively. Our probabilistic assessment indicated hazard index (HI) <1 at the 50th, 75th, and 95th centiles for oral exposure to non-carcinogenic metals (Al, Cd, Co, and Hg), revealing no major risk. Also, the incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCRs) for As and Pb presented no carcinogenic risk at the three centiles, however, the ILCR >10-4 found for Ni at the 50th (3.00 x10-4), 75th (4.30 x10-4), and 95th (6.00 x10-4) centiles identified a moderate risk. The HI values for organophosphorus compounds at the 50th, 75th, and 95th were 1.23, 2.12, and 3.04, respectively, indicated a moderate risk while for pyrethroids, no appreciable risk was found at any centiles.