Human health risk assessment related with heavy metals contamination in rice: a case study in Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia

Abstract

Heavy metal pollution is still one of the environmental problems globally, including Indonesia. One of these contaminations comes from agricultural products such as rice. Heavy metal contamination in rice is known to cause various health problems. This study aimed (1) To find Heavy metals concentration in Indonesian local rice (2) To find Non-cancer risk related to heavy metals contaminations in rice (3) To find cancer risk related to heavy metals contaminations in rice (4) To find association between associated factors with risk related to heavy metals contaminations in rice. The rice was collected from the 3 biggest local markets in Palembang, Indonesia. The total sample of rice was 6 samples with 2 types of rice, namely Pandan Wangi rice and Pulen rice. Rice was collected 100 grams per sample and then figured out the concentrations of As, Cd, Pb, and Cu by the ICP analysis. In addition, respondent data was obtained using an online questionnaire. The results of this study indicated that the concentrations of all heavy metals were lower than safety standard for food. However, the health risk assessment showed Non-cancer risk for both types of rice according to the high consumption rate. The average HI was 1.38+0.70 (ranged 0.16 to 3.93) for Pandan Wangi rice, and 1.53+0.78 (ranged 0.18 to 4.36) for Pulen rice. Similarly for cancer risk, the average TCR was 3.10 x 10-3+1.5 x 10-3 (ranged 3.79 x 10-4 to 8.80 x 10-3) for Pandan Wangi rice, and 2.76 x 10-3+1.5 x 10-3 (ranged 3.38 x 10-4 to 7.84 x 10-3) for Pulen rice. For the Chi-square results, the significant associated factors of health risk were age, BMI, source of drinking water, and source of water for cooking (p<0.05). Risk prevention must be carried out to reduce potential risks that may occur in the future by decrease the consumption rate. Moreover, minimizing the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers can be an effort to reduce contamination in the paddy fields also agricultural products.