In vitro release of aluminum from the geophagic clay "Chacco" in the Peruvian highlands: Chemical characterization and health risk assessment.

In the altiplano zone of Latin America, "Chacco" is one of the clays widely consumed as part of geophagy. The objectives of the study were to chemically characterize "Chacco", determine the zero charge point, evaluate the release of aluminum in vitro, perform the kinetic study and evaluate the health risk. The results by ICP-OES showed that the elements with the highest concentration were Al, Ba, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Si, Sr, Ti and Zn. ATR-FTIR analysis showed the presence of Si-O (693 and 990 cm-1), Al-O (790 cm-1), Al-Al-OH bending vibration (912 cm-1), Si-H bond stretching (2100 to 2500 cm-1) and free -OH groups (3629 cm-1). SEM-EDX results indicate that Al is one of the main constituents of "Chacco" (7.35 wt%). The pHzpc of "Chacco" was 6.83. In the dissolution profiles, the highest Al release occurred at pH 6.8 and in intestinal juice simulated with pseudo-second order dissolution kinetics. The EDIAl and EWIAl were 20.24 and 142.66 respectively, comparing EWIAl with the PTWI established by JECFA (2 mg/kg bw), it is concluded that the weekly intake of "Chacco" represents an appreciable health risk. There are no reports of the carcinogenic factor of Al, so TRAl was not calculated.

Quantification and health risk assessment of lead and cadmium in wheat, rice, and their processed products from Peru.

In Peru, rice grains, wheat, and their processed products are accessible due to their low cost; however, their sale does not have quality certification, so their safety is not guaranteed. This study quantified lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) by voltammetry in 16 samples of grains and processed products from four markets in Arequipa (Altiplano, Andrés Avelino Cáceres, Los Incas, and San Camilo) and evaluated their potential health risk. The maximum concentrations of Pb in rice, wheat, and their processed products were 4.821 mg/kg, 7.962 mg/kg, 4.717 mg/kg, and 6.440 mg/kg, respectively; only seven samples showed Cd. All samples exceeded the maximum level (ML) for Pb, and four samples exceeded the ML for Cd established by the Codex Alimentarius (0.200 mg/kg); the rice product had the highest concentration of Pb and Cd. In relation to the estimation of potential health risk, the estimated daily intake (EDI), target hazard quotient (THQ), and target cancer risk (TR), showed that the consumption of all processed rice and wheat products (except Andrés Avelino Cáceres rice and San Camilo wheat) represent a health threat associated with an increased probability of cancer development.