Petrescu-Mag Ruxandra Malina, Vermeir Iris, Roba Carmen, Petrescu Dacinia Crina, Bican-Brisan Nicoleta, Martonos Ildiko Melinda
Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, Babes-Bolyai University, 30 Fantanele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 2 Passage des Déportés, 5030 Gembloux, Belgium.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Sep 8;18(18):9463. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18189463.
Globally, the consumption of herbal supplements is on an upward trend. As the food supplement industry thrives, so does the need for consumers' awareness of health risks. This contribution is grounded on two assumptions. Firstly, not always "wild" is a food quality attribute, and secondly, the food chain is judged as a noteworthy route for human exposure to soil contamination. Sea buckthorn (SBT) was selected for investigation due to its versatility. In addition to its wide therapeutic uses, it is present in ecological rehabilitation which may raise concerns regarding its safety for human consumption as a consequence of the accumulation of contaminants in the plant. The study aims to discover if the objective contamination of SBT with toxic residues is congruent with people's subjective evaluation of SBT consumption risk. A quantitative determination of heavy metals was performed by atomic absorption spectrometry. The metals abundance followed the sequence Fe > Cu > Zn > Mn > Cr > Ni > Pb > Cd. Quantitative data on consumers' subjective risk evaluations were collected through an online survey on 408 Romanians. Binary logistic shows that the consumption of SBT is predicted by the perceived effect of SBT consumption on respondents' health. The study confirms that the objective contamination of wild and cultivated SBT is in line with the perceived contamination risk. It is inferred that a joint effort of marketers, media, physicians, and pharmacists is needed to inform consumers about the risks and benefits of SBT consumption.
在全球范围内，草药补充剂的消费量呈上升趋势。随着食品补充剂行业的蓬勃发展，消费者对健康风险的认知需求也在增加。本研究基于两个假设。首先，“野生”并非总是一种食品质量属性；其次，食物链被视为人类接触土壤污染的一个重要途径。沙棘（SBT）因其多功能性而被选作研究对象。除了广泛的治疗用途外，它还用于生态修复，这可能会因植物中污染物的积累而引发人们对其作为人类食用安全性的担忧。该研究旨在探究沙棘中有毒残留物的客观污染情况是否与人们对沙棘消费风险的主观评估一致。通过原子吸收光谱法对重金属进行了定量测定。金属含量顺序为铁>铜>锌>锰>铬>镍>铅>镉。通过对408名罗马尼亚人进行的在线调查收集了消费者主观风险评估的定量数据。二元逻辑回归显示，沙棘的消费可由沙棘消费对受访者健康的感知影响来预测。该研究证实，野生和人工种植沙棘的客观污染情况与感知到的污染风险相符。由此推断，营销人员、媒体、医生和药剂师需要共同努力，让消费者了解沙棘消费的风险和益处。
