Department of Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences, Salale University, P.O. Box 245, Fiche, Ethiopia.
Biol Trace Elem Res. 2024 Jul;202(7):3349-3361. doi: 10.1007/s12011-023-03921-8. Epub 2023 Nov 16.
The objective of this study was to determine the contents of heavy metals in some common spices commercially available in the North Shewa Zone, Oromia region, Ethiopia. Korarima seed (Aframomum corrorima), ginger rhizome (Zingiber officinale), red pepper fruit (Capsicum annum), and turmeric rhizome (Curcuma longa) samples were randomly collected from the Fiche open market. These spice samples were digested using a mixture of 3 mL of HNO (69-72%) and 1 mL of HClO (70%), where organic components are assumed to decompose into gaseous forms while other heavy metal elements are left in the solution. The contents of heavy metals (Fe, Zn, Cu, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cd, and Pb) in the spices were determined by inductively coupled plasma‒optical emission spectrometry (ICP‒OES). The results obtained showed that the concentrations of heavy metal in the korarima, red pepper, ginger, and turmeric samples in milligrammes per kilogramme of dry weight were in the range of Fe (38.7-98.9), Mn (10.5-257), Zn (7.30-29.2), Cu (1.70-6.50), Cr (5.40-9.70), Cd (1.50-2.90), Pb (14.5-28.4), and Ni (3.90-6.70). The heavy metal contents in korarima, red pepper, ginger, and turmeric samples were compared with the maximum values given by the World Health Organization (WHO). Accordingly, the Fe, Zn, Cu, Cr, Mn, and Ni values in the spice samples were found to be lower than the maximum limit of the WHO, while the levels of Pb and Cd in four spice samples and Mn (only in ginger) were higher than the WHO permissible limit. This study shows that the consumption of korarima, red pepper, ginger, and turmeric may pose a serious health threat to consumers due to the high content of lead, cadmium, and manganese (only in ginger) in spices. Therefore, it is suggested that further study be conducted on spice samples based on the origin of cultivation to determine which hotspot is responsible for high levels of contamination of lead, cadmium, and manganese to protect consumers.
本研究旨在测定埃塞俄比亚北绍瓦地区菲奇露天市场上商业销售的几种常见香料中的重金属含量。随机采集了科拉利玛种子（Aframomum corrorima）、姜根茎（Zingiber officinale）、红辣椒果实（Capsicum annum）和姜黄根茎（Curcuma longa）等几种香料样品。这些香料样品采用 3ml 的 HNO（69-72%）和 1ml 的 HClO（70%）混合液进行消解，其中有机成分假定分解为气态形式，而其他重金属元素则留在溶液中。通过电感耦合等离子体-光学发射光谱仪（ICP-OES）测定了这些香料中重金属（Fe、Zn、Cu、Cr、Mn、Ni、Cd 和 Pb）的含量。结果表明，korarima、红辣椒、姜和姜黄样品中重金属的浓度以毫克/公斤干重计，范围为 Fe（38.7-98.9）、Mn（10.5-257）、Zn（7.30-29.2）、Cu（1.70-6.50）、Cr（5.40-9.70）、Cd（1.50-2.90）、Pb（14.5-28.4）和 Ni（3.90-6.70）。korarima、红辣椒、姜和姜黄样品中的重金属含量与世界卫生组织（WHO）给出的最大值进行了比较。相应地，发现香料样品中的 Fe、Zn、Cu、Cr、Mn 和 Ni 值低于 WHO 的最大限量，而四种香料样品中的 Pb 和 Cd 以及姜中的 Mn 值高于 WHO 允许的限量。本研究表明，由于 korarima、红辣椒、姜和姜黄等香料中 Pb、Cd 和 Mn（仅在姜中）含量较高，消费者食用这些香料可能会对健康造成严重威胁。因此，建议对基于种植来源的香料样品进行进一步研究，以确定哪个热点是导致 Pb、Cd 和 Mn 污染水平升高的原因，从而保护消费者。
