Heavy metals in human urine, foods and drinking water from an e-waste dismantling area: Identification of exposure sources and metal-induced health risk

Abstract

Electronic waste or e-waste dismantling activities are known to release metals. However, the human exposure pathways of metals, and their association with oxidative stress in e-waste dismantling areas (EDAs) remain unclear. In this study, our results revealed elevated geometric mean concentrations in vegetables (Cd 0.096 and Pb 0.35 µg/g fw), rice (Cd 0.15, Pb 0.20, and 12.3 µg/g fw), hen eggs (Cd 0.006 and Pb 0.071 µg/g fw), and human urine (Cd 2.12, Pb 4.98, Cu 22.2, and Sb 0.20 ng/mL). Our calculations indicate that rice consumption source accounted for the overwhelming proportion of daily intakes (DIs) of Cd (61–64%), Cu (85–89%), and Zn (75–80%) in children and adults living in EDA; vegetables were the primary contributors to the DIs of Cd (30–32%); and rice (20–29%), vegetables (28–38%), and dust ingestion (26–45%) were all important exposure sources of Pb. Risk assessment predicted that DIs of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn via food consumption poses health risks to local residents of EDAs, and the urinary concentrations of analyzed metals were significantly (Pearson correlation coefficient: r = 0.324–0.710; p < 0.01) associated with elevated 8-OHdG, a biomarker of oxidative stress in humans.