Abstract
This study determined the concentrations and inhalation bioaccessibility of cadmium, chromium, nickel and zinc in some foreign and locally available tobacco snuff and leaves. For the determination of the heavy metals concentration, the samples were ashed and washed with hydrochloric acid according to standard method. The bioaccessibility test employed the Stimulated Epithelial Lung Fluid (SELF). The total concentration of heavy metals in the four samples investigated ranged between 9.7 - 14.9 μg/g, 24.1 - 37.0 μg/g, 41 - 69 μg/g and 153 - 183 μg/g for cadmium, chromium, nickel and zinc respectively. The percentage inhalation bioaccessibility fraction of the four samples investigated ranged between 20.8% - 59.8%, 3.3% - 8.1%, 21.7% - 48.8% and 7.6% - 12.5% for cadmium, chromium, nickel, and zinc respectively. Statistical analyses using SPSS 21, revealed significant differences in the total concentration of heavy metals in the samples investigated except for Zinc. Risk assessment based on daily consumption of 10 g of the tobacco snuff employing total concentration of the heavy metals suggests that excluding nickel, all other metals investigated indicated daily intake values above WHO permissible levels. However, with the bioaccessible fractions, only cadmium, a known carcinogen indicated levels above WHO limits. From the results of this study, it can be deduced that consumption of tobacco snuff may induce negative health effects such as cancer and its attendant complications, the risk analysis based on bioaccessible concentration suggests lower health risk than analysis based on total heavy metal concentration; hence the assumption that snuff is a safe alternative to tobacco smoking may be erroneous.
Highlights
Tobacco smoking, inhalation and sniffing have been reported to be the leading cause of many preventable diseases especially those affecting the heart, liver, lungs, many cancers and premature death over the course of the 20th century
From the results of this study, it can be deduced that consumption of tobacco snuff may induce negative health effects such as cancer and its attendant complications, the risk analysis based on bioaccessible concentration suggests lower health risk than analysis based on total heavy metal concentration; the assumption that snuff is a safe alternative to tobacco smoking may be erroneous
FS Total: Foreign snuff risk assessment based on total heavy metal concentration; Nigeria snuff (NS) Total: Nigerian snuff risk assessment based on total heavy metal concentration; BAF: Bioaccessible fraction risk assessment for foreign and Nigerian snuff; WHO: World Health Organization
Summary
Tobacco smoking, inhalation and sniffing have been reported to be the leading cause of many preventable diseases especially those affecting the heart, liver, lungs, many cancers and premature death over the course of the 20th century. Snuff is free of tar and harmful gases such as carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides Since it cannot be inhaled into the lungs, there is no risk of lung cancer, bronchitis, and emphysema. It is not known whether nicotine or carbon monoxide is the major culprit responsible for cigarette-induced coronary heart disease. A formulated synthetic lung fluid (SLF) known as Gambles solution emulates the extracellular environment of the deep lungs and this has been widely used to access inhalable toxicants in human test subjects [33] Boisa and his colleagues [34] developed a method for the inhalation bioaccessibility test which includes most components that were previously omitted in vitro formulations. This study will apply inhalation bioaccessibilty model developed by Boisa et al [34] to evaluate bioavailabilty of Cd, Cr, Ni and Zn in tobacco snuff and leaves
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