Potential Health Risks of Heavy Metals to the Turkish and Greek Populations via Consumption of Spiny Dogfish and Thornback Ray from the Sea of Marmara

Abstract

Spiny dogfish and thornback ray caught from Turkish waters in the northern part of the Sea of Marmara are mainly exported to Greece for human consumption. Therefore, assessing the health risks from heavy metals via consumption of these species is of importance for the Turkish and Greek consumers. The mean levels of heavy metal concentrations were below the guidelines. The weekly intakes through these species were generally lower than the limits for both communities. However, the percent of the provisional tolerable weekly intake of Hg was above 100% for the spiny dogfish, indicating a potential risk only for the Greek consumers. In general, the target hazard quotients (THQs) and total THQs of heavy metals (TTHQs) were below 1. On the other hand, for the Greek population, THQ of Hg and TTHQ indicated a potential risk due to spiny dogfish consumption. The Hazard Index (HI) was above 1 for both populations, but the HI value of the Greek population was more than three times that of the Turks. The total diet THQ (TDHQ) of Hg also indicated a potential health risk for the Greek population. Differences in consumption rates should be taken into consideration when assessing health risks for various populations