Short Communication

An investigation was conducted to determine the risks associated with the ingestion of some geophagy clays mined in Ghana, Nigeria and Cote d’voire. These clays are widely distributed through major marketing centres in Ghana and within the West African sub-region. Samples of the geophagy clays were purchased from selected markets in the Greater Accra region and then subjected to X-ray fluorescence analysis to determine the levels of heavy metals present in them and their potential effects on consumers. The results indicate that the levels of arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead and cobalt contained in 70g of the geopagy clay were far higher than the WHO/FAO and USDA approved maximum daily tolerable intake. This was interpreted to mean that consumers were at risk of heavy metal contamination which could lead to various diseases. The extent of bioavailability of these toxic elements to consumers of the clay was however not established. It was concluded that geophagy clay sold on Ghanaian markets could have potentially negative health impact on consumers if consumed at 70g per day or more and on regular basis