Comparison of cadmium concentration and its weekly intake in imported and Iranian rice

The aim of this study was to compare the concentration of Cadmium (Cd) and its weekly intake among imported rice and the rice samples cultivated in Isfahan and Borojerd in 2011. For this reason, a total of 30 Indian imported rice samples together with 5 Iranian rice specimens were obtained from Hamedan and Tehran retails. The samples were subjected to acid digestion and afterwards the Cd concentrations were determined using ICP-OES. According to the results the mean ± SD values of Cd concentrations in imported and Iranian rice samples were determined as 107.60 ± 19.54 and 44.760 ± 12.55 µg/kg dry weight, respectively. Moreover, comparison of the mean concentrations of Cd in recent study with FAO/WHO permissible limits revealed that the Cd concentrations were below the approved limit. Data suggested that weekly intake of Cd through the consumption of imported and Iranian rice samples was 2.07 and 0.86 µg/kg body weight, respectively which was below the WHO/FAO limit. Based on the results of this study, both imported and Iranian rice do not pose a Cd-related health problem for the consumers. However, long-term accumulation of Cd in critical tissues could have health consequences