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Four heavy metals (cadmium, copper, lead and zinc) were determined in some green vegetables cultivated along the sites of the
Sinza and Msimbazi rivers. Atomic absorption spectrophotometry was used to estimate and evaluate the levels of these metals in
the vegetables. The contributions of the vegetables to the daily intake of the heavy metals from the vegetables were determined. The
results showed the following ranges (mg/100 g): 0.01±0.06, 0.25±1.60, 0.19±0.66, and 1.48±4.93 for cadmium, copper, lead and zinc,
respectively. Some vegetables contained high levels beyond the permissible levels given by FAO and WHO for human consumption.
When the mean levels of cadmium, copper, lead and zinc (0.20, 7.95, 3.95 and 33.75 mg per kg, respectively) were taken into
account, the daily intake contribution of these metals was found to be 21.60 mg, 858.60 mg, 426.60 mg and 3.65 mg for cadmium,
copper, lead and zinc, respectively. |
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