The presence of heavy metal ions of nickel and chromium in vegetables, including potatoes, carrots and onions, irrigated with polluted water is revealed using X-series inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.Sotiris Stasinos and Ioannis Zabetakis of the Food Chemistry Laboratory, at the University of Athens, Greece, explain how heavy metals ions, in general, can migrate from polluted soil and/or irrigation water to tuberous plants and root vegetables. The implications of such migration being that these toxic agents can enter the food chain leading to long-term, chronic consumption and the many putative health problems such exposure can cause. This not only includes the direct toxic effects of such metals but the depletion of essential trace elements in the body. Part of the issue is that unlike certain organic residues metal ions persist, they cannot be degraded or otherwise broken down into less harmful constituents by virtue of being elements rather than compounds. They point out that other researchers have highlighted various sources of contamination by human sources including: mining, industrial and domestic wastewater and sewage sludge, as well as atmospheric deposition.
via Heavy metal veggies: ICP-MS worth a nickel - Ezine - spectroscopyNOW.com.
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