Evaluation of Lead and Cadmium Heavy Metal Residues in Milk and Milk Products Sold in Ogbomoso, Southwestern Nigeria

Authors

  • G.O. Tona Department of Animal Production and Health, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria
  • V.O. Adetunji Veterinary Public Health Unit, Department of Veterinary Public Health and Preventive Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
  • S.A. Ameen Department of Animal Production and Health, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria
  • A.O. Ibikunle Department of Animal Production and Health, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3923/pjn.2013.168.171

Keywords:

Cadmium, heavy metals, lead, milk, milk products

Abstract

The concentrations of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) heavy metals in cow milk, goat milk butterfat, soft cheese and yoghurt samples were evaluated. Forty samples (eight of each sample) were analyzed using the atomic absorption spectrophotometer. There were detectable residual concentrations of Pb and Cd in all the 40 samples. The range of 0.0025 to 0.0061 ppm of Pb concentrations in the samples was within the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) of 0.0125 to 0.0175 ppm of Pb in milk and dairy products. There was a significantly (P<0.05) higher mean Pb concentration of 0.0061±0.0025 ppm in the soft cheese samples. The residual concentrations of Pb in the cow milk samples were not significantly (P>0.05) different from that of the goat milk samples. Residual concentrations of Cd were higher in soft cheese samples (0.0048±0.0007 ppm) and in goat milk samples (0.0045±0.0005 ppm Cd) and these two concentrations exceeded the MRL of 0.0035 ppm of Cd recommended by India regulations. The residual concentration of Cd in goat milk samples (0.0045±0.0005 ppm) was significantly (P<0.05) higher than in the cow milk samples (0.0021±0.0007 ppm). The results of this study showed that all the milk and milk products samples analyzed contained residues of Pb and Cd heavy metals. The observation of residual Cd concentrations above the MRLs in the soft cheese samples and in the goat milk samples is of public health concern and could cause health hazards to consumers.

Downloads

Published

15.01.2013

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 2 (2013)

Section

Research Article

License

Copyright (c) 2013 Asian Network for Scientific Information

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

How to Cite

Tona, G., Adetunji, V., Ameen, S., & Ibikunle, A. (2013). Evaluation of Lead and Cadmium Heavy Metal Residues in Milk and Milk Products Sold in Ogbomoso, Southwestern Nigeria. Pakistan Journal of Nutrition, 12(2), 168–171. https://doi.org/10.3923/pjn.2013.168.171