According to the requirements presented by the Joint Commission of МО/ВОЗ on the food code, the most important in the hygienic control of food products are eight trace elements — mercury(Hg), cadmium(Cd), lead(Pb), arsenic(As), zinc(Zn), copper (Cu). Heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, and lead are particularly toxic. These elements have highly pronounced toxicological properties even at the lowest concentrations. This is explained by the cumulative property of the specified metals. Since certain food products, which are not consumed daily, may be contaminated with these heavy metals to a rather high degree, the permissible weekly intakes have been introduced for them, called preliminary.

ICP-MS and ICP-OES are commonly used method for elemental analysis. It can be used to detect different heavy metals at trace amounts with high sensitivity. The limit of detection is typically at levels of milligram to nanogram per liter. It allows for the simultaneous analysis of various elements in one run to obtain comprehensive information.

16 January 2023, Monday | 744