You Eat What You Are: Moral Dimensions of Diets Tailored to One's Genes

Thanks to developments in genomics,dietary recommendations adapted to genetic riskprofiles of individual persons are no longerscience fiction. But what are the consequencesof these diets? An examination of possibleimpacts of genetically tailor-made diets raisesmorally relevant concerns that are analogous to(medical-ethical) considerations aboutscreening and testing. These concerns oftengive rise to applying norms for informedconsent and for the weighing of burdens andbenefits. These diets also have a broaderimpact, especially because food patterns arefull of personal, social and cultural meanings.Diets will change one's food patterns and one'sattitude towards food, and this may implychanges in one's identity. We argue that suchan impact does not necessarily raise moralproblems. Moral concerns are, however, relevantif collective values and shared meanings infood practices are at issue. Therefore, thedevelopment of genetically tailor-made dietsdoes not merely require emphasis on weighingpersonal benefits and burdens and on informedconsent. It also asks for attention to andmoral reflection on the collective valuesinvolved in food practices.     

大专院校取水定额编制方法研究

定额管理是节水管理工作中一种比较科学的管理方法,也是节水管理的必然发展趋势。文章阐述了编制取水定额所应遵循的基本原则,结合大专院校的行业用水特点,综合运用相关分析、主成分分析和聚类分析等统计分析方法,建立了一套制定大专院校取水定额标准的科学体系。该体系具有科学性、实用性和灵活性。运用该体系编制了武汉市大专院校的分类取水定额标准,对于加强城市大专院校行业的节水管理,提高大专院校节水水平具有重要的指导意义,同时对于编制城市其它行业的取水定额具有一定的参考价值。     

Assessing the health risk of heavy metals in vegetables to the general population in Beijing, China

A systematic survey of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn concentrations in vegetables from 416 samples (involving 100 varieties) in Beijing was carried out for assessing the potential health risk to local inhabitants. The results indicated that the metal concentrations in vegetables ranged from < 0.001 to 0.479 g/g fresh weight (fw) (As), < 0.001 to 0.101 g/g fw (Cd), < 0.001 to 1.04 g/g fw (Cr), 0.024 to 8.25 g/g fw (Cu), 0.001 to 1.689 g/g fw (Ni), < 0.001 to 0.655 g/g fw (Pb) and 0.01 to 25.6 g/g fw (Zn), with average concentrations of 0.013, 0.010, 0.023, 0.51, 0.053, 0.046 and 2.55 g/g fw, respectively. The results showed that the concentrations of As, Cr, Cu, Cd, Pb and Ni in vegetables from open-fields were all significantly higher than those grown in greenhouses. In addition, in local-produced vegetables, all HMs except Zn were significantly higher than those in provincial vegetables. The estimated daily intake (EDI) of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn from vegetables was 0.080, 0.062, 0.142, 3.14, 0.327, 0.283 and 15.7 g/(kg body weight (bw) d) for adults, respectively. Arsenic was the major risk contributor for inhabitants since the target hazard quotient based on the weighted average concentration (THQw) of arsenic amounted to 44.3% of the total THQ (TTHQ) value according to average vegetable consumption. The TTHQ was lower than 1 for all age groups, indicating that it was still safe for the general population of Beijing to consume vegetables.     

奥运期间北京典型交通环境气态污染物特征及人体吸入剂量

为了评估2008年奥运会期间北京市机动车控制措施效果,对不同控制措施阶段北四环道路的气态污染物进行监测,并同步采集车流与气象信息.基于监测结果归纳气态污染物特征,分析控制措施的影响,并计算高峰小时与日间小时平均污染物人体吸入剂量.结果表明,控制措施全面实施期间(Ⅲ阶段)北四环路日间平均车流量下降约22%,其中轻型车流量降低约43%.与之相对应,北四环CO、NOx、NO2的浓度水平范围分别是0.10～3.94,0.002～0.139,0.002～0.099mg.m-3,较奥运前(2008年5月)监测浓度显著下降.其中,奥运赛事期间(Ⅲ-2阶段)CO、NOx、NO2平均浓度降幅最大,分别达到63%,71%和70%.奥运期间(Ⅲ阶段)CO与NOx的单人与总人群的高峰小时和日间平均小时吸入剂量较奥运前(2008年5月)均有显著下降,其中CO单人高峰小时与日间小时平均吸入剂量降幅分别是63%和81%;NOx单人高峰小时与日间小时平均吸入剂量降幅分别是58%和55%.区域总人群的吸入量也同比例下降.奥运期间严格的交通控制措施大幅削减了机动车污染物排放量,从而降低了道路交通环境机动车尾气污染引起的人体吸入剂量.     

Arsenic speciation in rice consumed in south-western Nigeria,and estimation of dietary intake of arsenic species through rice consumption

This study determined concentrations and speciation of arsenic (As) in rice samples obtained from the cities of Akure, Ore, Ondo and Ikare in Ondo State, south-western Nigeria. The estimated dietary intake of As from rice consumption for total As and the identified As species were compared with the As benchmark dose lower confidence limit. Analyses of rice from the four cities identified three As species: inorganic As, monomethylarsonic, acid and dimethylarsinic acid. Concentrations of total As and the As species differed significantly across the sampling locations (by a factor of 2.5 for total As). Mean levels (±S.D.) were 58.8 ± 0.7 µg/kg total As, 47.0 ± 0.6 µg/kg inorganic As, 0.33 ± 0.03 µg/kg monomethylarsonic acid, and 11.5 ± 0.1 µg/kg dimethylarsinic acid. The estimated mean dietary intakes were 4.1 µg/d total As, 3.3 µg/d inorganic As, 0.02 µg/d monomethylarsonic acid, and 0.8 µg/d dimethylarsinic acid. These values are below the benchmark dose lower confidence limit and comparable to, or lower than, those reported for other countries. Thus, consumption of rice cultivated in south-western Nigeria does not appear to have inherent As-associated health risks.     

Fish products available in Polish market – Assessment of the nutritive value and human exposure to dioxins and other contaminants

Chemical analyses were performed on one hundred and twenty of the most popular varieties of fish products (smoked fish, salted fish, and marinated fish) of the fish market in Poland. The contents of the nutritive substances of fish products (protein, micro- and macronutrients, vitamins A₁, D₃, E, and fatty acids) and the chosen contaminant (toxic metals – mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic; dioxin/furans – PCDDFs; dioxin-like PCB – dl-PCBs; seven congeners of polybrominated diphenyl ethers – PBDEs; organochlorine pesticides – ΣDDT, HCB, ΣHCH and marker polychlorinated biphenyls – PCB₇) levels were determined. It was confirmed that fish products are a good source of digestible proteins, iodine, selenium, and vitamin D₃. The fundamental nutritive benefit of processed fish lies in its highly beneficial fatty acid composition, which is what imparts them healthy nutritive qualities. The high content of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs), which is not noted in other food products, is particularly important.The majority of contaminants studied were present in low levels. The possible threats, particularly in the case of pregnant/nursing women and young children, can pose the levels of dioxin/furans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like (dl-PCBs) in smoked Baltic salmon and smoked sprat, elevated in a relation to particular requirements concerning the content of sum of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in fish (8 pg WHO-TEQ g⁻¹).The health benefits and risks stemming from consumption of fish products were determined according to the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI) for chosen contaminants (Cd, Hg, As, PCDD/Fs + dl-PCB) and the quantity of ingredients that render a fish diet healthy based on data from the EFSA Journal [EFSA (European Food Safety Authority), 2005. Opinion of the scientific panel on contaminants in the food chain on a request from the European Parliament related to the safety assessment of wild and farmed fish. EFSA J. 236, 1–118]. In regard of high content of LC-PUFAa and other nutritive ingredients, fish products available in Polish market may be considered as healthy food.However, many authors point at contaminants (methylmercury, PCDD/Fs) occurring in fish and fish products as on potential health problem, and emphasize that the amount of that hazardous substances should be limited in human diet.     

Estimation of daily intake of potentially toxic elements from urban street dust and the role of oral bioaccessibility testing

The pseudo-total and oral bioaccessible concentration of six potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in urban street dust was investigated. Typical pseudo-total concentrations across the sampling sites ranged from 4.4 to 8.6 mg kg⁻¹ for As, 0.2-3.6 mg kg⁻¹ for Cd, 25-217 mg kg⁻¹ for Cu, 14-46 mg kg⁻¹ for Ni, 70-4261 mg kg⁻¹ for Pb, and, 111-652 mg kg⁻¹ for Zn. This data compared favourably with other urban street dust samples collected and analysed in a variety of cities globally; the exception was the high level of Pb determined in a specific sample in this study. The oral bioaccessibility of PTEs in street dust is also assessed using in vitro gastrointestinal extraction (Unified Bioaccessibility Method, UBM). Based on a worst case scenario the oral bioaccessibility data estimated that Cd and Zn had the highest % bioaccessible fractions (median >45%) while the other PTEs i.e. As, Cu, Ni and Pb had lower % bioaccessible fractions (median <35%). The pseudo-total and bioaccessible concentrations of PTEs in the samples has been compared to estimated tolerable daily intake values based on unintentional soil/dust consumption. Cadmium, Cu and Ni are well within the oral tolerable daily intake rates. With respect to As and Pb, only the latter exceeds the TDI_oral if we model ingestion rate based on atmospheric ‘dustiness’ rather than the US EPA (2008) unintentional soil/dust consumption rate of 100 mg d⁻¹. We consider it unlikely that even a child with pica tendencies would ingest as much as 100 mg soil/dust during a daily visit to the city centre, and in particular to the sites with elevated Pb concentrations observed in this study.     

Polychlorobiphenyls and organochlorine pesticides in conventional and organic brands of milk: occurrence and dietary intake in the population of the Canary Islands (Spain)

The population of the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands has been studied in depth regarding its levels of contamination by organochlorine pesticides (OCs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Foodstuffs of animal origin, such as milk, are prominent contributors to the body burden of these contaminants. As this population presents one of the highest milk-intake in Spain and Europe, we evaluated the level of OCs and PCBs in 26 commercially available brands of milk (16 conventional and 10 organic brands) present in the market of these Islands, in order to estimate the relevance of milk as a source of these chemicals for the Canary population. Our findings showed that hexachlorobenzene, trans-chlordane, and PCB153 were present in almost all the samples with independence of the type of milk. For both types of milks, the concentration of OCs was very low, showing organic milks lower levels than conventional ones. As a consequence, the estimated daily intake for OCs was lower than the tolerable daily intake (TDI) established by International Agencies. The levels of PCBs in milk were also found to be very low, but, in this case, the situation was the opposite: there were higher levels of PCBs in organic than in conventional brands of milk. Unexpectedly, levels of dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) reached values higher than 25 pg WHO-TEQ g⁻¹ fat in percentile 75 for both types of milk indicating the existence of a number of brands of milk highly contaminated by these toxicants. Consequently, the population who consume the most contaminated milk brands could have estimated daily intakes well above the recommended TDI (2 pg WHO-TEQ kg⁻¹ b.w. d⁻¹) established by European Union Authorities. These results are of concern if we consider the well known adverse health effects exerted by dioxin-like compounds.     

基于膳食营养需求的西藏县域土地资源承载力评价

“食物营养安全”是“食物安全”的重要组成,而当前单纯以“粮食”作为土地资源承载力的评价指标只能反映部分承载能力,从膳食营养角度评估更切合其实际土地资源承载状况。以供给与需求的动态平衡为基本思路,选取热量和蛋白质为关键参量构建土地资源承载力（LCC）测算与土地资源承载指数（LCCI）评价模型,对2015年西藏自治区县域土地资源承载力与土地资源承载状况进行定量评价,以期为实现西藏地区居民热量与蛋白质供需平衡对策提供科学依据,同时也为该区域居民营养需求的变化、机理及对策研究奠定基础。结果表明：（1）西藏县域尺度下土地资源承载力总体呈盈余状态,位于西藏东南部的“一江两河”流域县域土地资源承载力高,而位于西北部的那曲和阿里等地区县域土地资源承载力相对较低。（2）根据以当前热量和蛋白质实际消耗量为依据对土地承载力的评价结果,农区县、半农半牧区县和牧区县基于蛋白质需求的土地承载力比基于热量需求的承载力分别多8.83%、22.51%和67.78%,其中有13个牧区县和半农半牧区县以热量指标判断为超载状态,但以蛋白质指标判断却未超载,其原因在于牧区县和农牧区县动物性食物供给比例高,食物蛋白质供给能力相较热量供给能力更强。（3）若按照居民膳食宝塔推荐的人均热量和蛋白质摄入量标准,农区县、半农半牧区县和牧区县基于热量和蛋白质需求的土地资源承载力较实际营养摄入量下的承载力可分别多承载35.22%和12.5%的人口。评估结果体现了实际消耗和膳食标准情景下以及不同营养指标之间各县域承载力及承载状态的差异,可为通过调整人口结构、膳食结构等措施寻求提升区域人粮平衡水平和居民膳食营养水平对策提供依据。     

电子垃圾拆解地稻田土壤和稻米中重金属污染评估

As、Cd、Cu、Pb等重金属是废旧电子电器产品(电子垃圾)拆解过程释放的一类重要的有害化学物质.大米是电子垃圾拆解地居民主要的食物,大米中的重金属含量直接关系到当地居民的食品安全和健康风险.本研究测定了广东省清远市电子垃圾拆解地4个拆解点稻田土壤和稻米中As、Cd、Cu和Pb的含量水平,并评估了土壤中重金属的生态风险和当地居民食用大米中的重金属的健康风险.电子垃圾拆解地稻田土壤中As、Cd、Cu和Pb的平均含量分别为8.9~9.4、0.73~1.94、75~195和54~87 mg·kg~(-1),稻米中As、Cd、Cu和Pb的平均含量分别为0.11~0.17、0.11~0.66、7.54~21.6和0.27~0.42 mg·kg~(-1)(以稻米干重计).电子垃圾拆解地土壤和稻米中Cd、Cu和Pb的含量是对照区的2~15倍,但As的含量与对照区无显著性差异.土壤中重金属的生态风险评估结果显示,电子垃圾拆解地稻田土壤中的Cd具有极强生态风险.当地居民膳食暴露风险评估结果提示,电子垃圾拆解地当地居民大米中的Cd和Cu可能存在较高健康风险,且Cd具有较高的致癌风险.