Abstract:
The chemical pollutants from environment and food have significant impacts on human health. Mastering the exposure of human to chemical pollutants from environment and food among different regions is essential for controlling their health hazards in China. Yangtze River Delta is an important economic belt in China with a dense population, but the comprehensive monitoring and research reports on human exposure to chemical pollutants from environment and food remains lacking. Therefore, existing research data on internal and external exposure to pollutants related to environment, food, and human population are synthesized to estimate the levels, sources, and potential health hazards of exposure to chemical pollutants from environment and food in Yangtze River Delta. Research results indicate that the exposure level of human to organic persistent pollutants e.g., perfluoroalkyl/polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins, polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs), veterinary drugs (e.g., antibiotics), pesticides (e.g., neonicotinoid insecticides and organophosphorus insecticides), plasticizers (e.g., phthalates), heavy metals (e.g., arsenic, mercury, and cadmium), flame retardants (e.g., organophosphorus flame retardants), and ultra-processed food- and personal care product-related chemicals in Yangtze River Delta is very likely to be relatively higher in China, and for some types of pollutants, the exposure levels might be among the top in the country, including PFAs, PCBs, and neonicotinoid insecticides. This relatively high exposure level of pollutants poses non-negligible health risks on the human population in Yangtze River Delta. The main reasons for high exposure to pollutants in Yangtze River Delta are the relatively high levels of pollutants in environment and food and the high consumption of animal-derived foods (e.g. aquatic products), plant-derived foods (e.g. vegetables and fruits), ultra-processed foods, and personal care products. To reduce the exposure level of human to pollutants in Yangtze River Delta, specific measures need to be taken according to the characteristics of related utilization and pollution of pollutants and the consumption composition of food and personal care products. It is recommended to comprehensively monitor the exposure status and dynamic changes of chemical pollutants from environment and food in representative groups of human population in Yangtze River Delta, identify concrete exposure sources, conduct in-depth researches on impacts and mechanisms of exposure to pollutants on major diseases, quantitatively assess their health impacts on human, and establish a warning mechanism for health hazards.