Scientific opinion on the tolerable upper intake level for manganese

Following a request from the European Commission (EC), the EFSA Panel onNutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens (NDA) was asked to deliver a scientificopinion on the tolerable upper intake level (UL) for manganese. Systematic reviewsof the literature of human and animal data were conducted to assess evidenceregarding excess manganese intake (including authorised manganese salts) andthe priority adverse health effect, i.e. manganese-induced neurotoxicity. Availablehuman and animal studies support neurotoxicity as a critical effect, however, dataare not sufficient and suitable to characterise a dose–response relationship andidentify a reference point for manganese-induced neurotoxicity. In the absenceof adequate data to establish an UL, estimated background dietary intakes (i.e.manganese intakes from natural dietary sources only) observed among high consumers (95th percentile) were used to provide an indication of the highest level of intake where there is reasonable confidence on the absence of adverse effects. A safe level of intake of 8 mg/day was established for adults ≥18years (including pregnant and lactating women) and ranged between 2 and 7 mg/day for other population groups. The application of the safe level of intake is more limited than an UL because the intake level at which the risk of adverse effects starts to increase is not defined