Alevli atomik absorpsiyon spektroskopi ile yumusak plastik oyuncaklarda kursun düzeylerinin ön değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

Objective: Lead is a heavy metal that can affect virtually every organ system in the body, particularly the nervous, hematologic and gastrointestinal systems. Children are more sensitive to the health problems as a consequence of lead exposure than adults. Studies have shown that lead contamination on the ground of inexpensive toys, much of them imported from China, is widespread. The goal of this study was to develop a method for determination of the lead levels in plastic toys using flame atomic absorption spectroscopy, and to evaluate whether or not these inexpensive toys are possible sources of toxic lead for children. Methods: This study involved 50 plastic toys. Turkish (n=19) and Chinese brands (n=31) of inexpensive plastic toys were purchased from the different places of Ankara in Turkey. Toys were classified as their color and origin of country. Samples were prepared by use of microwave acid digestion procedure. Flame atomic absorption spectroscopy was utilized for quantification of lead in the samples which were examined. Results: The method showed linearity in the range of 0-4 mg/kg with a detection and quantification limit equal to 0.01 mg/kg and 0.03 mg/kg, respectively. Lead levels in toys ranged between 0.10 mg/kg and 384.40 mg/kg while median and mean (±SD) lead levels were calculated as 50.01 mg/kg and 68.66±59.72 mg/kg, respectively. Mean lead levels of Turkish brands toys and Chinese brand toys were found 41.44±46.33 mg/ kg and 85.35±91.30 mg/kg, respectively. Samples were classified as their origin of country and colors. Hence, Chinese toys had statistically higher lead levels than Turkish brands toys (p=0.01; p < 0.05). In addition, black toys (144.01 ± 121.61 mg/kg) had statistically higher lead levels than other colored ones (54.31± 61.26 mg/ kg) (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Thus, it is suggested that inexpensive plastic toys are the potential health risk in terms of lead toxicity for the children. This study can be considered as a preliminary step to examine the potential lead exposure hazard occurring in children through plastic toys. Nevertheless, further research is needed to determine if the high lead concentration in toys poses a serious risk to child health. In addition, the proposed method is applicable for forensic or custom analysis of lead contents in plastic toys. © 2019, Refik Saydam National Public Health Agency (RSNPHA)