Geogenic arsenic in groundwaters and soils - re-evaluating exposure routes and risk assessment

摘要

We present here data from the AquaTRAIN, CALIBRE and PRAMA networks and also from recent work from other groups that demonstrate that: (ⅰ) the 10 ug/L guideline for arsenic in drinking water may not be as protective of human health as for other chemicals; (ⅱ) rice is a major exposure route for many individuals, including in the European Union, and that re-assessment of the arsenic-in-food regulations within the European Union is required; and (ⅲ) exposure to arsenic through drinking water and rice may result in genetic and other damage in individuals, that are otherwise externally asymptomatic, at least in the earlier stages of the development of cancers and other detrimental sequela, some of which have latency periods of decades. There is a clear and present need for more critically determining the human health and socio-economic impacts of current levels of human exposure to arsenic within the European Union and elsewhere. The relative merits of regulatory/remediatory strategies need to explicitly take into account substitution of risks.