Heavy metals substance (Cd, Hg, and Pb) in marine fish and the potential health risks for people (Case study: Fish consumption in West Java)
Tiny Agustini Koesmawati1,2 , Feby Febrianti2, Riyan Halim2, Novi Fitria1,2

1 Research Center for Environmental and Clean Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency, Cisitu Bandung, Indonesia
2 Chemical Departement, Sekolah Tinggi Analis Bakti Asih, Padasuka No.233, Indonesia

Abstract

Fish has many benefits for humans. However, it is crucial to ensure that the fish consumed by humans are safe from heavy metals that can harm humans health. Heavy metals monitoring in fishes is highly important to ensure food safety and consumers protection. The level of harm of the heavy metals, such as Mercury, Tin, and Cadmium, highly depend on the chemical structure of the metals. Organic mercury (methyl mercury) is more harmful than the inorganic mercury. The data is collected to analyse the Mercury level in fish using cold vapour atomic absorption spectrophotometry (CV-AAS), with two different drying methods (using oven and freeze dryer). From the findings, it can be concluded that in the types of fish commonly consumed in West Java, such as tuna, bandeng, and bawal, the Cadmium and Mercury level are under the SNI 7387:2009 standards which is 0.3 mg/kg, while the Tin level is above the standard. The measurement is based on the data obtained by calculating the heavy metals contained in marine fish, the frequency in fish consumption, and the weight of respondents. The Cadmium, Mercury, and Tin contained in fishes consumed in West Java do not show harmful health risks for people who consumed them because the total RQ value is <1 (0.0753).

Keywords: Heavy metals, marine fish, human^s health, West Java

Topic: Analytical Chemistry