

Heavy metal problems in milk and milk productsīecause it contains nutrients such as protein, fat, carbohydrate and minerals in which milk is considered nearly a complete food in our daily diet. Heavy metals that exceed the MRL level in any food or food product harm human health.ģ. The World Health Organization (WHO), CODEX and the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) have determined metal maximum residual limit (MRL) values in food products. The growth in a chemical concentration in a biological organism over time in relation to the chemical concentration in the environment is referred to as bioaccumulation. They have really no known metabolic function but when present in the body, they disrupt the normal cellular processes which causes toxic effects in a variety of organs.īioaccumulation or the ability to accumulate in biological tissues. The toxicity of these metals is divided into two categories Heavy metals are cumulative toxins that can cause harm even at very low levels. Heavy metal is a broad term that refers to a class of metals and metalloids with atomic densities greater than 5 g/cm 3 or five times that of water. The excess mineral can have a negative impact on human health e.g., daily intake of high levels of sodium can lead to hypertension (Blood pressure).Ī heavy metal is any metallic element with a relatively high density (5 g/cm 3) that is unsafe or poisonous even at low.

These are found in nearly all cells of the human body where they help to maintain general homeostasis and are necessary for our bodies to function normally. i.e., macro minerals are those that the human body requires in relatively large quantities such as sodium, potassium, chlorine, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and sulfur whereas micro/trace minerals such as selenium, iron, zinc, copper, cobalt, fluorine, iodine, manganese and molybdenum are required in little amounts. Metals of various types of minerals can be divided into two categories based on their relative abundance in our bodies. Central Pollution Control Board found that the presence of higher levels of mercury (above Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) permissible limits) in water from several Indian states and its highly toxic heavy metal & poison with a long retention time in the human body poses a threat to the body. Because the mammary gland is the most physiologically active component of an animal that resulted into heavy metals are reflected in milk ( Figure 1). Animals ingest heavy metals from a variety of sources including soil, water, feed and fodder. The advancement of industry and agriculture has resulted in the release of numerous heavy metals into the environment which is harmful to the health of both animals and humans. These are very important components of human diets because they contain good nutritive value and are thus widely consumed by children and adults, particularly elderly people all over the world. Milk products include butter, ice cream, cheese, paneer etc. Milk production in India increased at a growth of 6.2% in 2020–2021 reaching 209.96 million tonnes. Milk is a whitish liquid containing protein, carbohydrates, fat, vitamin and trace mineral elements, which are produced by mammary gland of all mature female mammals. Atomic absorption spectroscopy can be used to estimate the heavy metal contamination in milk and milk products. Heavy metals are any metallic chemical elements with a relatively high density (5 g/cc) whose levels must be monitored. Heavy metal residues such as cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), arsenic (As) and mercury (Hg) pose a chemical hazard. People nowadays are concerned about food safety issues involving microbial, chemical and physical hazards.

They are critical for proper body growth and maintenance but excess in these metals, particularly, heavy metals cause disturbances and pathological conditions. Milk also has a high concentration of mineral elements (metals) such as sodium, potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium, selenium, copper and zinc. Milk is regarded as a complete food because it contains all of the macronutrients including protein, carbohydrates, fat and vitamins. Milk and milk products are an essential part of the human daily diet, and their consumption is steadily increasing.
