Analysis of arsenic in rice and domestic water supply in Baguio City, Philippines

Abstract

Numerous studies have found that rice and water, as components of the human diet, are potential pathways of arsenic exposure in humans. Due to the negative health effects linked with arsenic exposure, the quality of drinking water and rice samples must be continually monitored. This research was carried out in Baguio City, a small urban center in the Philippines. Following microwave digestion, arsenic in rice and water samples were determined using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. The results showed that the National Food Authority (NFA) rice samples had arsenic content below the detection limit, indicating that this commercially available rice does not pose any health risk to Filipino consumers in terms of arsenic exposure. The arsenic value in other rice samples ranged from 8 μg/L to 27 μg/L, with the lowest and highest values found in organic brown rice and white rice varieties, respectively. Despite detectable arsenic in all 20 rice samples, all values were less than the maximum contaminant level (MCL) of 150 μg/L. Despite higher arsenic content in mixed rice than in white and organic colored rice, the mean differences are not significant, as proven by the Kruskal Wallis Test. All drinking water samples bought from water refilling stations had no detectable arsenic, while eight of the 18 (44%) of the spring water samples showed detectable amounts but are far below MCL of arsenic in drinking water. The findings suggest that the amount of arsenic in rice and spring water samples are too low to pose health risks over a short period of time.

Keywords

• arsenic
• rice
• water samples
• health risks
• atomic absorption spectroscopy