Bihdād (Aug 2019)
[Article title missing]
Abstract
Background: Nitrate is one of the most important pollutants that is accumulated mainly due to unbalanced fertilizer use and excessive use of nitrogen fertilizers in plant organs. Most of the nitrate in our body comes from vegetables. In Iran, tomatoes and cucumbers are consumed vegetables in the food basket of people. Therefore, the study of nitrate pollution in these products and the identification of the sources of pollutants and providing appropriate solutions for the relative reduction of contamination is necessary. Methods: In this study, we randomly collected samples of tomatoes and cucumbers from Alborz province for 16 months each week. Samples were washed with distilled water and moisture content and their nitrate content was measured by micro-Kajledal method. Results: The results showed that nitrate content in the cucumbers Distribution the Alborz province with an average of 212.25 mg / kg fresh weight was higher than the World Health Organization (WHO) (150 mg / kg) and Iranian National Standardization Organization (INSO) (90 mg / kg of fresh weight). The range of nitrate content in fresh cucumber samples was 15.18-1221 mg / kg and according to the World Health Organization and National Iranian Standards Organization, 58.76% and 74% of cucumber samples had more nitrate content above the limit, respectively. The results of this study showed that the mean concentration of nitrate in tomato samples was 20.22 mg / kg, which was below the World Health Organization (300 mg / kg) and Iranian National Standardization Organization (120 mg / kg fresh weight) was less. The range of nitrate content in tomato samples was 3.4-121.3 mg / kg, and according to the Iranian National Standardization Organization index, only one tomato sample had nitrate content higher than the limit. Conclusion and Discussion: The results showed that mean nitrate concentration in autumn ˃ winter ˃ spring ˃ summer. In cucumber, the amount of nitrate in the skin is more than other parts of cucumber.
