Title : Assessment of the mycotoxicological risk associated with the consumption of infant porridge by infants and young children in Yaounde (Cameroon)
Abstract:
Foodborne diseases such as malnutrition, stunting and mycotoxicosis are all problems encountered when infants and children are exposed to mycotoxins through the consumption of complementary foods. Due to the lack of data available in Cameroon on the mycotoxicological status of infant porridge, this study focuses on the assessment of the risk of mycotoxin contamination associated with the consumption of infant porridge in Cameroon: the case of the city of Yaoundé, and the objective is to establish the level of aflatoxin safety of porridge intended for feeding infants and young children [06-36 months]. Thus, a survey was conducted among 120 individuals in order to highlight the level of awareness of the populations to mycotoxins and food intake. A total of 70 composite samples consisting of ingredients (cereals and oilseeds) and finished products (fermented doughs and flours) were taken from different markets in the city of Yaoundé in order to assess their total Aflatoxin (B1, B2, G1 and G2) or AFT contents using the ELISA method. The use of consumption and AFT contamination data made it possible to estimate some toxicological parameters. The results revealed an overall AFT contamination rate of 55.7% for all samples. Only 27.5% and 40%, corresponding to ingredients and finished products respectively, exceeded the respective maximum limits of 15 µg/kg and 4 µg/kg set by the EC regulation of the European Union. The raw materials had AFT contents ranging from 1.02 µg/kg to 22.96 µg/kg, and those of the doughs and flours between 1.37 µg/kg and 22.67 µg/kg. The highest AFT concentration for the ingredients corresponded to the yellow corn (MJ) samples with a content of 22.96 µg/kg, and for the finished products, it corresponded to the yellow fermented corn dough (BFJ) with a content of 22.67 µg/kg. The evaluation of some toxicological parameters such as the degree of exposure and the risk related to liver cancer revealed on the one hand that peanut, with an exposure degree of 54.20 ng / kg bw / day, had the highest risk (0.54 cancers / 100,000 infants and young children / year) for the ingredients. On the other hand, concerning finished products, the highest exposure level (25.93 ng/kg bw/day) corresponded to commercial flour A and for a risk of 0.26 cancer/100,000 infants and young children/year, followed by fermented doughs which had an exposure level of 20.57 ng/kg bw/day, corresponding to 0.20 cancer/100,000 infants and young children/year. These preliminary results show the need for regular monitoring of AFT levels in infant porridges as well as in ingredients given the heat-resistant and toxic nature of these compounds.
Keywords: Total Aflatoxins; mycotoxicological risk; infant porridge; infants; young children.
