在过去的几十年里,玩具产量一直在增加,以满足全球对玩具日益增长的需求。这不可避免地加剧了玩具浪费的问题。鉴于缺乏现代化的废物处理设施,发展中国家的农村村民经常在后院或河岸丢弃和焚烧玩具垃圾,可能会从玩具中释放污染物(例如,重金属),污染周围地区,并最终威胁居民的健康。因此,这项研究通过测量重金属的污染水平(As,Cd,Cu,Pb,和锌)在沉积物和海鲜(螃蟹,虾,和鱼)。在不同的人群(男性,女性,青少年,和老年人)。结果表明,水产养殖现场的沉积物和海产品通常不受重金属污染(即,污染因子和生物累积因子<1)。然而,食用在这个地方养殖的海鲜,尤其是螃蟹,由于As和Cd(危害商>1),可能对人类构成健康风险,不论年龄和性别。烹饪不能降低这种风险,除了沸腾。总的来说,我们透露,玩具废物处理不当不会对周围环境造成严重的重金属污染。然而,食用受污染的海鲜仍然可能威胁人类健康。为了保障公众健康,我们建议有关当局适当处理玩具废物。同时,食用文化周期长的海鲜(例如,螃蟹)应减少,以最大程度地减少饮食中重金属的摄入量及其相关的健康风险。
Toy production has been increasing over the last few decades to meet the growing demands for toys across the globe, which has inevitably worsened the problem of toy waste. Given the lack of modern waste disposal facilities, rural villagers in developing countries often discard and incinerate toy waste in backyards or riverbanks, which may release the pollutants from toys (e.g., heavy metals), contaminate the surrounding areas, and eventually threaten the health of residents. As such, this study assessed the impact of improper toy waste handling on the nearby aquaculture site by measuring the contamination level of heavy metals (As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn) in the sediment and seafood (crabs, shrimps, and fish). The health risk of heavy metals via seafood consumption was assessed in different groups of people (males, females, teenagers, and seniors). Results showed that the sediment and seafood at the aquaculture site were generally not contaminated with heavy metals (i.e., contamination factor and bioaccumulation factor < 1). However, consuming the seafood cultured at this site, especially for crabs, could pose health risks to humans due to As and Cd (hazard quotient > 1), irrespective of their age and gender. This risk could not be lowered by cooking, except As by boiling. Overall, we revealed that improper toy waste handling did not cause severe heavy metal pollution in the surrounding environment. However, the consumption of contaminated seafood could still threaten human health. To safeguard public health, we propose that toy waste be appropriately treated by the authorities concerned. At the same time, consuming seafood with long culture periods (e.g., crabs) should be reduced to minimize the dietary intake of heavy metals and their associated health risk.