QUANTITATIVE PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSMENT OF FLUORIDE, NITRATE AND NITRITE INTAKE FROM BOTTLED WATER IN WEST-IRANIAN CONSUMERS

The presence of anions such as fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite in bottled water is of great concern, as they may affect human health and cause various illnesses. This study aims to measuring the concentration of fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite in different brands of bottled waters and assessment the non-carcinogenic health risks caused by exposure to nitrate, nitrite, and fluoride. The fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite concentration was measured by SPANDS method, the cadmium reduction method, and diazotization method, respectively. The concentration of all three mentioned anions was then measured by using Spectrophotometer (DR5000, Hatch, USA). The hazard quotient (HQ) of fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite was then calculated based on the available variables such as fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite concentration, water per capita, body weight, and reference dose. The results declared that the concentration of fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite was in the range of and 0.01 to 0.7 mg/L (mean 0.2430), 1 to 14.1 mg/L (mean 6.964 mg/L), 0.01 to 0.08 mg/L (mean 0.037 mg/L), respectively. Around 7% of fluoride, 71% of nitrate, and 78% of nitrite measured concentrations were higher than the reported concentrations on the labels. Considering the results, we can see that all the achieved concentrations were less than the WHO drinking water guideline. Then the assessment of non-cancerous health risks caused by exposure to fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite was conducted. Results showed that the HQ for all anions in all age subgroup were lower than 1 (HQ<1). So, the results declared that the range of fluoride, nitrate, and nitrite in the studied bottled waters were in acceptable range and have no human health adverse effect.