Total arsenic in complementary food and its exposure assessment for children aged 6-24 months

We report arsenic in complementary food (CF) and its exposure in children aged 6-24 months in Indonesia. The food consumption survey used the 24-h food recall method towards 385 respondents aged 6-24 months in Jakarta followed by food analysis using AAS with hydride vapor generator to determine the exposure and risk of total arsenic (t-As) in CF. The determination method of t-As in CF was verified for validity. Cereals and cereal products were the dominant CF food group consumed by children aged 6-24 months. The mean and 95th percentile (P95) of CF consumption from the food group were at 23.69 and 58.73 g/kgBW/day. All samples had a positive of t-As ranging from 0.32 +/- 0.09 ng/g to 452.51 +/- 200.41 ng/g. CF from fish and fish products had the highest t-As level. The mean and P95 of total exposure to t-As in CF from all food groups were 2.99 and 10.74 mu g/kgBW/day for children aged 6-24 months. The risk oft-As reached 140% (mean) and 502% (P95) of TDI (derived from PTWI), which is a significant risk to health. CF from cereals and cereal products had the highest contribution to the risk.