Abstract

Milk is an important commodity in Kenya; the country has the largest dairy herd and highest per capita milk consumption in East Africa. As such, hazards in milk are of concern. Aflatoxin M-1 (AFM(1)) is a toxic metabolite of aflatoxin B-1 (AFB(1)) excreted in milk by lactating animals after ingesting AFB(1)-contaminated feeds. This metabolite is injurious to human health, but there is little information on the risk to human health posed by AFM(1) in milk in rural Kenya. To fill this gap, a quantitative risk assessment (QRA) applying probabilistic statistical tools to quantify risks was conducted. This assessed the risk of liver cancer posed by AFM(1) in milk, assuming 10-fold lower carcinogenicity than AFB(1). Data from four agro-ecological zones in Kenya (semi-arid, temperate, sub-humid and humid) were used. We estimated that people were exposed to between 0.3 and 1 ng AFM(1) per kg body weight per day through the consumption of milk. The annual incidence rates of cancer attributed to the consumption of AFM(1) in milk were 3.5 x 10(-3) (95% CI: 3 x 10(-3)-3.9 x 10(-3)), 2.9 x 10(-3) (95% CI: 2.5 x 10(-3)-3.3 x 10(-3)), 1.4 x 10(-3) (95% CI: 1.2 x 10(-3)-1.5 x 10(-3)) and 2.7 x 10(-3) (95% CI: 2.3 x 10(-3)-3 x 10(-3)) cancers per 100,000 in adult females, adult males, children 6-18 years old, and in children less than five years old, respectively. Our results show that aflatoxin exposure from milk contributes relatively little to the incidence of liver cancer. Nonetheless, risk managers should take action based on cumulative exposure from all sources of aflatoxins.

Keywords

mycotoxins; risk assessment; food safety standards; hepatocellular carcinoma; East Africa

Published in

Toxins
2019, Volume: 11, number: 8, article number: 469
Publisher: MDPI

SLU Authors

• Lindahl, Johanna

  • Department of Clinical Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)
  • Uppsala University

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG3 Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
SDG2 End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture


UKÄ Subject classification

Food Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins11080469

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/101542