| Abstract |
This document tabulates detailed information obtained from 151 references for most of the original measurements of cadmium in foods published since 1940 and summarizes estimates of dietary intake of cadmium in the United States and foreign countries. Cadmium concentrations are indicated for about 1500 individual foods listed alphabetically and by decreasing concentration within typical food categories. Separate compilations are provided for foods originating in contaminated and uncontaminated areas for domestic and foreign products. Most foods contained low concentrations of cadmium, generally less than 0.050 mg/kg, wet weight. Concentrations of cadmium were greatest in shellfish, leafy vegetables, potatoes, grain and cereal products, and selected animal organs, particularly kidneys and liver. The use of cadmium-containing phosphate fertilizers increased the concentration of cadmium in some, but not all, plant foods. Diets chosen exclusively from foods produced near point sources, or from highly contaminated soils, put users at great risk of exceeding recommended intake levels. No clear pattern of concentration differences could be discerned in foods produced in areas distant from point sources. Although annual increases of cadmium in successive crops of certain plant foods were documented, no temporal trend of increasing cadmium concentrations in food is apparent in the tabulated data, nor is there a perceptible increase in the cadmium content of foods due to canning or other food-processing operations. Estimates of dietary intake of cadmium vary widely. Based on the tabulated data, the average daily U.S. dietary intake appears to lie within the range 30 to 50 mu g. (ERA citation 04:041766) |
