Chronic dietary exposure to nickel from selected foods consumed in Belgium

The risk assessment conducted by the European Food Safety Authority stated some concerns regarding the chronic exposure of the European population to nickel due to food intake. This study aimed to evaluate the extent of the Belgian population's exposure to nickel via intake of different foods/drinks available in their market. Ni concentrations were measured in selected foods consumed in Belgium, and exposures from this limited group of foods were estimated for consumers of these foods. Legumes, soy products, breakfast cereals, and chocolate spreads were responsible for 26%, 14%, 11% and 8% of the overall exposure (overall chronic exposure through consuming all the included food types in this study except tap water) of children (3-9 years) to nickel. For adolescents (10-17 years), the highest percentage of overall chronic exposure again originated from legumes (19%). This was followed by breakfast cereals (14%), soy products (11%) and chocolate spreads (11%). For adults (18-64 years), major contributors to the overall chronic daily exposure were legumes (16%), dark chocolate (15%) and breakfast cereals (10%). The aggregate exposure assessment, including the highest contaminated foods, for different sub-populations, revealed mean exposure levels of 1.02, 0.60 and 0.34 μg kg^-1 b.w. day^-1 for children, adolescents, and adults respectively. The mean, P75, P90 and P95 values for aggregate chronic exposure of the overall consumer's population were 0.62, 0.80, 1.5 and 210 μg kg^-1 b.w. day^-1 respectively. This study recommends controlling the intake of food products with elevated nickel content especially for the more vulnerable sub-population groups such as children with lower body weight and nickel sensitised individuals. It also demonstrates a shift in potential risk on human health to nickel exposure due to the transition towards a more plant-based diet.