Dietary mercury intake and human exposure in an Adriatic population

A study was conducted to examine human exposure to mercury through dietary mercury intake in a population living in an industrially non-polluted area of the Adriatic Sea. The results have shown that approximately 20% of the subjects had a weekly dietary mercury intake above the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI), primarily those consuming fish and other seafood > 6 times/week. The estimated seafood consumption corresponding to a mean intake of PTWI of 300 micrograms total mercury was 1559 g, and 1365 g for a PTWI of 200 micrograms methylmercury. However, the total mercury content in hair in individuals consuming total mercury above the PTWI was in the range of 1.3-12.9 micrograms/g, whereas the methylmercury content in hair in subjects consuming methylmercury above the PTWI was between 1.1-10.8 micrograms. Thus, the mercury content in hair did not reach the critical level at which toxic effects of mercury could be expected. The results, particularly those related to methylmercury exposure, did not differ significantly from data reported earlier from an industrially polluted area, thus indicating that the mercury content of fish and consequent human exposure to mercury reflects primarily the general ecological characteristics of the Adriatic, rather than the impact upon a specific local pollution.