Content and Bioaccessibility Evaluation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Aquatic Products: Effects of Cooking Methods on PAHs

• The bioaccessibility of ΣPAHs in aquatic products remarkably reduced after cooking. • Ignoring bioaccessibility leads to unrigorous and inaccurate risk assessment. • Maximum ILCR difference pre/post bioaccessibility test: ∼1 order of magnitude. • Risk assessment shows cooked aquatic products in Xiamen pose no major health risk. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic evaluation of the content, bioaccessibility and health risk assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in different types of aquatic products subjected to different cooking methods. The variations of PAHs contents and bioaccessibility in 12 types of aquatic products (including fish, shrimp and crab) under four different heating methods (frying, grilling, steaming and boiling) were investigated. The results showed frying and grilling increased total PAHs concentrations in all samples and led to the detection of more PAHs compounds. Contrary to expectations, steaming and boiling did not reduce PAHs in some samples (e.g., Portunus sanguinolentus ), instead, they resulted in increased PAH levels. ΣPAH4 and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) levels in all samples remained below EU limits (12 and 2 µg/kg, respectively). BaP was undetected in raw samples but trace levels (below quantification limits) appeared in fried Portunus trituberculatus , Portunus sanguinolentus , grass carp, large yellow croaker and ribbon fish. Grilled crabs presented the highest PAHs levels and the strongest interaction effects between cooked treatments and species. Cooked samples showed significantly lower ΣPAH bioaccessibility than raw tissues (p < 0.01), with no differences among cooking methods or aquatic species under the same conditions. The risk assessments indicated that the incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCR) for all cooking methods remained below the negligible threshold (ILCR < 1 × 10 -6 ). However, frying and grilling results in higher ILCR values than steaming and boiling, emphasizing the critical role of bioaccessibility in refining risk assessments.