Sources of Metal Contamination in Soils, Impact on Children, and Implications for Food Safety

Lead, arsenic, and mercury (sometimes called “heavy metals”) are naturally occurring metals in the environment that, at certain exposure levels, have potential to cause health risks in humans. One of the roles of exposure scientists is to identify the nature and magnitude of risk to humans presented by certain environmental exposures, such as heavy metals. To do so at the population level, we employ a scientific method called risk assessment. 33 A heavy metal risk assessment (1) identifies the source and quantity of the heavy metal present; (2) examines the frequency and magnitude of exposure to the heavy metal for certain populations, such as children; and then (3) characterizes the potential health risk the heavy metal poses to that population. 34 This paper discusses sources and quantities of heavy metals and their most common mechanisms for exposure, and explores the safety of heavy metals in baby foods compared to other environmental exposure pathways.