Toxicological and Hygienic Aspects of the Dietary Cadmium Intake and Its Human Health Effects: A Literature Review

Introduction: Cadmium (Cd) is ubiquitous in the diet. Due to the chronic nature of its dietary intake, coupled with a long half-life in humans, Cd can accumulate in various tissues contributing to the development of cancer, kidney dysfunction, cardiovascular diseases, reproductive dysfunction, diabetes, osteoporosis, and increased mortality.

Objective: To analyze published data on toxicological and hygienic aspects of human exposure to cadmium in foods and its health effects.

Material and methods: We have reviewed studies published in Russian and English and found on the eLIBRARY.ru, Science Direct, PubMed, and Scopus information portals using the following keywords: cadmium toxicokinetics, assessment of dietary cadmium intake, and cadmium in food. Of 732 search results, we selected 69 full-text publications presenting data on the metabolism and mechanisms of toxicity of cadmium, hygienic assessments of its content in foods, and the levels of its dietary intake in the population of various countries.

Results: The main dietary sources of cadmium include vegetables, grains, meat, meat by-products, and seafood. The mechanism of Cd toxicity is associated with oxidative stress caused by inhibition of antioxidant enzymes and interference with DNA repair systems. Relatively low chronic oral exposure to cadmium may pose risks to human health and induce a whole number of disorders.

Conclusion: Research into the mechanism of Cd toxicity facilitates the development of highly effective strategies to prevent chronic exposure. Our findings may serve as the basis for assessing risks of exposure to cadmium in food at the population level and establishing maximum residue levels for cadmium in food products.

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