Health Risk Assessment of Nitrate Pollution in the Voronezh Region

Introduction: The solution to the problem of assessing current nitrate pollution and the associated human health risks has not lost its relevance due to frequent detection of high concentrations of nitrates in drinking water and food.

Objective: To assess health risks of nitrate pollution of drinking water and food products for the population of the Voronezh Region.

Materials and methods: We used data on quality indicators of centralized domestic drinking water supply systems and levels of contaminants in food raw materials collected within public health surveillance for the period of 2012 to 2024 in 34 administrative territories of the Voronezh Region. The main indicator was the hazard quotient (HQ), which characterizes non-carcinogenic risk.

Results: Health risk assessment of nitrate pollution of drinking water and food products for the population of the Voronezh Region showed that the intake of nitrates from food posed greater risks of adverse human health effects than that from drinking water, since risk indicators and the number of territories with poor food quality and safety were higher. Children were found to be at higher risk of exposure to nitrate pollution from among the population groups under consideration (children, adolescents, and adults): a dangerous level of risk posed by nitrate exposure from dietary sources was established in 32 of 34 administrative territories (HQ ranging from 3.18 to 6.24); in 4 districts, HQ of 1.10 to 2.24 indicated a possible adverse health effect of nitrates in drinking water.

Conclusions: Nitrates are typical pollutants for the territories of the Voronezh Region, which necessitates in-depth studies of the sources and causes of their entry into various environments to mitigate nitrate exposure of the population. Preventive measures are recommended, including proposals for improving monitoring and informing the public.

1. Gutiérrez M, Biagioni RN, Alarcón-Herrera MT, Rivas-Lucero BA. An overview of nitrate sources and operating processes in arid and semiarid aquifer systems. Sci Total Environ. 2018;624:1513-1522. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.12.252

2. Ward MH, Jones RR, Brender JD, et al. Drinking water nitrate and human health: An updated review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018;15(7):1557. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15071557

3. Torres-Martínez JA, Mora A, Mahlknecht J, Daesslé LW, Cervantes-Avilés PA, Ledesma-Ruiz R. Estimation of nitrate pollution sources and transformations in groundwater of an intensive livestock-agricultural area (Comarca Lagunera), combining major ions, stable isotopes and MixSIAR model. Environ Pollut. 2021;269:115445. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115445

4. Rahman A, Mondal NC, Tiwari KK. Anthropogenic nitrate in groundwater and its health risks in the view of background concentration in a semi arid area of Rajasthan, India. Sci Rep. 2021;11(1):9279. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-88600-1

5. Alexeeva LP, Alexeev SV. Nitrate and ammonium contamination of groundwater in the Listvyanka settlement on Lake Baikal. Izvestiya Irkutskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta. Seriya: Nauki o Zemle. 2023;46:3-15. (In Russ.) doi: 10.26516/2073-3402.2023.46.3

6. Musirmonov JaJ, Urinova AA, Kuchkarova DKh, Tripath G, Farooqui A, Khujamshukurov N. Comprehensive analysis of domestic wastewater for the content of various salts. Universum: Khimiya i Biologiya. 2024;(8(122)):9-17. (In Russ.) doi: 10.32743/UniChem.2024.122.8.18048

7. Kharina GV, Alyoshina LV. Analysis of the quality of groundwater in the Sverdlovsk Region. Gigiena i Sanitariya. 2023;102(3):221-228. (In Russ.) doi: 10.47470/0016-9900-2023-102-3-221-228

8. Novikov DS. Assessment of the health risk associated with the oral intake of ecotoxicants from groundwater in the Volga sand ridge. Nauka Yuga Rossii. 2023;19(1):77- 86. (In Russ.) doi: 10.7868/25000640230109

9. Satasheva ZM, Zhmykhov DV, Kudryasheva IA, Kolomin VV, Kokhanov AV, Devrishov RD. Hygienic assessment of water quality in water supply sources in the regions of the Astrakhan Region. Vestnik Novykh Meditsinskikh Tekhnologiy. 2023;17(3):68-72. (In Russ.) doi: 10.24412/2075-4094-2023-3-2-1

10. Bogdanova OG, Efimova NV, Bagaeva EE. Health risk assessment of the population of the Republic of Buryatia associated with increased nitrate and nitrite intake. Ekologiya Cheloveka (Human Ecology). 2022;(1):47-59. (In Russ.) doi: 10.17816/humeco83797

11. Feng W, Wang C, Lei X, Wang H, Zhang X. Distribution of nitrate content in groundwater and evaluation of potential health risks: A case study of rural areas in northern China. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(24):9390. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17249390

12. Su H, Kang W, Xu Y, Wang J. Assessing groundwater quality and health risks of nitrogen pollution in the Shenfu mining area of Shaanxi Province, northwest China. Expo Health. 2018;10:77-97. doi: 10.1007/s12403-017-0247-9

13. Zhou J, Gu B, Schlesinger WH, Ju X. Significant accumulation of nitrate in Chinese semi-humid croplands. Sci Rep. 2016;6:25088. doi: 10.1038/srep25088

14. Davydov AS, Sheptalov VB. Experience of irrigation of agricultural crops with sewage water on chernozem soil. Vestnik Altaiskogo Gosudarstvennogo Agrarnogo Universiteta. 2022;(6(212)):43-48. (In Russ.) doi: 10.53083/1996-4277-2022-212-6-43-48

15. Obuseng VC, Moshoeshoe MN, Nareetsile FM, Kwaambwa H, Maina I. Plant biomass as potential economic commodities for agricultural purposes. Front Chem. 2022;10:806772. doi: 10.3389/fchem.2022.806772

16. Parent LE. Vegetable response to added nitrogen and phosphorus using machine learning decryption and the N/P ratio. Horticulturae. 2024;10(4):356. doi: 10.3390/horticulturae10040356

17. Volkova EN. Influence of nitrogen and potassium nutrition levels on nitrate distribution in beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.) plants. Mezhdunarodnyy Nauchno-Issledovatel’skiy Zhurnal. 2024;(12(150)):16. (In Russ.) doi: 10.60797/IRJ.2024.150.27

18. Khujamshukurov N, Eshkobilov Sh, Kuchkarova D, Abdutolibov M. The effect of biohumus on the content of nitrates in cucumber plants and fruits. Universum: Khimiya i Biologiya. 2023;(1-1(103)):24-29. (In Russ.) doi: 10.32743/UniChem.2023.103.1.14832

19. Yurkova AA. [Nitrate content in vegetables.] Modern Science. 2021;(6-2):18-21. (In Russ.)

20. Aukhadiyeva EA, Daukaev RA, Afonkina SR, Allayarova GR, Fazlyeva AS, Adieva GF. [Research on the level of nitrates in vegetables and assessment of potential health risks.] Promyshlennost’ i Sel’skoe Khozyaystvo. 2023;(6(59)):49-52. (In Russ.)

21. Rymshina MV, Boikova OI, Yakushina VS. Food additives E-250 and E-251 at the ration of students. Uspekhi Sovremennoy Nauki. 2016;9(12):151-154. (In Russ.)

22. Hung JH, Zhang SM, Huang SL. Nitrate promotes the growth and the production of short-chain fatty acids and tryptophan from commensal anaerobe Veillonella dispar in the lactate-deficient environment by facilitating the catabolism of glutamate and aspartate. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2024;90(8):e0114824. doi: 10.1128/aem.01148-24

23. Liu H, Huang Y, Huang M, et al. From nitrate to NO: Potential effects of nitrate-reducing bacteria on systemic health and disease. Eur J Med Res. 2023;28(1):425. doi: 10.1186/s40001-023-01413-y

24. Schullehner J, Hansen B, Thygesen M, Pedersen CB, Sigsgaard T. Nitrate in drinking water and colorectal cancer risk: A nationwide population-based cohort study. Int J Cancer. 2018;143(1):73-79. doi: 10.1002/ijc.31306

25. Espejo-Herrera N, Gràcia-Lavedan E, Boldo E, et al. Colorectal cancer risk and nitrate exposure through drinking water and diet. Int J Cancer. 2016;139(2):334- 346. doi: 10.1002/ijc.30083

26. Fathmawati, Fachiroh J, Gravitiani E, Sarto, Husodo AH. Nitrate in drinking water and risk of colorectal cancer in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2017;80(2):120-128. doi: 10.1080/15287394.2016.1260508

27. Seyyedsalehi MS, Mohebbi E, Tourang F, Sasanfar B, Boffetta P, Zendehdel K. Association of dietary nitrate, nitrite, and N-nitroso compounds intake and gastrointestinal cancers: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Toxics. 2023;11(2):190. doi: 10.3390/toxics11020190

28. Mehantiev II. Health risks for the population of the Voronezh Region related to drinking water quality. Zdorov’e Naseleniya i Sreda Obitaniya. 2020;(4(325)):37-42. (In Russ.) doi: 10.35627/2219-5238/2020-325-4-37-42

29. Enin AV. The influence of chemical environmental pollution on the medical and demographic situation in the Voronezh Region. Sanitarnyy Vrach. 2024;(5):375-383. (In Russ.) doi: 10.33920/med-08-2405-05

30. Mekhantiev II. Review of research in the field of hygiene safety of recreational and drinking water use of the population of the Top Don basin. Sanitarnyy Vrach. 2020;(2):63-72. (In Russ.) doi: 10.33920/med-08-2002-08

31. Klepikov OV, Khatuaev RO, Istomin AV, Rumyantseva LA. Regional features of food standards and health risks associated with chemical contamination of food. Gigiena i Sanitariya. 2016;95(11):1086-1091. (In Russ.) doi: 10.18821/0016-9900-2016-95-11-1086-1091