Measurement of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Hot and Cold Smoked Fish: Chemistry, Analytic Method, and Carcinogenic Risk Analysis

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a crucial group of chemical substances of paramount environmental significance, resulting from incomplete combustion and found at high levels in thermally processed foods, notably in smoked fish and shellfish products. The amount of 16 PAHs was determined in three types of commonly consumed well-done hot and cold smoked fish in North Iran. The concentration of 16 kinds of PAHs in smoked fish samples ranged from 0.033 to 1.958 in cold-smoked fish and 0.188 to 2.920 μg/kg in hot smoked fish, respectively. BAP (benzo[a]pyrene) levels observed in samples 0.387 and 0.294 μg/kg in cold and hot smoked fish were lower than the maximum acceptable level set by the European Commission (No. 835/2011), 2 μg/kg. The concentration of Fluorathene (FLU) in hot smoked fish (2.920 μg/kg) was higher than the European Standard (2 μg/kg). The 95th percentile incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) of PAH compounds in hot and cold smoked fish samples was 3.69E-7 and 5.41E-7, lower than the maximum acceptable level of risk (10-4). Based on the results of a health risk assessment using a hazard quotient (HQs), Chronic daily intakes (CDI), and Margin of Exposure (MOE) approach through a total diet study, exposure to ΣPAH4 and ΣPAH8 from smoked products is considered to pose low concern for the adult population in North Iran. Consequently, this study suggests that consumption of cold-smoked fish does not pose significant health risks to consumers, but consumption of hot-smoked fish may pose a probable health hazard.