Total mercury, methylmercury and ethylmercury in marine fish and marine fishery products sold in Seoul, Korea.
In 2009, a survey of 177 samples of fish and fishery products from the markets in Seoul was carried out to investigate total mercury and organic mercury (methylmercury) concentrations and to establish a correlation, if any, between total and organic mercury levels. Concentrations of total and organic mercury in canned tuna ranged 0.001-2.581 and 0.003-1.307 mg/kg, respectively; those for fish, such as cod or salmon, ranged 0.012-2.529 and 0.021-0.507 mg/kg, respectively. Ethylmercury was not detected. More than 50% of total mercury in the samples existed as organic mercury. The correlation coefficients (r(2)) between total mercury and methylmercury concentrations of fish and fishery products found to have methylmercury were 0.844 and 0.976, respectively, which was statistically significant. There was a higher correlation in fishery products than in fish. Although there was no product in which mercury exceeded the standard set by the Food Code in 2008, with the exception of marlin steak, a processed food, which contained 1.307 mg/kg methylmercury. None exceeded the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) for mercury. Collectively, the results indicate that fish or fishery products marketed in Seoul, with the exception of marlin, have low levels of total or organic mercury and, thus, intake of these products is not a risk to public health.
a Seoul Metropolitan Government Research Institute of Public Health and Environment , Seoul 427-070 , Republic of Korea.
Ju-Sung
JS
Park
So-Young
SY
Jung
Yeo-Joon
YJ
Son
Su-Jeong
SJ
Choi
Mi-Sun
MS
Kim
Jeong-Gon
JG
Kim
So-Hyun
SH
Park
Sang-Me
SM
Lee
Young-Zoo
YZ
Chae
Min-Young
MY
Kim
D000818:Animals; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D005035:Ethylmercury Compounds / Q000032:analysis*; D005506:Food Contamination / Q000032:analysis*; D057230:Limit of Detection; D008386:Marine Biology; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds / Q000032:analysis*; D056910:Republic of Korea; D017747:Seafood / Q000032:analysis*
D005035:Ethylmercury Compounds; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D008628:Mercury
fish and fish products; heavy metals; mercury