Table 2.
Comparing the estimated total dietary exposure to contaminants and additives directly from microplastics in seafood
| Compound | Highest concentration in microplastics | Calculated intake from microplastics (pg/kg bw/day) | Total intake from the diet (pg/kg bw/day) | Ratio intake microplastic/total dietary intake (pg/kg bw/day) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contaminants | ||||
| Non-dioxin like PCBs | 2970 | 0.3 | – | – |
| EFSA, 2012 | – | – | 4300a | 0.007 |
| JECFA, 2016 | – | – | 1000a | 0.03 |
| PAHs | 44,800 | 4.5 | – | – |
| EFSA, 2008 | – | – | 28,800b | 0.02 |
| JECFA, 2006 | – | – | 4000c | 0.1 |
| DDT | 2100 | 0.2 | – | – |
| EFSA, 2006 | – | – | 5000d | 0.004 |
| JECFA, 1960 | – | – | 100,000,000j | 0.0000002 |
| Additives/monomers | ||||
| Bisphenol A | 200 | 0.02 | ||
| EFSA, 2015a | – | – | 130,000e | 0.00002 |
| FAO/WHO, 2011 | – | – | 400,000f | 0.000005 |
| PBDEs | 50 | 0.005 | – | – |
| EFSA, 2011 | – | – | 700g | 0.0007 |
| JECFA, 2006 | – | – | 185h | 0.003 |
| NP | 2500 | 0.3 | NAi | – |
| OP | 50 | 0.005 | NAi | – |
Reproduced with permission from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2017) and Lusher et al. [6]
PCBs polychlorinated biphenyls, PAHs polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, DDT dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, PBDEs polybrominated diphenyl ethers, NP nonylphenol, OP octylphenol
aLowest intake of six indicators of non-dioxin like PCBs, representing about 50% of all non-dioxin like PCBs
bMedian intake (EFSA, 2008)
cMean intake of benzo[a]pyrene (JECFA)
dLowest intake, DDT, and related compounds (EFSA, 2006)
eAverage intake adults (EFSA, 2015a)
fLowest intake FAO/WHO
gLowest intake, sum of BDE-47, BDE-209, BDE-153, and BDE-154 (EFSA, 2011)
hLowest intake JECFA
iNA: dietary intake not available from EFSA or JECFA
jProvisional tolerable daily intake (JECFA)