Introduction: This study aims to quantify the concentrations of Cu, Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, As and Cd in paddy soil and water and assess their potential dermal health risk to the farmers at Kampung Sawah Sempadan, Malaysia. Methods: 72 water samples and 72 soil samples were collected and analysed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). 117 respondents were interviewed using a questionnaire to obtain the exposure information for dermal health risk assessments. Results: All elements in water did not exceed the recommended concentration by Malaysia National Water Quality Standard (NWQS) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Nevertheless, the maxi- mum concentration of As (31.49 mg/kg) in paddy soil exceeded the Dutch Target Value for soil protection (29 mg/ kg). There was no significant chronic non-carcinogenic health risk for farmers working in the paddy soil and water (HQ
This study aimed to determine the heavy metals (lead, cadmium, and chromium) concentration in lipsticks of different price categories sold in the Malaysian market and evaluate the potential health risks due to daily ingestion of heavy metals in lipsticks. A total of 374 questionnaires were distributed to the female staff in a public university in Malaysia in order to obtain information such as brand and price of the lipsticks, body weight, and frequency and duration of wearing lipstick. This information was important for the calculation of hazard quotient (HQ) in health risk assessment. The samples were extracted using a microwave digester and analyzed using Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). The concentrations of lead, cadmium, and chromium in lipsticks ranged from 0.77 to 15.44 mg kg(-1), 0.06-0.33 mg kg(-1), and 0.48-2.50 mg kg(-1), respectively. There was a significant difference of lead content in the lipsticks of different price categories. There was no significant non-carcinogenic health risk due to the exposure of these heavy metals through lipstick consumption for the prolonged exposure of 35 years (HQ < 1).
Pesticides application is essential in protecting crops and increases their productivity. However, this causes the pesticide residues to contaminate the crops and their surrounding environment that will eventually lead to exposure to human being. There is very little understanding on the human health effects of pesticides, thus many studies are being carried out for this purpose. In conjunction to this, there are various analytical methods on multi-residue pesticides analysis that have been developed over the years in various samples. This review provides an overview of the reported concentration of pesticides, the extraction and determination techniques of pesticides in environmental samples and the potential health effects they imposed on human in Malaysia from 2007 to 2017.
Introduction: Tanjung Karang is a paddy growing town in Selangor, Malaysia. The paddy farmers in Tanjung Karang were using pesticides to control pests from invading the crops during agricultural activities with limited knowledge of its deleterious effects on their health. Objective: This study aims to (i) determine the respiratory health symptoms of paddy farmers due to occupational exposure of commonly used pesticides through inhalation and (ii) assess correlations between climatological conditions and the concentrations of pesticides in personal air samples among paddy farmers in Tanjung Karang, Malaysia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the occupational exposures to pesticides among 83 paddy farmers in Kampung Sawah Sempadan. The data were collected with face-to-face interviews with the farmers based on a set of questionnaire. Results: The self-reported respiratory health symptoms of paddy farmers were as follows: breathing difficulty (16.9%), chest pain (15.7%), cough (41.0%), phlegm (39.8%), and wheezing (18.1%). Simple logistic regressions analysis indicated that exposure to azoxystrobin, buprofezin, chlorantraniliprole, fipronil, isoprothiolane, pretilachlor, propiconazole, tricyclazole and trifloxystrobin were contributing factors that affect self-reported respiratory health symptoms in this study. Spearman’s correlation coefficient test stated that the concentrations of chlorantraniliprole, fipronil and pymetrozine were affected by wind speed and temperature. Conclusion: The information obtained in this study is useful to understand the exposure of pesticides among paddy farmers and useful for risk management in the agricultural community.
Introduction: The increased use of mobile phones has increased the mobile base stations (MBS) deployment. While understanding of radiation protection is growing among the public, questions regarding early-life exposure to ra- diofrequency radiation (RFR) from MBS in children are of importance as to whether it will raise the chances of developing chronic diseases during adulthood. Taking into account the sitting location of MBS, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the chromosomal DNA damage in buccal mucosal cells between school children exposed to RFR emitted from base station antennas. Method: This is a comparative cross-sectional study in which two group of school children were sampled i.e. exposed groups are children whose school located near MBS (200 meters); un- exposed groups are children whose school located distant far from the MBS (>200 meters). Digital RF Analyzer was used to measure RFR at the school surrounding. Buccal mucosa cells from the oral cavity were sampled to examine the level of micronuclei (MN) frequencies. Results: This study found that the densities of the RFR energy differed in range. Although all measurements showed the RFR reading below the acceptable exposure level, there were still sig- nificant variations at each location assessed. Statistically, the MN frequency is significantly different when compared to the exposed and non-exposed group. Conclusion: To understand the mechanism of health effects from exposure to low-level RFR emited from MBS, further study should consider environmental factors influencing MBS sitting on RFR emission, as well as examining the health effects into molecular levels.
Repeated applications of animal manure as fertilizer are normal agricultural practices that may release veterinary antibiotics and hormones into the environment from treated animals. Broiler manure samples and their respective manure-amended agricultural soil samples were collected in selected locations in the states of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka in Malaysia to identify and quantify veterinary antibiotic and hormone residues in the environment. The samples were analyzed using ultrasonic extraction followed by solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The broiler manure samples were found to be contaminated with at least six target analytes, namely, doxycycline, enrofloxacin, flumequine, norfloxacin, trimethoprim and tylosin. These analytes were detected in broiler manure samples with maximum concentrations reaching up to 78,516 μg kg(-1) dry weight (DW) (doxycycline). For manure-amended agricultural soil samples, doxycycline and enrofloxacin residues were detected in every soil sample. The maximum concentration of antibiotic detected in soil was 1331 μg kg(-1) DW (flumequine). The occurrence of antibiotics and hormones in animal manure at high concentration poses a risk of contaminating agricultural soil via fertilization with animal manure. Some physico-chemical parameters such as pH, total organic carbon (TOC) and metal content played a considerable role in the fate of the target veterinary antibiotics and progesterone in the environment. It was suggested that these parameters can affect the adsorption of pharmaceuticals to solid environmental matrices.
The fate of nine veterinary antibiotics and one hormone in broiler manure during 40 days of composting was investigated. Results showed that composting can significantly reduce the concentration of veterinary antibiotics and hormone in broiler manure, making application of the post-compost manure safer for soil application. More than 99% of the nine antibiotics and one hormone involved in this study were removed from the manure during 40 days of composting. The target antibiotics and hormone showed short half-life in broiler manure composting, ranging from 1.3 to 3.8 days. The relationship between the physico-chemical properties of soil, manure and manure compost and its veterinary antibiotic and hormone concentration was statistically evaluated by Pearson correlation matrix. The concentration of veterinary antibiotics and hormone in manure compost was suggested to be affected by physico-chemical properties such as pH, temperature, total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and metal contents.
There is a paucity of information about the occurrence of microplastics (MPs) in edible fish tissues. Here, we investigated the potential presence of MPs in the excised organs (viscera and gills) and eviscerated flesh (whole fish excluding the viscera and gills) of four commonly consumed dried fish species (n = 30 per species). The MP chemical composition was then determined using micro-Raman spectroscopy and elemental analysis with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Out of 61 isolated particles, 59.0% were plastic polymers, 21.3% were pigment particles, 6.55% were non-plastic items (i.e. cellulose or actinolite), while 13.1% remained unidentified. The level of heavy metals on MPs or pigment particles were below the detection limit. Surprisingly, in two species, the eviscerated flesh contained higher MP loads than the excised organs, which highlights that evisceration does not necessarily eliminate the risk of MP intake by consumers. Future studies are encouraged to quantify anthropogenic particle loads in edible fish tissues.
Flood is a natural disaster cause by heavy rainfall and high tide phenomenon. In the event of flood, substantial amount of wastes tend to be moved away and washed with mud that cause the task of waste recovering extremely challenging. The objective of the study was to assess flood victims participation, duration and major problem arise during post flood waste clean-up activity together with respondent’s knowledge and psychological importance in the recovery process. Methods: A cross sectional survey using interview and self-administered questionnaire was conducted involving 150 flood victims in Kuala Krai, Kelantan, who were heavily affected by the recent flood. Results: Respondents participation in the clean-up process was high (N = 126, 84%). Average 1 to 3 months were taken for the clean-up activity. Majority of the respondents had low and moderate satisfaction on the cleaning service provided by the authority (N = 84, 56%). Major problem arises from the past flood waste clean up activity was the biased waste removal process (N = 124, 83%), victims have to find alternative ways for disposal (N = 108, 72%) and the temporary disposal site were located near to the housing area that creates discomfort (N = 105, 70%). The correlation test obtained significant relationship between knowledge and education level (X2 = 0.203, p=0.013). But no significant relationship was obtained between knowledge with gender, age, monthly income, duration of clean-up process, respondents participation and satisfaction. Conclusion: Disaster debris management and disposal is critically important to support the victims in their recovery process.
Tanjung Karang, Selangor, is widely known for its paddy cultivation activity and hosts the third largest paddy field in Malaysia. Pesticides contamination in agriculture fields has become an unavoidable problem, as pesticides are used to increase paddy productivity and reduce plant disease. Human exposure to agrichemicals is common and could results in both acute and chronic health effects, such as acute and chronic neurotoxicity. This study aims to determine the concentrations of commonly used pesticides (azoxystrobin, buprofezin, chlorantraniliprole, difenoconazole, fipronil, imidacloprid, isoprothiolane, pretilachlor, propiconazole, pymetrozine, tebuconazole, tricyclazole, and trifloxystrobin) in personal air samples and their associated health risks among paddy farmers. Eighty-three farmers from Tangjung Karang, Selangor were involved in this study. A solid sorbent tube was attached to the farmer's breathing zone with a clip, and an air pump was fastened to the belt to collect personal air samples. Pesticides collected in the XAD-2 resin were extracted with acetone, centrifuged, concentrated via nitrogen blowdown and reconstituted with 1mL of 3:1 ultrapure water/HPLC-grade methanol solution. The extract was analyzed using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). The target compounds were detected with a maximum concentration reaching up to 462.5ngm-3 (fipronil). The hazard quotient (HQ) was less than 1 and the hazard index (HI) value was 3.86×10-3, indicating that the risk of pesticides related diseases was not significant. The lifetime cancer risk (LCR) for pymetrozine was at an acceptable level (LCR<10-6) with 4.10×10-8. The results reported in this study can be beneficial in terms of risk management within the agricultural community.
Agricultural activities have been arising along with the use of pesticides. The use of pesticides can impact not only on vector or other pest but also able to harm human health. Pesticide may leach from the irrigation of plant into the groundwater and in surface water. These waters could be sources of drinking water in a pesticides polluted area. This study aims to determine the occurrence pesticides in surface water and pesticides removal efficiency in a conventional drinking water treatment plant (DWTP) and the potential health risk to consumers. The study was conducted in Tanjung Karang, Selangor, Malaysia. Thirty river water samples and eighteen water samples from DWTP were collected. The water samples were extracted using solid phase extraction (SPE) before injected to the ultra-high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Five hundreds and ten respondents were interviewed using questionnaires to obtain information for health risk assessments. The results showed that propiconazole had the highest mean concentration (4493.1 ng/L) while pymetrozine had the lowest mean concentration (1.3 ng/L) in river water samples. The pesticides removal efficiencies in the conventional DWTP were 77% (imidacloprid), 86% (propiconazole and buprofezin), 88% (tebuconazole) and 100% (pymetrozine, tricyclazole, chlorantraniliprole, azoxystrobin and trifloxystrobin), respectively. The hazard quotients (HQs) and hazard index (HI) for all target pesticides were <1, indicating there was no significant chronic non-carcinogenic health risk due to consumption of the drinking water. Conventional DWTP was not able to completely remove four pesticide; thus, advanced treatment systems need to be considered to safeguard the health of the community in future.
So far, several classes of digesting solutions have been employed to extract microplastics (MPs) from biological matrices. However, the performance of digesting solutions across different temperatures has never been systematically investigated. In the first phase of the present study, we measured the efficiency of different oxidative agents (NaClO or H2O2), bases (NaOH or KOH), and acids [HCl or HNO3; concentrated and diluted (5%)] in digesting fish tissues at room temperature (RT, 25°C), 40, 50, or 60°C. In the second phase, the treatments that were efficient in digesting the biological materials (>95%) were evaluated for their compatibility with eight major plastic polymers (assessed through recovery rate, Raman spectroscopy analysis, and morphological changes). Among the tested solutions, NaClO, NaOH, and diluted acids did not result in a satisfactory digestion efficiency at any of the temperatures. The H2O2 treatment at 50°C efficiently digested the biological materials, although it decreased the recovery rate of nylon-6 (NY6) and nylon-66 (NY66) and altered the colour of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) fragments. Similarly, concentrated HCl and HNO3 treatments at RT fully digested the fish tissues, but also fully dissolved NY6 and NY66, and reduced the recovery rate of most or all of the polymers, respectively. Potassium hydroxide solution fully eliminated the biological matrices at all temperatures. However, at 50 and 60°C, it degraded PET, reduced the recovery rate of PET and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and changed the colour of NY66. According to our results, treating biological materials with a 10% KOH solution and incubating at 40°C was both time and cost-effective, efficient in digesting biological materials, and had no impact on the integrity of the plastic polymers. Furthermore, coupling this treatment with NaI extraction created a promising protocol to isolate MPs from whole fish samples.
Ambient polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) originate predominantly from fuel combustion of motor vehicles and have the potential to affect human health. However, there is insufficient knowledge regarding serum PAHs health risks among the Malaysian population. This study aims to compare PAH concentrations, distributions, correlations, and health risks in 202 blood serum samples drawn from residents living in high-traffic volume areas (Kuala Lumpur) and low-traffic volume areas (Hulu Langat) in Malaysia. Solid phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were employed to extract and analyze blood serum samples. Questionnaires were distributed to obtain sociodemographic and contributing factors of serum PAHs. The mean total PAHs concentration in serum of the Kuala Lumpur group was 54.44 ng g-1 lipids, double the Hulu Langat group's concentration (25.7 ng g-1 lipids). Indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene (IcP) and acenaphthene (ACP) feature the most and least abundant compounds in both study groups. The mean concentrations of IcP and ACP in the Kuala Lumpur and Hulu Langat groups were 26.8 vs 12.68 and 0.27 vs 0.14 ng g-1 lipids, respectively. High-molecular-weight PAHs (HMW-PAHs) composed 85% of serum total PAHs in both groups. Significant correlations were found (i) between the individual serum PAH congeners (p
The interplay of physical, social, and economic factors during the pandemic adversely affected the mental health of healthy people and exacerbated pre-existing mental disorders. This study aimed to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of the general population in Malaysia. A cross-sectional study involving 1246 participants was conducted. A validated questionnaire consisting of the level of knowledge and practice of precautionary behaviors, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (DASS), and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) was used as an instrument to assess the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results revealed that most participants possessed a high level of knowledge about COVID-19 and practiced wearing face masks daily as a precautionary measure. The average DASS scores were beyond the mild to moderate cut-off point for all three domains. The present study found that prolonged lockdowns had significantly impacted (p < 0.05), the mental health of the general population in Malaysia, reducing quality of life during the pandemic. Employment status, financial instability, and low annual incomes appeared to be risk factors (p < 0.05) contributing to mental distress, while older age played a protective role (p < 0.05). This is the first large-scale study in Malaysia to assess the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the general population.