Aflatoxin M₁ in human breast milk in Shahrekord, Iran and association with dietary factors

ABSTRACT

This survey was conducted to determine the occurrence and levels of aflatoxin M₁ (AFM₁) in 250 breast milk samples of lactating mothers, obtained from urban and rural regions of Shahrekord, Iran. Moreover, the association between AFM₁ occurrence levels and dietary factors was assessed. AFM₁ analysis was carried out using the competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique for screening and high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC–FLD) for confirmatory purposes. The toxin was detected in 39 samples (15.6%), ranging from 11.1 to 39.3 ng/l, of which 8 samples (3.2%) had levels above the Iranian national standard limit (25 ng/l). AFM₁ occurrence and levels in breast milk samples obtained from rural regions were significantly higher (P ≤ 0.05) than those obtained from urban ones. It might be due to the different dietary patterns in these regions. It was found that dietary habits with more tendencies to consume bread, rice and non-alcoholic beer beverage significantly increased (P ≤ 0.05) the risk of AFM₁ occurrence in breast milk. In addition, higher consumption of bread, olive and traditional cream significantly increased (P ≤ 0.05) the levels of AFM₁ in breast milk samples. Further investigations should be performed to determine more precisely the association between AFM₁ occurrence and dietary factors and also the risk of infant exposure to this mycotoxin.

KEYWORDS:

• Aflatoxin M₁
• breast milk
• dietary factors
• Iran

Acknowledgement

This study was financially supported by Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran (project no. 1394-01-87-2578).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences: [grant number 1394-01-87-2578].