Occurrence and risk characterization of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of edible oils by the Margin of Exposure (MOE) approach

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are carcinogenic and genotoxic chemicals naturally derived from food during heat processing. Edible oil is one of the most frequently contaminated foods. Many researches were recently conducted to determine the contents of PAHs and to assess their risks, but there have been no studies characterising risks of PAHs by calculating Margin of Exposure (MOE) of total PAHs instead of toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) concept in Korea. To analyze the 4 PAHs including benz(a)anthracene (BaA), chrysene (CHR), benzo(b)fluoranthene (BbF), and benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) simultaneously, gas chromatography with mass spectrometry was optimized. Total 303 edible oils were investigated and contaminated by 4 PAHs at ND–12.91 ng g −1 . The MOEs were estimated by PAHs contents, daily consumption, and were over 10,000. The risk of PAHs of edible oils in Korea was of low concern. Furthermore, the MOEs of the estimated equivalent BaP calculated by TEFs of other 3 PAHs were higher than those of mixed PAHs, which would be overestimated.