Absorption and accumulation of cadmium from cereal grains

Abstract: Cadmium (Cd) is a potentially toxic trace element. Cereal grains contribute one-third to one-half of the Cd exposure via the diet. Among cereal grains, wheat generally contains the highest Cd concentration and the bran and germ fractions contain more Cd than the endosperm. An increase in the consumption of unrefined grains may cause an increase in the body burden of Cd if an increase in the exposure to Cd via the diet leads directly to increased Cd absorption and accumulation. However, there is evidence that certain factors may reduce the availability of Cd for absorption from the diet.The purposes of these studies were to refine an atomic absorption spectrometric method for measuring the accumulation of Cd from diets with low, naturally occuring concentrations of Cd, to evaluate the extent to which Cd is accumulated from different milling fractions of wheat and from different cereal grains, and to determine to what extent the presence of certain minerals and mineral-binding factors in the diet and the iron (Fe) status of the individual affect Cd accumulation from cereal grain diets.The results of the method studies showed that the amount of Cd in the liver and kidneys of rats after six weeks on different diets and the retention of 109Cd in these organs three weeks after the ingestion of 109Cd-labelled test meals of the diets were in agreement on the fractional and total accumulation of Cd from the diets.To a first approximation, the accumulation of Cd in the liver and kidneys in rats appears to be the product of the separate effects of the concentration of Cd in the diet which is available for absorption and the Fe status of the rats.The Cd concentration in grains varied by a factor of five between whole wheat and rye and the amounts of Cd accumulated in rats from diets with whole grains were nearly proportional to the Cd concentrations in the grains.The fractional accumulation of Cd was lower in rats given diets with whole grains or wheat fractions high in fiber and phytic acid than in rats fed endosperm wheat diets. This lower fractional Cd accumulation did not compensate for the high Cd concentrations in whole wheat and wheat bran.The fractional accumulation of Cd in the liver of rats is inversely related to their Fe status. The fractional Cd accumulation in the liver of rats with low Fe status was as much as ten times that in rats with high Fe status. The Cd accumulation in the kidneys appears to be even more sensitive to Fe status.The accumulation of Cd in human placenta supports these conclusions. Women who eat diets with less cereal grain fiber and who also maintain their Fe stores during pregnancy generally accumulate less Cd in the placenta than those who eat more grain fiber and/or have lower Fe status.On the basis of these results, it is recommended that as much as possible of the dietary fiber from cereal grains should derive from grains with low Cd concentrations. It is also imperative that the diet provide sufficient Fe and other nutrients to promote Fe status and thereby limit Cd accumulation.