Determination of Synthetic Dyes in Various Food Samples of Iran's Market and their Risk Assessment of Daily Intake

THE AIM of this study was to measure the level of synthetic food dyes used in different foodstuffs of Iran's markets via ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatography diode array detector (Ion-Pair HPLC-DAD). The chronic daily intake (CDI), target hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) of synthetic dyes for Iranian population were calculated. Based on obtained results, from 74 foodstuff samples tested, only five synthetic dyes (Quinoline, Sunset yellow, Carmoisine, Allura Red and Brilliant Blue) were detected. Sunset yellow was the most commonly used synthetic colorant (45%). The highest concentration of synthetic colors were identified in fruit snacks (361 mgkg(-1)) followed by jelly product (161.9 mgkg(-1)), jelly powder (125.5 mgkg(-1)), ice products (104 mgL(-1)) and drinks (99.8 mgL(-1)). To the determine risk of exposure of Iranian consumers to five identified colors in all food product samples the CDI and THQ values were respectively lower than acceptable daily intake (ADI) recommended by WHO/FAO and one. Also, the HI values of all identified colors were lower than one, that did not represent a sever public health risk for synthetic color intake through assessed food samples in Iran's market. Nevertheless, the results highlight the importance of a more attention monitoring of these dyes by the public and food health authorities Iran.