Contamination of the terrestrial food chain by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and related human health risks: A systematic review

Objective: Collect scientific evidence of the presence of PFAS in diverse food and edible resources along with the related risks to human health, pursuing the following objectives: determination of the level of terrestrial food chain contamination; determination of the related human health risk. Data source: Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science databases. 4952 papers published from January 2013 to August 2024 were retrieved and at the end of the selection process, 40 studies were included. Inclusion criteria: Clear description of the methodology used for PFAS detection; relevance to food or species, or their parts, intended for human consumption; assessment of human health risk. Results: Higher number of studies were from China, 17, and Italy with 6 studies. The most detected PFAS were PFOA and PFOS. PFOS was detected at a maximum concentration of about 6 ng/g and 2.5 ng/g, in the edible muscles of cow and pork, respectively. Among animal products, eggs were the most contaminated with PFOA concentration higher than 100 ng/g. For PFBS and PFOS the maximum detected concentration ranged from about 35 ng/g up to about 45 ng/g. In vegetables, the highest number of per- and polyfluoroalkyl were detected in root, fruit, and leaf vegetables with maximum concentration up to about 60 ng/g as for PFBA. The highest Daily Intake (DI) values were detected in toddlers, whereas the lowest in the adult population. Concerning total diet, DI related to total PFAS ranged from about 30 (ng/kg bw/day) up to about 90 (ng/kg bw/day). Conclusions: The widespread presence and health risks of PFAS, along with the need for new strategies to reduce contamination in food chains, were emphasized. Gaps in legislation and limits of PFAS detection methods were also noted.