Nigeria - 'Aflatoxin, Major Hazard to Human Health'

Minister for Health, Professor Eyitayo Lambo, has revealed that international apprehension has began on Aflatoxin contamination, which has been discovered to pose major health hazards to human and animal. Lambo made this known yesterday at the regional workshop on Mycotoxin Contamination of Agricultural Commodities and Processed food, organised by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), in collaboration with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). He expressed regretted that the toxicity of these compounds had caused severe health and economic problems in Africa, South-East Asia and China, where human exposure to high levels of Aflatoxin B1 is an important risk factor predisposing people to cancer of the liver. "Evidence of acute Aflatoxicosis in humans has been reported from many parts of the world, especially in developing countries. Recently, the Kenyan health authorities reported Aflatoxin-related toxicity that killed more than 100 people between May and mid-June 2004, after they ate maize meals contaminated with Aflatoxins. Studies have also shown that in Ghana, Togo and Benin, Aflatoxin is one of the reasons for the high rates of infant mortality recorded in these countries," he said. He said the disease is acquired through small-scale peasant farmers in Africa, who do not produce enough food and therefore experience limited availability of food supplies both in terms of quality and quantity. "To worsen the situation, clean seeds are often taken to the market to be sold, while damaged ones are kept at home to be eaten. This practice inadvertently increases the risk of exposing the local population to Aflatoxins and subsequent health complications.