Risk Assessment of Mycotoxins in Stored Maize Grains Consumed by Infants and Young Children in Nigeria

Maize is a major complimentary food for infants (0-4years) and young children (5-12years) in Nigeria. In this study, we assessed the risk of exposure of infants and young children (IYC) to some major mycotoxins in stored maize grains from five agro-ecological zones of Nigeria. The probable daily intake approach was employed to determine exposure to five mycotoxins while the margin of exposure (MOE) and population at risk of primary hepatocellular carcinoma approaches were used to characterize the risk of consuming aflatoxin contaminated maize. Infants and young children in the Derived Savannah zone are more exposed to aflatoxins, ochratoxins, and zearalenone while those in the Northern Guinea Savanna zone are mainly exposed to deoxynivalenol and fumonisins. The mean national MOE for infants and children were 0.12 and 0.3 respectively while the risk of developing primary liver cancer was estimated at 152.7 and 61.1 cancer/year/100,000 population of infants and children, respectively. Infants and young children consuming mycotoxin contaminated maize in Nigeria are therefore vulnerable to the adverse health effects. Mycotoxin contamination of maize is still a challenge in Nigeria; mitigation efforts should target the value chain and stricter tolerable limits should be enforced.