Determination of Potassium Bromate content in Selected Bread Samples in Gwagwalada Abuja Nigeria

Background:
Potassium bromate (KBrO3) is a nephrotoxic and carcinogenic substance used in food and cosmetics industry, and also found in drinking water as a by-product of disinfection. Despite the ban placed on the use of potassium bromate as bread-enhancer in Nigeria, it is commonly used by bakers to increase bread volume and texture. This study was aimed at determining the potassium bromate content of bread consumed in the Gwagwalada area council of Abuja, Nigeria, and evaluating the level of dietary exposure of this community to potassium bromate. The maximum concentration of potassium bromate allowed in bread by the US Food and Drug Agency (FDA) is
0.02μg/g (0.02mg/kg).
Methods
: Quantitative determination of the level of potassium bromate in bread samples was done using spectrophotometric method that is based on the redox reaction between bromate and promethazine hydrochloride in an acidic medium. The absorbance of the product was read at 515nm. The qualitative test was performed directly on a portion of each bread sample using 2ml of 0.01M promethazine and 0.6ml of 12Mhydrochloric acid. The change in colour of each bread sample to pink indicates the presence of potassium bromate
Results:
The 20 bread samples analyzed contain potassium bromate. The concentration of KBrO
3
in the sampled bread is between 3.6µg/gand 9.2µg/g. The quantity of KBrO
3
in each bread sample correlates with the degree of pink colour obtained in the qualitative test.
Conclusion:
All the sampled bread had potassium bromate, in concentration above safe level for human consumption, therefore bread consumers and bakers are at risk of exposure to potassium bromate with health implications. The need for continuous surveillance and enforcement of the ban on use of potassium bromate in baking industry in Nigeria is recommended