Effect of boiling and grilling on some heavy metal residues in crabs and shrimps from the Mediterranean Coast at Damietta region with their probabilistic health risk assessment

[Display omitted] •Boiling significantly reduced cadmium in both crabs (33.3 %) and shrimps (58.8 %) and lead in shrimps (60 %).•Grilling significantly reduced lead in crabs (35.6 %) and cadmium in shrimps (61.5 %) samples.•Heavy metals residues in the majority of tested samples exceeded their legal limits•There were public health risks from eating crabs and shrimps based on hazard indices. The goal of the current research was to study the effect of cooking on the residual contents of toxic heavy metals in crabs (12−14 cm CW) and shrimps (25–35/pound) samples widely consumed in Mansoura city, Egypt, along with assessment of public health risks associated with consumption of these crustaceans contaminated with such metals. The atomic absorption spectrophotometer detected arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in all tested samples by different levels, but the majority of samples contained heavy metals by levels exceeded the Egyptian MPLs. Our results showed that cooking of crustaceans either by boiling or grilling effectively reduced heavy metals contents. The results of health risk assessment indicated that the consumption of crabs and shrimps marketed in Egypt may carry potential health risks for consumers. Although cooking effectively reduced heavy metals in crabs and shrimps, the non-carcinogenic risks still present in this foods and couldn’t be totally eliminated. Therefore, in order to reduce the heavy metals content of the crustaceans, in addition to applying efficient cooking processes such as boiling and grilling, stringent control measures should be followed to avoid contamination of crustaceans with toxic heavy metals and to confirm that their concentrations didn’t overdo their legal limits.