Geophagic clay materials from Nigeria: a potential source of heavy metals and human health implications in mostly women and children who practice it

Geophagy is a common practice among certain cultural groups especially women in some rural communities in Nigeria. The safety of eating such clays in terms of their heavy metal composition has not been ascertained, neither is the link between them and disease conditions established in geophagists. The analysis of field survey data reveals that the majority (about 90 %) of the women did not go beyond secondary school education. The geology of an area has a direct influence on the chemical composition of the soils. Therefore, this research was carried out to determine the mineralogical and the heavy metal content of some geophagic clay materials from Nigeria. All the geophagic clay materials are hydrated silicates of either Al, (Na and Ca), (Al and Mg), or/and (Mg and Fe). The concentration levels of Na, Al, Ca, Fe, Mg, Cu, and Zn are tolerable and apparently could serve as a veritable source of mineral nutrients deficient in the human body. An assessment of the level of contamination of heavy metals on the basis of the index of geo-accumulation (Igₑₒ) shows that Cr, Cu, Zn, Co, and Ni (all with Igₑₒ 5), and are moderately to strongly contaminated by Pb and Sb (Igₑₒ = 2–3). In terms of health risk assessment, the presence of heavy metals such as As, Cd, Pb, Se, and Sb with a health risk index (HRI) >1, renders the geophagic clays unsafe for human consumption. Similarly, Al, Fe, and Na are in excess in the clay (HRI ⋙ 1) posing serious human health risks. Thus, the ingestion of geophagic clay materials by pregnant women and children when it contains heavy metals like Pb, As, Cd, Se, and Sb poses the risk of some medical disorders and should therefore be considered a public health problem. Since geophagic practice will persist despite civilization, we advocate finding ways of reducing heavy metal pollutants in geophagic clays through suitable remediation technology.