Bioaccumulation of Heavy Metals in Vegetables: A Threat to Human Health

Rapid growth in urbanization and industrialization has increased the levels of heavy metals in the environment and consequently in the food chain. Consumption of contaminated food by human beings and other animals may pose a serious threat to their health. Vegetables are a major portion of the human diet, providing microand macronutrients, fibers, antioxidants, vitamins, etc. Vegetables are often grown in suburban areas commonly contaminated with heavy metals. Depending on the nature of vegetables, some of them have a great potential to accumulate higher concentrations of heavy metals than others. The present review describes the uptake and accumulation of heavy metals in vegetables, their role in remediation of heavy metals from contaminated areas and the negative impact of heavy metals on vegetables and human health through their consumption. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________