Aluminium content of clarified apple juices

The diet is the main source of trace elements and exposure to dietary trace elements has a direct impact on human health. Due to the increased awareness of healthy lifestyle the consumption and relevance of apple juice in human nutrition is rising. Aluminum is not considered to be an essential element in men. The exposure of aluminum has been correlated with various human pathologies, such as encephalopathy/dialysis dementia, Parkinson disease and Alzheimer’s disease. The permissible daily dose of aluminum for an adult is quite high, namely 60 mg. Aluminum enters the human organism mainly via food stuff and drinking water. In food Aluminum occurs naturally, due to its addition as food additive, and through contact with aluminum containing devices used during food preparation and storage. Furthermore aluminum being a rock-forming element represents an important geochemical parameter for traceability. Thus the determination of aluminum in commonly consumed food stuff and beverages is of concern. No limit concentration for aluminum is given in the Codex Alimentarius Austriacus. Clarified apple juice samples commercially available in Croatia and Austria were analyzed for their aluminum content. Prior to quantification by inductively coupled plasma – optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) the juices were diluted 1:20 with 2% HNO3. The aluminum contents of the apple juice samples found were in the range of 0.09 up to 2.1 µg/L.