Research Progress on Contamination in Food and Harm of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are a new class of persistent organic pollutants, with bioaccumulation, long-distance migration and persistent pollution characteristics that have piqued public interest. This paper encapsulates the features of PBDEs, concludes that PBDEs pollution sources in food are primarily found in the atmosphere, soil, water and other environmental medium, analyzes the pollution status of PBDEs in drinking water, meat, eggs, aquatic products and vegetables, and then summarizes the toxicity and harm of PBDEs to human health in terms of thyroid, nervous system, liver and reproductive function. On this basis, this paper puts forward four specific measures to control PBDEs contamination in food, including the establishment of a PBDEs processing standard, the development of new brominated flame retardants, strengthening research on degradation methods of PBDEs, and the improvement of detection and analysis methods. Finally, the research direction of PBDEs is forecasted based on the existing research situation, in order to provide some guidance for the treatment of PBDEs pollution in food.