Health risks to dietary neonicotinoids are low for Chinese residents based on an analysis of 13 daily-consumed foods

Neonicotinoid pesticide residues are ubiquitous in various foodstuffs and may adversely affect human health. We performed a nationwide survey of neonicotinoid residues in foodstuffs collected from Chinese markets and evaluated the risks of chronic and acute exposure in 1–6-year-old children and the general population. Among the 3406 samples of 13 commodities, 62.21% contained neonicotinoids with concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 1471.43 μg/kg, and 37.58% were simultaneously contaminated with 2–7 neonicotinoids. Acetamiprid, thiamethoxam, and imidacloprid were the top three detected neonicotinoids (22.14–34.32% of samples). Chronic and acute cumulative risk assessment using the relative potency factor method revealed that exposure to neonicotinoids was within established safety limits (below 1); however, the acute risk was much greater than the chronic risk (chronic hazard index range, 1.40 × 10−6–2.33 × 10−3; acute hazard index range, 1.75 × 10−6–0.15). A relatively greater acute cumulative risk was found for children with respect to consumption of grapes, mandarins, and cowpeas (acute hazard index range, 0.11–0.15). Despite the low health risk, the potential health hazards of neonicotinoids should be continuously assessed, given their ubiquity and cumulative effects.