Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 126 (2024) 105907 Available online 13 December 2023 0889-1575/© 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Health risk assessment of three preservatives in beverage, cake, ketchup, and therapeutic products available in Bangladesh using the new validated HPLC-PDA method Suman Das a, * , Mohammad Nasir Uddin b , Abu Saleh Mohammad Khaled b , Mohammad Raful Omar Khan Noyon b , Dipankar Chakraborty a , Mohammad Mostafa a , Md. Samrat Mohay Menul Islam a , Sreebash Chandra Bhattacharjee a , Sujan Kanti Das a , Monir Uddin b a Bangladesh Council of Scientifc and Industrial Research (BCSIR) Chattogram Laboratories, Chattogram 4220, Bangladesh b Department of Chemistry, University of Chittagong, Chittagong 4331, Bangladesh A R T I C L E INFO Keywords: Preservatives Benzoate Sorbate Methylparaben Soft Drinks Herbal Pharmaceuticals Chromatographic HPLC Health Risk ABSTRACT A simple, rapid, and sensitive HPLC-PDA method was established and validated to determine three preservatives in various foodstuffs and therapeutics. Chromatography was performed with a Shim-pack GIST C18 column (4.6 × 250 mm × 5 µm) at a wavelength of 235 nm. Ammonium acetate (50 mM), acetonitrile, and methanol with a ratio of 45:15:40 were used as mobile phase, and the fow rate was 1.00 mL/min. The proposed method was validated as per ICH guidelines. The calibration curves were linear (r 2 ≥ 0.999) for benzoate, sorbate, and methylparaben within the working range of 5–80 mg/L. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantifcation (LOQ) were between 0.198–0.553 mg/L and 0.653–1.82 mg/L, respectively. Only one sample (S-21) exceeded the maximum permissible limit even though benzoate was found in 76.9% of beverages. The amount of sorbate in cakes exceeded the maximum limit (1000 mg/L) in 77.8% of samples. Benzoate was detected in all herbal and ketchup products, but sixteen (16) herbal and three (3) ketchup products exceeded the maximum permissible limit. All the tested food products were free from methylparaben, and none of the drugs contained sorbate. Recoveries of preservatives from spiked samples ranged from 94.7% to 109%. Chronic exposure to benzoate in tested herbal formulations may lead to severe health problems for body weight groups < 30 kg. 1. Introduction The modern and vibrant lifestyle closely intertwines with processed foods, and ensuring the safety of these products is paramount. Having access to healthy food promotes regional economic growth. Pre- servatives have been widely used in processed foods, juices, herbal formulations, pharmaceutical formulations, and cosmetic products with other additives to stop or signifcantly slow down decay (loss of quality, edibility, or benefcial value) caused by microorganisms, chemical changes, heat, or humidity (Shoeb et al., 2022, Amirpour et al., 2015). Preservatives are applied to the fnished product to remove or limit the overgrowth of undesired biocides or retard the chemical breakdown of the product due to oxidation and UV light (Kregiel, 2015, Hossain et al., 2016). The highest-quality preservatives are stable, harmonious with the other components, effective against most microorganisms at low concentrations and over-inclusive pH levels, nontoxic, nonirritating, and non-sensitizing (Petanovska-Ilievska et al., 2017). Foods, drinks, medi- cines, and personal care products may contain benzoates, sorbates, or methylparaben as preservatives (Jan-E et al., 2017, Saad et al., 2005). These preservatives are codifed as E210–E213, E200–E203, and E214–E219, respectively (Akter et al., 2017, Petanovska-Ilievska et al., 2017). Benzoic acid and its salts inhibit the growth of yeast, mold, and some bacteria (Sultana et al., 2016, Hasan et al., 2013, WHO, 2000). Acidic foods, beverages, and liquid medicines are preserved with benzoic acid or benzoates (G¨ oren et al., 2015, Berger and Berger, 2013). Conversion of benzoate into benzene has been an issue of concern because of its carcinogenic characteristics (Salviano dos Santos et al., 2015). A Center * Correspondence to: BCSIR Chattogram Laboratories, Baluchara, Hathazari Road, Chattogram Cantonment, Chattogram 4220, Bangladesh. E-mail address: sumanbcsir@gmail.com (S. Das). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Food Composition and Analysis journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jfca https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2023.105907 Received 3 September 2023; Received in revised form 29 November 2023; Accepted 6 December 2023