Arsenic Contamination: Food Toxicity and Local Perception

This study was performed based on local perception on arsenic toxicity with respect to socioeconomic status at the Achintanagar village in the southwestern part of Bangladesh. The questionnaire was distributed randomly at the local scale in the study area. It was found that the respondents are highly contaminated with arsenic and most of them have suffered from economic crisis and ignorance. Arsenic contamination and food poisoning concept has direct bearing on educational level which is emphasized on socioeconomic status. Correlation coefficient matrix had revealed that the whole aspects of socioeconomic component negatively correlated with arsenic toxicity for group one and two. Female participant were observed to be more unconscious than male respondents on food contamination through arsenic accumulation. Results showed that, most of the respondents continued to eat and practiced the sale of contaminated food in the community. It was observed that this practice is highly contagious for human and environmental health.