Proximate Composition and Concentrations of Some Essential Heavy Metals in Liver, Kidney and Tissue Muscle of Cow, Ram, and Goat in Lokoja, Kogi State, Nigeria

Nutritional qualities of consumer foods particularly, meat is of great importance in improving health of an individual. Hence, the objective of this study was to determine the proximate composition and concentrations of some essential heavy metals (Co, Se and B) in the liver, kidney and tissue muscle of cow, ram, and goat in Lokoja, Kogi State. Proximate analysis was done according to AOAC procedure. After sampling, the tissues were prepared for metal analysis by acid digestion method and read by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The result showed that moisture content ranged from 70.1% to 74.8%, ash content ranged from 1.1% to 3.8%, protein content 16.2 to 19.9%, fat content 4.7 to 8.8%, organic matter ranged from 96.2% to 99.1%, carbohydrate contents ranged from 0.2% to 0.9%, and dry matter content 25.5% to 29.8 %. Selenium ranged from 5.2 to 6.0 mg/kg, boron ranged from 0.1 to 0.3 mg/kg, and cobalt ranged from 1.5 to 6.0 mg/kg. The mean concentration of selenium and cobalt unlike boron exceeded permitted recommended level. Excessive level of essential elements can pose a threat to human health. Therefore, regular consumption of offal from the studied animals consumed in Lokoja may poses a health risk with respect to Se and Co. Sources of Se and Co need to be investigated to safeguard consumers from possible exposure to health hazards.