Background and purpose: Southern area of the Caspian Sea is an important resource of seafood products in Iran. One of the major factors affecting the health of seafood consumers is lead (Pb), due to its wide distribution and bio-accumulative property. In this study, all the studies, conducted during 2003-2016 on the amount of lead in white, mullet, and carp fish at the southeastern coast of the Caspian Sea were assessed.

Materials and methods: This meta-analysis used the data on 1242 muscle tissues of Rutilus frisii kutum, Liza auratus, Liza saliens, and Cyprinus carpio collected from the southern coast of the Caspian Sea. The level of lead concentration in samples was obtained from recently published articles in valid scientific journals. Then, dietary consumption risk and consumption limit of these fishes were assessed.

Results: In this study, mean concentrations of lead in fish muscle tissues were higher compared to levels accepted by various various national. However, daily and weekly absorption of this element through fish consumption was lower than the dose permitted by the Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization. It was found that 0.23, 0.43, and 0.28 kg/day of Caspian white fish, mullet, and carp for adults, and 0.048, 0.09, and 0.58 kg/day of the these fishes can be consumed by children, respectively, without any non-carcinogenic effects.

Conclusion: According to the results of this study, a great difference was observed between various studies in terms of the reported effect factor. While publication bias was notable, it seems that the current amount of consumption of the evaluated fish has led to no serious health risks in consumers.