Background and purpose: Pesticides can accumulate in the body due to chronic toxicity. This accumulation is caused by direct exposure to the chemicals or indirect exposure, i.e. foods, breathing, and skin. This study was performed to assess the levels of diazinon and malathion residues in cucumber produced in Mazandaran province, Iran.
Materials and methods: In this experimental study, 132 samples of cucumber were collected from different cities in Mazandaran province during summer 2015. Malathion and diazinon were extracted from the samples using n-hexan and their residual levels were analyzed by QUECHERS and GC-MS. ppb sensitivity was also considered.
Results: The mean residual contents of diazinon in all samples were lower than that of Iran standard levels. But the residual level of malathion was higher in some samples. The highest and lowest contents of malathion and diazinon were detected in samples obtained from Babol and Amol, and Babol and Kiakola, respectively.
Conclusion: Wide application of pesticides in samples studied caused unacceptable levels of residuals, particularly malathion, therefore, permanent control of pesticide residues in vegetable products such as cucumber, is necessary.