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Drugs from city wastewater found in common garden vegetables

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The contamination of plants with prescription drugs and over the counter drugs should not be what comes to mind when we hear “plant medicine”.

Everyday millions of people take pharmaceuticals as recommended by their doctor to control blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, cholesterol – the list of drugs can go on and on.

As water becomes scarce in certain regions the capture and reuse of municipal wastewater has been gaining traction as a way to meet the water demands in certain agricultural regions.

farm fieldUnfortunately, little thought is given into the potential for drugs that enter the municipal systems on a daily basis.

It may surprise people that drugs can pass through the body unchanged with detectable levels in urine and feces.  In other instances it can be modified slightly to look slightly different chemically but have the same drug like actions in a human body.

For example, there are certain cancer chemotherapy medications where the patient is told to flush ‘twice’ to make sure the chemotherapy does not stay in the toilet water.

Water from these municipal sources is regulated for bacteria, salt levels, and heavy metals, however, there are not any regulations on the occurrence of trace pollutants yet.

A recent study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry should give us pause to think about the impact of pharmaceuticals entering our water systems.

A total of 28 drugs and metabolites with common drugs and their uses including: 

  • Caffeine
  • Carbamazepine (anti-seizure)
  • Diclofenac (pain and anti-inflammatory)
  • Gabapentin (nerve pain)
  • Gemfibrozil (diabetes)
  • Hydrochlorothiazide (blood pressure)
  • Ciprofloxacin (antibiotic)
  • Lamotrigine (anti-seizure)
  • Sulfamethoxazole (antibiotic)

Here are the plants that were tested including the leaves and roots:

  • Cabbage
  • Zucchini
  • Eggplant
  • Tomato
  • Pepper
  • Parsley
  • Rucola
  • Lettuce
  • Carrot
  • Potato

Here are the results and some of the drugs that were found in different plants:

  • 18 out of 29 compounds were detected in at least one plant
  • Cabbage (carbamazepine, caffeine, ciprofloxacin)
  • Eggplant (carbamazepine, diclofenac)
  • Zucchini (Carbamazepine)
  • Parsley (Carbamazepine, gabapentin)
  • Lettuce (Carbamazepine)
  • Carrot (Carbamazepine)

Take away message:  The reusing of municipal water should take into consideration the potential for contamination with prescription and over the counter drugs.  As we search for strategies to capture and reuse water from municipal sources it is clear more work is needed to determine how to best prevent the exposure to unwanted pharmaceuticals.

Journal of Agriculctural and Food Chemistry. 2016 July 27; Volume 64 (Issue 29): Pages 5784-92.

Jeremy Johnson, PharmD, PhD
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Categories: Detoxification