Winter exposure assessment of copper, zinc and arsenic in drinking water of inhabitants in Beijing, China

Human exposure to Cu, Zn and As from drinking water in Beijing, China was estimated in winter. Cu, Zn and As were detected at 6.1, 400 and 0.6 µg/L on average in stagnant water, significantly different from those in the actually ingested boiled tap water, 5.1, 130 and 2.4 µg/L, respectively. Daily intake of Cu, Zn and As from drinking water was 0.8%, 7.7% and 28.5% of the minimum for adults recommended by WHO and varied among different age groups, as the highest occurred in the 64-year-old group, followed by the 20-64-year-old group.