ABSTRACT

Plants, either growing in the wild or being cultivated as food or feed, are capable of absorbing various compounds from the soil, some of which can prove to be toxic to the consumers. Also, the groundwater that is used for drinking or preparation of food may contain large amounts of dierent toxic compounds. In this chapter, we will discuss three chemical elements-arsenic, selenium, and fluorine, which the animals need in small quantities for their normal life. Humans need selenium and uorine, whereas the necessity for arsenic has not been proved yet. However, arsenic compounds have been used for centuries as a means of intentional poisoning and as pesticides.