Objectives: Food supplements and medicines which are not on the list of prohibited substances of the World Anti-Doping Agency are included in the group of permitted pharmacological agents for athlete’s recovery. The aim of this study was to describe qualitatively and quantitatively food supplements (FS) and over-the-counter drugs use among athletes in the last six month. Methods: This was a cross sectional study. Data on food supplements and the over-the-counter drugs, usage were collected during 2018 by self-administered, anonymous questionnaire. Results: A total of 112 athletes completed the survey. A total of 51.8% (n = 58) athletes reported the use of food supplements. The use of medical supplements was reported by 50.0% (n = 56) of athletes, 26.8% (n = 30) reported using ergogenic supplements, 1.8% (n = 2) using of sports food and 4.5% (n = 5) using other supplements. The use of over-the-counter drugs was reported by 35.7% (n = 40) of athletes. The over-the-counter analgesic drugs were used by 95% (n = 38) of over-the-counter drug users. Concomitant administration two or more over-the-counter drugs was reported by 40% (n = 16) athletes. Doctors and coaches had no advisory role in the use of food supplements or over-the-counter drugs.

Aflatoksin M1 ve M2, aflatoksin B1 ve B2'nin hidroksile metabolitleri olup, sut ve sut urunlerinde bulunabilir. Bu calismanin amaci, Bosna-Hersek'in farkli bolgelerinden farkli donemlere ait test sonuclarini kullanarak cig sutteki bu toksine maruz kalma ve saglik riski degerlendirmesi yapmaktir. AFM1 alim degerlendirmesi icin, Bosna-Hersek'te Tarim ve Kirsal Kalkinmaya Yonelik Katilim Oncesi Yardim Sektor Analizleri raporundaki veriler kullanilmistir. Aflatoksin M1'in cig sutteki konsantrasyonu icin, Saraybosna Eczacilik Universitesi Toksikolojik Kimya Fakultesi Laboratuvari'ndan alinan onceki calismalarin verileri ile yayinlanmamis veriler kullanilmistir. Dort maruziyet senaryosu icin yillik hepatoseluler karsinom riski (HCC) insidansi hesaplanarak risk karakterizasyonu yapilmistir. Sonuclar, ortalama tahmini gunluk aflatoksin M1 aliminin gunde 0.049 ng/kg vucut agirligi oldugunu gostermistir. Hepatoseluler karsinom riski (vaka/yil/100.000 kisi), HBsAg prevalansina bagli olarak nispeten dusuk bulunmustur (ortalama 0.000064-0.000074 vaka/yil/100.000). Son yillarda, aflatoksin M1'in kanserojen riskinin dusuk oldugu ve Bosna Hersek'te kritik olmadigi sonucuna varilmistir.

Background Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a complex endocrinopathy affecting up to 20% of pre-menopausal women. The most recent international guidelines set lifestyle management as the cornerstone of the PCOS treatment. Still, there is a paucity of data on the implementation of lifestyle management in clinical practice. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore physicians-reported practices in PCOS lifestyle management in the Sarajevo Canton, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The profession of dietetics is not legally recognized in BiH. Nutritional interventions in health promotion and disease treatment are provided by medical professionals. Methods Data were collected by a paper-based questionnaire distributed during March-May 2018 in the Public Institution Health Centre of Sarajevo Canton. Results Forty-six physicians (response rate of 80.7%) completed the questionnaire. An initial treatment plan based solely on lifestyle measures (diet + physical activity), as recommended by current guidelines was reported by 34.8% of physicians. Although dietary interventions were rated as highly relevant in PCOS management by the vast majority of physicians, only one-half reported recording patients' adherence and 45.7% of physicians were unsure of the effectiveness of the lifestyle interventions in their patients. Conclusion PCOS lifestyle management in the study setting is sub-optimal. Additional education on effective PCOS lifestyle management strategies would be beneficial, especially for physicians with less than 15 years in practice. Possible obstacles to better physicians' engagement in PCOS lifestyle management should be further investigated.

The main objective of this study was to determine the content of heavy metals Cd, Pb, Hg and metalloid As in samples of date mussels Lithophaga lithophaga L., 1758 in order to evaluate the health risks for mussel consumers. Samples of shellfish were obtained from commercial sources and fishery in the area of Sarajevo. The content of heavy metals and arsenic is determined in a total of 46 samples. Samples were prepared by microwave digestion. For the analysis of total As, cadmium and lead, an atomic absorption spectrophotometer with graphite furnace was used, while mercury content was determined using a direct Hg analyser. In all samples, the content of heavy metals and arsenic was above the quantification limit of the given methods. The content of all analysed metals and metalloid was below the limits of their maximum allowable concentration in food, according to the current regulations in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union. Evaluation of the public health risks associated with date mussels' consumption indicates that there is no evident risk for a moderate adult consumer.

Folic acid (FA) supplementation is recommended for all women of childbearing age and pregnant women. Still, women’s adherence to these recommendations is often low. This crosssectional survey aimed to assess FA supplementation among pregnant women in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) since no such data exist to date. Data were collected by a voluntary, anonymous, self-administered internet-based questionnaire. The inclusion criteria were current pregnancy, BiH origin, and BiH residence for at least the past 5 years. The vast majority (82.1%) of women reported inadequate periconceptional FA supplementation, and only 26.9% reported supplementation during the critical period for neural tube closure. The use of a high dose (≥5 mg/day) FA beyond the first trimester was reported by 9.0% of women. Women’s age was significantly associated with adequate folic acid use for the prevention of neural tube defects (OR=1.207, p<0.05). The periconceptional FA supplementation in the studied population is suboptimal. These preliminary data call for action, especially because BiH is a lower-middleincome country without mandatory FA food fortification program. Further research on folate dietary intake and folate status in the target group, as well as possible predictors of the low prevalence of supplementation, is recommended.

In this work, both farm milk samples (n=3), as well as samples of milk from Bosnia and Herzegovina market (n=7), were analyzed to quantify the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls. The PCB content (as Aroclor 1254) was determined in the fat extracts using the PCB ELISA kit, according to the procedure provided by the manufacturer. The total PCB concentrations (as Aroclor 1254) in individual milk sample ranged from <LoD to 787.74 μg/kg lipid weight (l.w.). The calculated Ʃ6PCB were ranged from <LoD to 187.72 μg/kg l.w. In one out of ten analyzed samples the presence of PCB higher than maximum limit (ML) was found. However, the absorbance measured for this sample is out of the linear range. In this case the sample can be considered as a suspect and should be analyzed with the quantitative confirmatory method. In other milk samples the concentration of PCB was in the acceptable range, and far below the ML.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are chemicals of global concern due to their potential for long-range transport, persistence in environment, ability to biomagnify and bioaccumulate in ecosystems, as well as their significant negative effects on human health and the environment. In this study, seven targeted polychlorinated byphenils (PCBs, IUPAC Nos. 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153, and 180) and the organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, cis-chlordane, trans-chlordane and oxy-chlordane were quantified in European date mussel (Lithophaga lithophaga L., 1758.) collected from the Sarajevo fish market (Bosnia and Herzegovina). This slow-growing species is widespread along the whole Mediterranean rocky coastline. In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), this species has not been protected by law and the date mussel harvested in the area of the Neum bay (Adriatic sea) could be found in free sale on BiH market. Applied gas chromatography and tissue extraction methods were validated in the NIVA laboratory. Our samples (n=61) were 4.5-8.4 cm in length. Total OCPs in the analyzed samples were low (ranging from non-detectable to 0.419 µg kg-1 w.w.), while Σ7PCBs was ranging from 20.26 to 135.37 µg kg-1 w.w.. PCBs 101, 118, 138 and 153 were dominant congeners in all samples.

Objective: Europium sensitized fluorescence method for tetracycline antibiotics determination in various samples was optimized. Method: The factors that influence intensity of the europium–tetracycline fluorescence have been studied in detail. Fluorescence intensity measurement was carried out using Shimadzu RF-5301-PC spectrofluorometer (Kyoto, Japan) with Panorama fluorescence 1.1 software. Results: The parameters that can affect the fluorescence of europium-tetracycline complex are optimized. Best results were obtained using tris buffer and 1 mm of citric acid as co ligands. The method is linear in the range of 5-2500 ng/ml for tetracycline and oxytetracycline and 5-1000 ng/ml for chlortetracycline and can be used for their determination in various samples. Conclusion: Europium–tetracycline sensitized fluorescence is a very sensitive that can be used for determination very low tetracycline concentrations. It is necessary to optimize all parameters that can affect the fluorescence, in order to achieve low detection limits.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the genotoxic effects of chlorinated homosalate by-products occurred in the presence of free chlorine. Method: The genotoxic effects of chlorinated homosalate by-products were investigated using Allium test. Cytogenetic analysis included monitoring influence of various concentrations of the test filter (10, 30 and 50 ng/ml) at various concentrations of free chlorine (0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 mg/ml), on mitotic activity of meristem cells., as well as the types of genotoxic effects expressed during the cell cycle. The observed effects were quantitatively presented at 2000 analyzed cells. Results: Each tested homosalate concentration causes a reduction of the mitotic index (MI) comparing to the water as a control, after 24 and 48 hours exposure as well. Statistical analysis demonstrated highly significant difference (p<0.0001) between the MI of water and MI of investigated solution. Besides the water as the basic control, the comparison was also performed compared to the three controls represented the concentration of free chlorine (0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 mg/ml). Most of the investigated concentration had highly significant difference of MI if compared to MI of their control containing different concentration of free chlorine. The number of irregular phases caused by investigated homosalate solutions was determined by cytogenetic analysis. It was found that the investigated solutions in the applied concentration and at the length of treatment (24 and 48 hours), disturbed chromosomes kinetics at certain stages of cell division. Aberrations in cells of the onion root appeared in the form of chromosome kinetic disturbance, the appearance of cells with "chromosomal bridge", cells with agglutinated chromosomes and micronuclei. Conclusion: The results of this study have shown that chlorinated homosalate byproducts that occur in the presence of free chlorine, show genotoxic effects on the onion root and interfere with the normal division of meristem cells.

Fish is the main single source of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) exposure in men. Anecdotal reports suggest high wild fish consumption rates among sport fishermen in Sanski Most area, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Presence of PCBs in the environment in BiH was previously documented. The main objective of this work was to estimate the magnitude of PCBs exposure and assess the potential health risk in sport fishermen in Sanski Most. The fishing pattern and magnitude of fish consumption were estimated in the questionnaire survey conducted during April 2012 among members (n = 60) of the local sport fishermen association in Sanski Most. Calculated median and high-end (90th percentile) fish consumption rates were 31 g d−1 and 126 g d−1, respectively. The PCB concentrations (as Aroclor 1254 equivalents), determined by ELISA immunoassay in 28 fish fillets ranged from undetectable to 208 μg kg−1. Two different exposure scenarios were used: (a) median exposure, calculated from the median fish consumption rate and median PCB concentrations, and (b) “worst case” scenario, calculated from the high-end fish consumption rate and mean PCB concentrations. The results suggest negligible lifelong cancer and non-cancer risks in case of low to moderate fish consumption rate, but possibly unacceptable risk levels in high-end consumers.