Nutrition and Safety Evaluation of Hydroponic-cultured Pea SproutunderLead and Cadmium Stress

Heavy metals can bring health risks through the enrichment of crops and food chain, but there are few reports on their impact on the nutritional quality of crops. In this paper, the hydroponic-culturedpea seedlings under lead and cadmium stress were used to evaluate the heavy metal effects on growth, safety and nutrients variation. Lead has little effect on the sprout growth, and it mainly concentrates in the roots and seldom can be transferred to the edible parts. It would not bring health and safety hazards to the edible parts of stems and leaves but decrease the mineral nutrientsin peasprout slightly. Cadmium significantlyaffectboth growth and nutrition value of pea sprout, not only the root is abundant, but also the transfer rate of root and stem, which is about 13%. The nutrient content of Ca and Zn in stem and leaf is decreased significantly under cadmium stress.