About alflatoxins, its symptoms and limits

This is what i had research on,

I found that:

Aflatoxins, of which aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most important, are produced mainly by the fungus Aspergillus flavus, that may grow on peanuts before or after harvesting and under poor storage conditions.

The tolerance levels of aflatoxins in human foodstuffs are regulated worldwide and in South Africa by Government Notice No. R 313 of 16 February 1990, Regulations Governing Tolerances for Fungus-Produced Toxins in Foodstuffs. According to these regulations, which are the responsibility of the DOH, the maximum legal level of total aflatoxins in foodstuffs is 10 micrograms per kilogram, of which 5 micrograms per kilogram (parts per billion) may be AFB1.

Health implications of exposure to aflatoxins can be divided into symptoms of acute poisoning (aflatoxicosis) and chronic long-term health effects. Although aflatoxins have been implicated in several episodes of acute human aflatoxicosis in various areas of the world, these have been reported at contamination levels in the milligrams per kilogram (parts per million) range, i.e. 1000 times higher than the legal tolerance levels. However, the major health implication and area of considerable international concern with respect to aflatoxin exposure is the cancer-causing (carcinogenic) properties of AFB1, in that long-term exposure to low levels of the toxin may cause liver cancer. This is the reason why aflatoxins are the most widely and severely regulated of all the mycotoxins. It is of great concern that the liver cancer risk increases significantly if a child suffering from hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection consumes aflatoxin-containing foodstuffs, due to the synergism between AFB1 and HBV in causing liver cancer.

The PSNP was launched in 1994, and in areas with poor control over tender specifications and inadequate enforcement of legal levels of aflatoxins in peanut butter during the past 7 years, may have increased the liver cancer risk in millions of previously disadvantaged school children. The risk may have been increased markedly if the children consumed the high levels of aflatoxins quoted in the news media, and particularly if they are carriers and/or subsequently become infected with HBV.

Reference:
South African Medical Research Council. (2008). Alfatoxin in Peanut Butter. Retrieved June 21, 2008 from mrc.ac.za Website: http://www.mrc.ac.za/promec/afloxin.htm