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Cited by 48Heavy Metals in PlantsHeavy Metal Exposure and ToxicityHeavy metals in environment

Analysis of some selected toxic metals in registered herbal products manufactured in Nigeria

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Adepoju-Bello·2012·African Journal of Biotechnology
DOI 10.5897/ajb11.3961
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Abstract

The use of herbal medicine has been on the increase in many developing and industrialized countries and Nigerians in particular has been using herbal medicine for many centuries. The approval of these herbal remedies by regulatory bodies has further encouraged the use of herbal remedies. The safety of these herbal remedies is however poorly understood. This study investigated the concentration of arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury in twenty registered ready to use herbal products. Twenty brands of herbal remedies were purchased randomly from the Pharmacy shops in Lagos, digested with aqua-regia (3:1 HCl: HNO3) and were analysed using atomic absorption spectroscopy (Buck 205 Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer).There was no detectable lead in any of the 20 herbal samples; however, all the samples contained a detectable amount of one or more of the other metals of interest. The Oral Component Limit (OCL) for arsenic, cadmium and mercury as stated by USP are 1.5, 0.5 and 1.5 µg/g, respectively. All the samples contained arsenic and mercury below the USP OCL, while sixty-five percent contained cadmium out of which fifty-five percent were above USP OCL. The results obtained from this study suggest a significant risk to consumers’ health considering the toxicity of these heavy metals. Key words: Herbal remedies, toxic heavy metals, atomic absorption spectrophotometry.

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Authors
Adepoju-Bello
Venue
African Journal of Biotechnology
Publisher
Academic Journals
Published
2012-03-29
Volume
11
Issue
26
ISSN
1684-5315 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.5897/ajb11.3961
OpenAlex
W3143149913
Cited by
48
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 5 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 1
FWCI
2.81
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
AFRICAN JOURNAL OF BIOTECHNOLOGY (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Analytical Chemistry › Heavy Metals in Plants
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Heavy Metal Exposure and Toxicity
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Pollution › Heavy metals in environment
Keywords
herbal medicine, heavy metals, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead, toxic metals, herbal product safety, consumer health risk

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