News

Go back

13.08.2024 - Cosmetics

Metals in feminine hygiene products

As part of a study by the University of California in Berkeley, the contents of 16 metals (including heavy metals like arsenic, lead, cadmium, and chromium) were determined in 30 tampons from 14 different brands, with metals in the nanogram per gram range (ng/g) detected in all types of tampons.

To the knowledge of the study initiators, this is the first study dealing with metal contents in tampons.

The metal concentrations vary depending on the material used (organic cotton or not) and the sales country (USA/EU/UK). According to the study, the target group of these products could be exposed to higher metal content because contact with the vaginal mucosa may result in systemic exposure.

Toxicologist Andrea Hartwig from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) emphasizes that the study results are no reason to give up using tampons. Nevertheless, it should be mandatory for manufacturers of other consumer goods and hygiene products to control the heavy metal content of their products.

In the EU, the contents of arsenic, lead, cadmium, and chromium in textile fabrics must be below one milligram per kilogram (mg/kg). The tampons were all below this value (1 ng/kg = 0.001 mg/kg).

If you would like to have your feminine hygiene products tested for heavy metals, please feel free to contact us.

Source: www.dgkl.de