A study found toxic metals in popular tampon brands. Here's what experts advise

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A first-of-its-kind study found lead, arsenic and other heavy metals in various tampon brands, but didn't link them to harmful health effects. Experts explain why it matters — and what to watch for.

Researchers found 16 different kinds of metals in the tampons they examined, including heavy metals like lead and arsenic.

Researchers detected “measurable concentrations” of all 16 metals they were looking for in the tampons, as well as “elevated mean concentrations” of toxic metals including lead, arsenic and cadmium. But it doesn’t give them enough information to definitively link the metals to negative health effects.

FDA spokesperson Amanda Hils told NPR that “all studies have limitations,” pointing to the outstanding questions about whether metals are released from tampons and into the bloodstream. Nevertheless, she said the agency is reviewing the research. “It’s in the most sensitive part of people's bodies. It's so close to us,” she says. “We use so many over a lifetime. It's just wild to me that this is so both so little researched and so little regulated.”

Trace amounts of arsenic, for example, are sometimes found in food and not considered to be toxic, but high amounts could be fatal. In contrast, as the study notes, “there is no safe exposure level” to lead.

 

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