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Sunday, November 23, 2008

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Study finds toxins in some herbal medicines

USA TODAY

2008-08-27

Traditional herbal supplements used by thousands of Americans may contain dangerously high levels of lead and other toxins, a study shows.

Nearly 21% of Ayurvedic medicines — plant-based products used in India for thousands of years to promote health — actually contain lead, mercury or arsenic, according to a study in today's Journal of the American Medical Association.

Arsenic can cause cancer. Lead and mercury can damage the kidneys and brain, especially in children, says study author Robert Saper of the Boston University School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center. More than 80 people have developed lead poisoning worldwide from Ayurvedic medicines since 1978, the study notes. Symptoms include fatigue, anemia and abdominal pain.

Although Ayurvedic medications are largely used by adults to treat problems ranging from indigestion to infertility, about 4% of the 193 products that Saper tested were labeled for use in children.

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Saper and his colleagues purchased all of the medicines on the Internet. In a 2004 study, he also found lead, mercury and arsenic in 20% of Ayurvedic supplements sold in Boston-area stores. About 750,000 Americans have used Ayurvedic medicine, says Michael McGuffin of the American Herbal Products Association, whose members include the makers of traditional herbal products.

Manufacturers and the owners of websites mentioned in the article say they carefully test their products for safety. Peter Bowes, owner of Seattle-based Tattva's Herbs, says his company's own tests found much lower lead levels than those listed in the study.

McGuffin notes that it may be impossible to ensure that herbal products are 100% lead-free, because even fruits, vegetables and dairy products can be contaminated with lead, which can be found in soil or water.

McGuffin notes that government and professional agencies set widely different safety standards for lead, mercury and arsenic. While most of the products in Saper's article have lead levels that exceed California's standard, only two violate the World Health Organization's standard.

Saper says the Food and Drug Administration should set maximum daily dose limits for toxic metals in dietary supplements. Although the FDA currently doesn't specify how much lead is permitted in these products, it can pull products off the market if they're found to be unsafe. The FDA, for example, banned Ayurvedic products cited in Saper's 2004 study.

McGuffin says the government and industry should seriously consider such limits: "If we know what the target is, it makes it easier to hit the target."

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