Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have found in a recent study that tampons may be bad for women’s health because they contain dangerous metals.
Several tampon brands were examined for lead, zinc, arsenic, and cadmium metal content during the research process. All of the tampons included lead and zinc, with zinc having the greatest concentration at 52,000 ng/g (nanogram per gram), as reported by the research.
“Any amount of lead that may leak out of a tampon and enter the systemic circulation could have a detrimental effect on health. There is no safe level of exposure to lead. Lead can stay in the body for decades and is kept in the bones, where it replaces calcium.” The scientists reported.
The study goes on to say that lead has a number of detrimental consequences for the nervous system, kidneys, heart, lungs, blood, immune system, reproduction, and development.
According to the study, inorganic arsenic which was also discovered in the tampons is linked to respiratory and neurological disorders, eczema and other cutaneous impacts, heart problems, and cancer.
Vaginal arsenic exposure was found to have an impact on oxidative processes in the uterus and ovaries in one study that assessed the effects of douching rats with the compound.
The study co-author, Kathrin Schilling, an assistant professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, stated,
“Our study clearly shows that metals are also present in menstrual products and that women might be at higher risk for exposure using these products, even though toxic metals are ubiquitous and we are exposed to low levels at any given time.”
