Abstract
Concentrations of potential toxic metals (Pb, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ni, Co, As, Fe and Mn) were determined in herbal concoction teas commonly consumed in Nigeria using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry. Results revealed that Fe had the highest concentration with a mean value of 13.136 ± 0.195 µg/g, while As had the least mean concentration (0.043 ± 0.006 µg/g). Pollution index (PI) result indicated that the teas were contaminated with Cu (PI value > 1) while it was clear of contamination by the other investigated metals. Cluster analysis showed close inter-element relationships between the investigated metals, indicating similar chemical properties and/or genetic origin. Correlation matrix showed that positive and significant correlations existed between between Zn/Cr, Ni/Cr, Co/Cr, Fe/Cu, Mn/Cu, Ni/Zn, Co/Zn, Co/Ni and Mn/Fe, indicating chemical affinity. Estimated daily intake, target hazard quotient and cancer risk showed that there was no health risk associated with the consumption of the herbal concoction teas. Relative risk indicated that the highest concern is from the levels of Co in the teas. The study concluded that consumption of the teas may not pose risk to human health at the current levels of the metals, but should be consumed moderately to prevent bioaccumulation of the metals.
Highlights
Herbal concoctions are widely used for the treatment of various illnesses
Herbal plants represent an important class of various traditional medicine systems and, in recent years, they are increasingly used in the primary health care intervention in both developed and developing countries
The concentrations of the metals are generally lower than the World Health Organization (WHO) permissible limits except for Cu, which is higher than the permissible limit
Summary
Herbal concoctions are widely used for the treatment of various illnesses They often contain highly active pharmacological components including minerals and trace metals [1]. In addition to herbal extracts, reports have shown the presence of heavy metals in many beverages. Though some heavy metals could be beneficial, these metals possess deleterious effect when present or their levels in food and drinks exceed the tolerable limit [4]. Both beverages and herbal extracts separately are noted as source of heavy metals and the additive effects of heavy metals from these sources could be harmful to health. Studies have reported the presence of lead, cadmium, mercury, and arsenic in beverages which lead to progressing physical, muscular, and neurologically-degenerating disease conditions [5, 6]
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