ArticleJournal of general internal medicine2009
Herbal supplement use and blood lead levels of United States adults.
Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 42 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cannabis contaminants: sources, distribution, human toxicity and pharmacologic effects.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2018Pooled it
- Complementary therapies for acne vulgaris.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015Pooled it
- Assessing preterm infant metal exposures in shed teeth: findings from the Developmental Impact of NICU Exposures (DINE) study.Journal of exposure science & environmental epidemiology · 2026Article
- Lead Toxicity Associated With Over-The-Counter Slimming Supplements: A Case Report.Clinical case reports · 2026Article
- Relationship between blood lead (Pb) concentration with risk of diabetes mellitus in women living in mining area.Narra J · 2024Article
- The Contribution of Declines in Blood Lead Levels to Reductions in Blood Pressure Levels: Longitudinal Evidence in the Strong Heart Family Study.Journal of the American Heart Association · 2024Article
- Unregulated supplement use causing insidious lead toxicity.Proceedings (Baylor University. Medical Center) · 2023Article
- A taxonomy of risk-associated alternative health practices: A Delphi study.Health & social care in the community · 2022Article
- Novel Integrated Tiered Cumulative Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Food Homologous Traditional Chinese Medicine Based on a Real-Life-Exposure Scenario.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2022Article
- Clinically Relevant Herb-Micronutrient Interactions: When Botanicals, Minerals, and Vitamins Collide.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2018Review
- Unintentional and Sequential Lead Exposure from a Ceramic Mug and Maca (Lepidium meyenii).Journal of medical toxicology : official journal of the American College of Medical Toxicology · 2018Article
- Lead Poisoning Due to Herbal Medications.Indian journal of clinical biochemistry : IJCB · 2017Article
- Metal Concentrations in Newcomer Women and Environmental Exposures: A Scoping Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2017Article
- Nutraceuticals and Their Potential to Treat Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy: Separating the Credible from the Conjecture.Nutrients · 2016Review
- Evaluation and management of lead exposure.Annals of occupational and environmental medicine · 2015Review
- Toxic element contamination of natural health products and pharmaceutical preparations.PloS one · 2012Article
- Don't be 'mis-led': few herbal products have been implicated in lead poisoning.Journal of general internal medicine · 2009Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSome herbal supplements may contain lead.
objectiveTo examine whether use of specific herbal dietary supplements during the last 30 days is associated with blood lead levels in US men and women.
designCross-sectional analysis. STUDY POPULATION: NHANES participants from 1999-2004, a representative sample of the civilian non-institutionalized US population. MEASUREMENTS: Lead was measured in blood. Associations between lead and self-reported supplement use were estimated using multivariable regression weighted to account for NHANES sampling. Herbal supplements investigated were those previously reported to contain high heavy metal content: Ayurvedic or traditional Chinese medicine herbs, echinacea, ginkgo, ginseng, St. John's wort, and "other" herbs (specifically, kava, valerian, black cohosh, bee pollen, and nettle). MAIN
resultsAmong 6,712 women > or =20 years, those using herbal supplements had lead levels that were 10% higher than non-users (95% CI 3%-17%, p = 0.005). Women using Ayurvedic or traditional Chinese medicine herbs, St. John's wort, and "other" herbs had lead levels 24% (95% CI 5%-45%, p = 0.01), 23% (95% CI 4%-46%), p = 0.02), and 21% (95% CI 2%-44%, p = 0.03) higher, respectively, than non-users. No significant associations were observed between herb use and lead levels among men (n = 6,095). Among reproductive-aged women (16-45 years), herbal supplement users had lead levels 20% higher than non-users (95% CI 5%-34%, p = 0.008). In contrast, garlic and other dietary supplements were not associated with higher lead levels.
conclusionUse of specific herbal supplements is associated with higher blood lead levels among women. Our data suggest testing guidelines for herbal supplements and regulations limiting lead in supplements are needed.
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