Lead Levels in Fresh Medicinal Herbs and Commercial Tea Products from Manila, Philippines

Alternative medicine utilizing the therapeutic effects of plants is commonly used in the community. Contaminants in the raw materials, like lead, may lead to adverse health effects. This study aimed to determine the presence or absence of lead and specifically aimed to obtain its levels in plants and commercial tea utilized as herbal medicine in Manila, Philippines. The blood levels of the heavy metals were mathematically projected as well. The concentrations were compared with the World Health Organization (WHO) and Center for Disease Control (CDC) allowable standards for plants and blood, respectively. Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (FAAS) was used to analyze the heavy metals from the samples. All samples tested contained lead but conformed with the WHO limits at 10 ppm. However, only the tea preparation samples conformed with the CDC limit at 10 ug/dL but not the collected plants which went above the prescribed concentration. Herbs and its preparations must be decontaminated prior to use for better health provision to the Filipino people.