Al-Thani Ghanim, Ibrahim Adel Ehab, Alomairi Mohammed, Salman Baher I, Hegazy Mostafa M, Al-Harrasi Ahmed, El Deeb Sami
Natural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, PC 616, Birkat Al Mauz, Nizwa P.O. Box 33, Oman.
Pharmaceutical Analytical Chemistry Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Port-Said University, Port Said 42526, Egypt.
Toxics. 2023 Mar 16;11(3):272. doi: 10.3390/toxics11030272.
The tendency of using weight loss herbal preparations is continuously increasing, especially for the widespread consumption of junk food that is characterized by high calories. Weight loss herbal preparations are considered a type of food supplement product, and, as such, the regulations governing their quality control might be minimal. These products could be locally formulated in any country or internationally imported. Being non-controlled products, the herbal weight-loss products may contain high levels of elemental impurities that might exceed the permissible ranges. Moreover, these products contribute to the total daily intake (TDI) of such elements, which might represent concerns about their potential toxicological danger. In this research, the elemental contents in such products were investigated. The inductively coupled plasma with optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) was used to determine the levels of 15 elemental contents, namely, Na, K, Ca, Mg, Al, Cu, Fe, Li, Mn, As, Co, Cr, Cd, Ni and Pb. The results showed that seven micro-elements, namely Cd, Co, Ni, Cr, Pb, Li and Cu, were either not detectable or at a concentration much lower than their tolerable limits. However, all studied macro-elements (Na, K, Ca and Mg), together with Fe, were found at considerable, yet safe levels. On the other hand, Mn, Al and As contents showed perturbing levels in some of the studied products. Finally, a conclusion was highlighted for the necessity for stricter surveillance of such herbal products.
使用减肥草药制剂的趋势在持续上升,尤其是考虑到高热量垃圾食品的广泛消费。减肥草药制剂被视为一种食品补充剂产品,因此,对其质量控制的监管可能很少。这些产品可以在任何国家本地配制,也可以从国际上进口。作为不受管制的产品,草药减肥产品可能含有高水平的元素杂质,可能超过允许范围。此外,这些产品会增加此类元素的每日总摄入量(TDI),这可能引发对其潜在毒理学危害的担忧。在本研究中,对这类产品中的元素含量进行了调查。使用电感耦合等离子体发射光谱仪(ICP-OES)测定了15种元素的含量,即钠、钾、钙、镁、铝、铜、铁、锂、锰、砷、钴、铬、镉、镍和铅。结果表明,七种微量元素,即镉、钴、镍、铬、铅、锂和铜,要么未被检测到,要么浓度远低于其耐受限度。然而,所有研究的常量元素(钠、钾、钙和镁)以及铁,其含量虽可观但处于安全水平。另一方面,锰、铝和砷的含量在一些研究产品中显示出令人不安的水平。最后,强调了对这类草药产品进行更严格监管的必要性。