September 11, 2024 – The FDA has launched an investigation into possible contamination with heavy metals from the usage of tampons, the agency announced Tuesday.
This move follows the discharge of worrying laboratory test results earlier this 12 months that demonstrated the presence of greater than a dozen metals in a wide range of popular non-organic and organic tampon products. This small study was a joint effort by researchers at Columbia University, Michigan State University and the University of California, Berkeley.
“We want the public to know that before tampons can be legally sold in the United States, they must meet FDA requirements for safety and effectiveness. Manufacturers must test the product and its ingredients before, during, and after manufacturing,” the FDA wrote within the notice of its own upcoming study. “Before a product is allowed to be brought to market, the manufacturing company conducts a biocompatibility test, which is part of the safety testing and is reviewed by the FDA before market approval.”
There will likely be two studies, the FDA said. One of the studies will involve laboratory testing to guage metals in tampons and the potential exposure of individuals when using them. The other study will likely be a review of current research on the health effects of metals that could be present in tampons.
The earlier study, published in June within the journal Environment International, The researchers found levels of lead and detectable levels of greater than a dozen other metals equivalent to arsenic and cadmium in all products tested.
The researchers tested 24 tampon products from a wide range of major brands in addition to private labels. The tampons were purchased in stores and online between September 2022 and March 2023. Metal content tended to differ depending on whether a product was labeled organic or not, the researchers reported. Lead concentrations were higher in non-organic tampons, and organic tampons had higher arsenic levels.
There is not any protected level of lead exposure that US Environmental Protection Agency says, and the results accumulate over a lifetime. The study authors noted that girls begin menstruating at a mean age of 12, and menopause begins at a mean age of 51. One study cited by the researchers estimated that between 52% and 86% of menstruating women use tampons.
The FDA plans to conduct more extensive analyses than within the previous study, the agency said.
“Although the study found metals in some tampons, it did not test whether metals are released from tampons during use. It also did not test whether metals are released during tampon use, absorbed by the vaginal mucosa, and enter the bloodstream,” the FDA statement said. “The FDA's laboratory study will measure the amount of metals released from tampons under conditions closer to normal use.”
The absorbent materials in tampons, equivalent to cotton, rayon and viscose, are potential sources of the metals. Cotton plants are known to soak up metals from the soil particularly easily, although there are other ways wherein metals can get into the products, equivalent to in the course of the manufacturing process.
Contact with metals detected within the initial evaluation can affect various systems and processes within the body, including the brain, kidneys, heart, blood, reproductive and immune systems.
The researchers found that the vagina is very permeable and substances absorbed there usually are not cleared of poisons (for instance, through metabolism or passage through the liver) before they enter the body's bloodstream.
The FDA's announcement didn’t provide a timeframe for completing its investigation.