Jacksonville poison control getting calls about ‘toxic tampons’ after newly released study

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Dozens of dangerous metals are showing up in some tampon products sold around the country.

As a result, the Florida Poison Control Center in Jacksonville is getting calls from women, asking if their health is at risk.

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A new study published by the Environmental International Journal found traces of heavy metals inside feminine hygiene products across 14 different brands. The analysis found 16 different metals, including arsenic, copper, and lead inside one tampon product. Other products contained about 12 heavy metals. Something to note— the findings did not cite what brands it tested.

“The amount of metals that were found in these products are very, very small, very tiny,” Dr. Sonya Rashid said. “We don’t really know what that small amount of metal contamination will do over a long period of time. Also, how much is the body absorbing of this? You know, it probably is different from person to person.”

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Dr. Rashid is a clinical assistant professor at UF Health in Jacksonville. She’s also a medical toxicologist at the Florida Poison Control Center.

“I think that this calls for further research into this area of metal contamination in different products,” Dr. Rashid said. “I think in general, this may change the way that a lot of materials are manufactured.”

Tampons are made with cotton, rayon, or both. The study explained that the metals likely came from the soil of the plant used to make the material.

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“The only way you can really kind of protect against that is to get better at that process of extracting it and cleaning it out before it goes into the products,” Rashid said. “We need a much larger sample size to see if this metal contamination is present in all of these types of tampons. Also, what are potential long-term effects? Because honestly, we just don’t know at this point.”

The study said further research is needed to replicate its findings and determine whether the presence of these metals can filter out of the product and contaminate the body.

“I don’t think it’s alarm bells that should go off,” Rashid said. “I think it’s an interesting area that people should investigate more and I love that more research is coming into this and I’m sure this will become more of a discussion in the future.”

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