Risk Assessment of Arsenic Consumed in Commercial Herbal Tea Sachets

Abstract

Nowadays, consumption of herbal tea has become very popular among Thai people since it is believed that drinking herbal tea is good for health. However, some herbal raw materials used in the manufacture of
herbal tea may be contaminated with toxic elements such as arsenic. The main objective of the study was to determine the risk of arsenic contamination in eight kinds of herbal tea sachets, namely, rosella tea, Cassia
alata tea, safflower tea, ginger tea, Morus alba tea, senna tea, Thunbergia laurifolia tea and Orthosiphon aristatus tea. The procedures of the study comprised both a survey of herbal tea consumption in Thai people and a
quantitative determination of arsenic content in herbal tea sachets. A survey of herbal tea consumption in Thai people was carried out by using a questionnaire. The total arsenic and inorganic arsenic in the selected
herbal tea sachets was quantitatively determined by using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The risk assessment described in terms of hazard quotient (HQ) and cancer risk (CR) was calculated using both deterministic
and probabilistic risk assessment. As a result, both HQ and CR values of risk assessment for arsenic contamination in eight kinds of herbal tea sachets remained within acceptance criteria. For probabilistic risk
assessment by @RISK® software, the cancer risk values were 1 to 8 in 10,000,000. Generally, the criteria of cancer risk value should not exceed 1 in 1,000,000. From this study, it can be concluded that the consumption
of the eight herbal tea sachets does not put one at risk of developing cancer as a result of arsenic intake.