Overview
This page is a scaffolded entry for HMTc Taxonomy v2.0 Category 15 (Feminine Care), Row 1: Menstrual tampons (scented/unscented; applicator tested as distinct component). Studies for this row are still being read. Where a section is empty, the row has not yet accumulated contributing sources of the required kind.
Literature scope
The Heavy Metal Index source corpus is currently focused on food and food-contact materials. This page documents an HMTc Taxonomy v2.0 row in the category Feminine Care for which no peer-reviewed primary or government sources have yet been ingested. The page exists as the routing destination for future ingest. Until sources land, the literature-evidence sections below are deliberately empty rather than guessed; HMTc certification thresholds for products in this row continue to be developed under the certification program at heavymetalcertified.com, not on this public page.
Reading guide
Legal, regulatory and retailer teams can use the cited measurements, applicable limits and study limitations to assess the evidence for this category.
Quality teams can examine product form, measurement basis and sources of variation. Journalists and researchers can follow each reference to the original findings and methods.
Related tools and pages: heavymetalcertified.com · methodology
Evidence summary
Sources for this row will be listed here once they are catalogued.
Source Evidence Inventory
Sources for this row will be listed here once they are catalogued.
Supporting evidence and scope
Broader-scope sources for this row will be listed here when they are catalogued.
Federal/Regulatory Limits vs Field Findings
Regulatory limits for this row will be listed here once they are catalogued.
Controls and mitigation
Practical interventions to reduce heavy-metal load in this row, ordered by impact magnitude. Each lever names the magnitude of the effect with a cited source; cross-links to dedicated Mitigation pages where they exist.
- Sourcing levers — Not yet catalogued.
- Agronomic levers — Not yet catalogued. (See Agronomic mitigation for general agronomic mitigation context.)
- Processing levers — Not yet catalogued. (See Processing mitigation.)
- Formulation levers — Not yet catalogued. (See Formulation mitigation.)
- Testing and QC levers — Not yet catalogued. (See Testing and quality-control mitigation when published.)
- Packaging and storage levers — Not yet catalogued. (See Packaging and storage mitigation when published.)
How standards math uses this page
HMT&C certification thresholds for this row are developed under the certification program at heavymetalcertified.com, not on this page. The row-standard for this row is an aggregate computed from the contributing source pool in the row’s native finished-product basis; it is not a per-source decoration of any single value cited on this page. This public page reports literature evidence only.
Historical recalls and enforcement
Public regulatory events for this row, such as recalls and import alerts, will be listed here as they are catalogued.
Methodology
This page reports what the cited sources say about heavy-metal concentrations in menstrual tampons (scented/unscented; applicator tested as distinct component). Speciation is non-substitutable (iAs vs tAs, MeHg vs tHg, Cr-VI vs total Cr). Basis is preserved (finished-product as sold unless the source specifies otherwise; see each row for the basis label). Non-detect handling follows each source’s reporting convention. Pooling is avoided across LOD/LOQ, period, geography, and analytical-basis differences. HMT&C certification thresholds for products in this row are developed under the certification program at heavymetalcertified.com, not on this page; this public page reports literature evidence only.
The applicable regulatory jurisdictions for this row are: FDA (medical devices for tampons/pads/cups), EU MDR, FDA cosmetics.
Sources
Sources for this row will be listed here once they are catalogued.
Sources
Source records associated with this topic. Inclusion does not establish that every finding applies to this product or ingredient. References above identify works cited in the text.
| # | Citation | Year | Type | Used on this page for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ellison et al. 2026. Integrating experimental data and mechanistic modeling to assess potential lead exposure from tampon use, Toxicological Sciences | 2026 | Peer-reviewed | US Pb occurrence in Menstrual-fluid donors aged 22 to 51 years, plus deterministic simulations of a 4-hour tampon-wear scenario using Pb as… (n=11) |
| 2 | Marcelis et al. 2025. Chemical characterization of menstrual and intimate care products: An extractables & leachables investigation, Environment International | 2025 | Peer-reviewed | EU/US/CN Li, Al, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, tAs, Se, Cd, Sb, Ba, Pb, Sn, tHg occurrence in 64 menstrual and intimate care products originating from the EU, US, and China: tampons n=9, menstrual pads n=6,… (n=64) |
| 3 | Nic 2025. Investigating links between heavy metals in menstrual hygiene products and reproductive hormonal health, Laidlaw Undergraduate Research and Leadership Programme poster | 2025 | Conference proceedings | Pb, tAs occurrence in Four menstrual products incubated in synthetic vaginal fluid for Pb and As leaching tests, plus a survey of… (n=4) |
| 4 | Okwuegbuna 2025. Integrated Analytical Approaches for Menstrual Health Assessment: Heavy Metal Quantification and Optimized Sample Collection for Biomarker Analysis, Master of Science thesis, Chemical and Physical Sciences, University of Toronto | 2025 | Thesis | CA Cd, Pb, Cu occurrence in Four commercially available Canadian tampon brands, two regular-cotton and two organic-cotton products, tested by acid digestion/ICP-AES and by… (n=4) |
| 5 | Inc. 2024. Contaminants in Vaginal Tampons: A Systematic Literature Review (SLR), Final report prepared for FDA CDRH by International Consulting Associates, Inc., Version 5.0, December 5, 2024. | 2024 | Regulatory agency report | US tAs, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, tHg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, Sr, V, Zn, Ca occurrence in Nine studies included in an FDA CDRH-commissioned systematic literature review on vaginal tampon contaminants: four bench/laboratory studies of… (n=9) |
| 6 | Marcelis 2024. Development of a generic safety assessment strategy for feminine intimate products, PhD thesis, Vrije Universiteit Brussel | 2024 | Thesis | EU/US/CN Li, Al, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, tAs, Se, Cd, Sb, Ba, Pb, Sn, tHg occurrence in PhD thesis built around a market survey of 64 feminine intimate products from the EU, US, and Asia/China:… (n=64) |
| 7 | Marroquin et al. 2024. Chemicals in menstrual products: A systematic review, BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology | 2024 | Peer-reviewed | Marroquin et al. systematically reviewed studies that measured environmental chemicals in menstrual products or in biospecimens linked to menstrual-product use… |
| 8 | Shearston et al. 2024. Tampons as a source of exposure to metal(loid)s, Environment International | 2024 | Peer-reviewed | US/EU/UK tAs, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, tHg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, Zn occurrence in 30 tampons from 14 brands and 18 product lines, purchased in the United States, European Union, and United… (n=60) |
| 9 | Upson et al. 2022. Menstrual products as a source of environmental chemical exposure: A review from the epidemiologic perspective, Current Environmental Health Reports 9(1):38-52 | 2022 | Peer reviewed review | US/SE/DK Cd, Pb, tHg occurrence in Narrative review of 23 studies measuring environmental chemicals in menstrual products plus 3 epidemiologic studies of menstrual-product use… (n=26) |
| 10 | Carlin 2020. Analytical Chemistry of Consumer Products: Research and Regulation of Tampons and Eyeshadows, Bachelor of Arts thesis, New College of Florida, JBC Commons Theses & ETDs 5847 | 2020 | Thesis | US/KR/JP Pb, Cd, tHg, Cr, tAs, Co, Ni occurrence in Secondary BA-thesis review of literature and regulation for tampons and eyeshadows; no original product sampling or laboratory measurements… |
| 11 | Gao et al. 2020. Phthalates, bisphenols, parabens, and triclocarban in feminine hygiene products from the United States and their implications for human exposure, Environment International | 2020 | Peer-reviewed | Gao and Kannan measured 24 endocrine-disrupting chemicals in 77 feminine hygiene products purchased in the Albany, New York area. The… |
| 12 | Shin et al. 2009. Determination of Heavy Metals in Sanitary Products of Women, Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles | 2009 | Peer-reviewed | KR/JP/US Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Cd, Pb occurrence in Thirteen sanitary napkins and five tampons manufactured in Korea, Japan, the United States, Germany, and China; the Conclusion… (n=18) |
| 13 | Archer et al. 2005. Dioxin and Furan Levels Found in Tampons, Journal of Women’s Health | 2005 | Peer-reviewed | Archer et al. measured dioxins and furans in tampon samples purchased online or from retail stores. The analytes are PCDD/PCDF… |
| 14 | DeVito et al. 2002. Exposure Assessment to Dioxins from the Use of Tampons and Diapers, Environmental Health Perspectives 110(1):23-28 | 2002 | Peer-reviewed | DeVito and Schecter performed a screening-level and refined exposure assessment of dioxin (PCDD/PCDF) uptake from tampons and disposable diapers, motivated… |
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