Ingredient class — algae/seaweed-based
This page is a scaffolded entry for HMTc Taxonomy v2.0 Category 16 (Dietary Supplements (Human)), Row 19: Ingredient class — algae/seaweed-based. Evidence ingest into this row is in progress; this page is the routing destination for source-page declarations of products: [supplements-algae-seaweed-based]. Sections below are populated by the routing layer (CLAUDE.md Part 5b) as sources land. 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 Dietary Supplements (Human) 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 heavymetaltested.com, not on this public page.
Who this page is for
- Brand legal teams
- What the peer-reviewed and regulatory literature reports for heavy-metal occurrence in Ingredient class — algae/seaweed-based, with applicable regulatory caps and source-traceable findings. Use this page to evaluate certification or class-action exposure on a literature-anchored basis.
- Brand regulatory affairs / QA
- The current evidence base for Ingredient class — algae/seaweed-based, the levers most-effective at reducing heavy-metal load, and the applicable regulatory limits with jurisdiction and basis.
- Retailers and category buyers
- The row-level assortment risk profile and where the literature distinguishes higher-risk from lower-risk product configurations within this row.
- HMT&C staff (internal)
- HMT&C certification thresholds for products in this row are developed under the certification program at heavymetaltested.com, not on this public page. The Index and HMT&C operate on the same evidence base but apply different publication rules; see the methodology for the separation.
Methodology
This page reports what the cited sources say about heavy-metal concentrations in ingredient class — algae/seaweed-based. Speciation is non-substitutable per CLAUDE.md Part 14 (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 heavymetaltested.com, not on this page; this public page reports literature evidence only.
The applicable regulatory jurisdictions for this row are: FDA (DSHEA), USP, California Prop 65.
Literature Evidence Summary
Pending ingest. The routing layer will surface direct-row-fit sources here as they are added to the corpus with products: [supplements-algae-seaweed-based] in source-page frontmatter.
Source Evidence Inventory
Pending ingest. The routing layer populates this section from the source-page set declaring products: [supplements-algae-seaweed-based].
Broad Product Context: Author-Scope Index
Pending ingest. The routing layer surfaces sources whose author-stated scope is broader than this row (route_kind: broad_product_context) as they are added.
Federal/Regulatory Limits vs Field Findings
Pending ingest. The applicable regulatory jurisdictions for this row are recorded in the page frontmatter; the crosswalk table is generated by tools/apply-product-crosswalk-sections.mjs once regulation pages and field-evidence sources are routed to this row with structured limit values.
Levers to reduce contamination
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 — Pending ingest.
- Agronomic levers — Pending ingest. (See Agronomic mitigation for general agronomic mitigation context.)
- Processing levers — Pending ingest. (See Processing mitigation.)
- Formulation levers — Pending ingest. (See Formulation mitigation.)
- Testing and QC levers — Pending ingest. (See Testing and quality-control mitigation when published.)
- Packaging and storage levers — Pending ingest. (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 heavymetaltested.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
Pending ingest. Regulatory events (recalls, enforcement actions, import alerts) relevant to this row will be added as agency records are ingested into the corpus.
Sources
Pending ingest. The Source Legend below is auto-generated by tools/evidence/build-source-legend.mjs once source pages declaring products: [supplements-algae-seaweed-based] are added.
Sources
Auto-generated from source-page frontmatter. The “Used on this page for” column is populated by the orchestrator’s POPULATE-SOURCE-LEGEND action; pending entries appear as *[awaiting synthesis]*.
| # | Citation | Year | Type | Used on this page for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Porwollik et al. 2026. The quality and safety of Rhodiola rosea supplements on the U.S. market: An analysis of biomarkers, heavy metals, and pesticide residues, PLoS One | 2026 | Peer-reviewed | US Pb, Cd, tAs, tHg occurrence in Ten commercially available Rhodiola rosea supplement products (7 capsular, 3 tinctures) purchased on the U.S. market in 2024 (n=10) |
| 2 | Sund et al. 2026. Pulsed electric field processing as an alternative to warm water treatment for the reduction of potentially toxic elements in Saccharina latissima, Journal of Applied Phycology | 2026 | Peer-reviewed | NO tAs, Cd, Pb, tHg occurrence in Unprocessed, pulsed-electric-field processed, and warm-water-treated Saccharina latissima samples, n=3 per treatment (n=15) |
| 3 | Barber et al. 2025. Toxic elements in baby and young children’s foods in the US and correlation to ingredients, Food Additives & Contaminants: Part B | 2025 | Peer-reviewed | US tAs, iAs, Cd, tHg, MeHg, Pb, Tl occurrence in Non-targeted 2023 FDA convenience survey of 566 foods intended for babies, young children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers:… (n=566) |
| 4 | Gao et al. 2025. Wild Cordyceps sinensis exhibits far lower arsenic accumulation and hepatorenal toxicity in mice compared to equivalent dose of inorganic arsenic, Frontiers in Pharmacology | 2025 | Peer-reviewed | CN tAs, iAs occurrence in Eighteen CD-1 mice assigned to control, wild Cordyceps sinensis, and inorganic arsenic groups. (n=18) |
| 5 | Sochacka et al. 2025. Spirulina and Chlorella Dietary Supplements—Are They a Source Solely of Valuable Nutrients?, International Journal of Molecular Sciences | 2025 | Peer-reviewed | PL/EU Al, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Ga, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sr, Tl, V, Zn occurrence in 52 commercially available microalgae-based dietary supplements sold on the Polish market: 29 Spirulina (Spirulina platensis) products and 23… (n=52) |
| 6 | Brodziak-Dopierała et al. 2024. Mercury Levels in Selected Medicines and Dietary Supplements in Poland, Biological Trace Element Research | 2024 | Peer-reviewed | PL tHg occurrence in 139 pharmaceutical preparations (75 prescription and OTC drugs, 64 dietary supplements) purchased from pharmacies, drugstores, hypermarkets, and online… (n=139) |
| 7 | Thomas et al. 2024. Case of lead poisoning secondary to intake of herbal medicine for diabetes mellitus in a tertiary care hospital in Kerala, Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism Case Reports | 2024 | Peer-reviewed | IN Pb occurrence in Single clinical case: 58-year-old female with lead poisoning from Ayurvedic herbal diabetes capsules, Jubilee Mission Medical College, Kerala,… (n=1) |
| 8 | Torović et al. 2024. Mercury Content in Fish Oil Food Supplements and Associated Health Risk, Proceedings 2023, 91, 364 (MDPI Proceedings — 14th European Nutrition Conference FENS 2023) | 2024 | Conference proceedings | RS/BA tHg occurrence in 42 fish oil food supplements available on the markets of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of… (n=42) |
| 9 | Fuckar et al. 2023. Coffee Silver Skin-Health Safety, Nutritional Value, and Microwave Extraction of Proteins, Foods | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | HR Ni, Pb, tAs, Cd, Cr, Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe occurrence in One homogenized coffee-silverskin by-product sample from Croatian coffee roasting, analyzed in six parallel probes for reported heavy-metal concentrations. (n=1) |
| 10 | Brodziak-Dopierała et al. 2023. Mercury Exposure from the Consumption of Dietary Supplements Containing Vegetable, Cod Liver, and Shark Liver Oils, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | PL/EU tHg occurrence in 36 dietary supplement preparations purchased in Poland (pharmacies, drugstores, herbal shops): 18 vegetable oils (cold-pressed and unrefined), 12… (n=36) |
| 11 | Brzezinska-Rojek et al. 2023. Evaluation of the Safety and Potential Benefits of Beetroot-Based Dietary Supplements According to Their Elemental Composition, Biological Trace Element Research (published online 7 October 2023) | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | PL Cd, Pb, Al occurrence in 37 beetroot-based dietary supplements (10 tablets, 14 capsules, 13 powders) from Polish market (online and in-person shops); products… (n=37) |
| 12 | EFSA 2023. Dietary exposure to heavy metals and iodine intake via consumption of seaweeds and halophytes in the European population, EFSA Journal | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | EU Cd, Pb, tAs, iAs, tHg occurrence in Final food occurrence data set contained 9,715 analytical results from 2,965 food samples collected in 22 European countries… (n=2965) |
| 13 | Ortega-Flores et al. 2023. Inorganic Arsenic in holopelagic Sargassum spp. Stranded in the Mexican Caribbean: Seasonal Variations and Comparison With International Regulations and Guidelines, Aquatic Botany | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | MX tAs, iAs occurrence in Holopelagic Sargassum spp. stranded at Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, Mexico, sampled monthly from June 2018 to May 2019… (n=101) |
| 14 | Shaughnessy et al. 2023. Evidence of elevated heavy metals concentrations in wild and farmed sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) in New England, Scientific Reports | 2023 | Peer-reviewed | US tAs, iAs, Cd, Pb, tHg occurrence in Farmed sugar-kelp blades plus wild sugar-kelp sites in Massachusetts and southern New England (n=12) |
| 15 | Nelson et al. 2022. Determination of Heavy Metals in a Variety of Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Products, First Action 2021.03, Journal of AOAC INTERNATIONAL | 2022 | Peer-reviewed | US/CA tAs, Cd, tHg, Pb occurrence in Four cannabis/cannabis-derived validation matrices with native As, Cd, Hg, and Pb values in Table 5: flower (inhaled), hemp… (n=4) |
| 16 | Aziz et al. 2021. Potential of Gracilaria tenuistipitata var. liui grown in Nuniachara, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, Bangladesh Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | BD Pb, tAs, Cr, Cd occurrence in Replicate analyses of Gracilaria tenuistipitata var. liui grown at Nuniachara, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh and evaluated as seafood/food supplement. (n=3) |
| 17 | Cheyns et al. 2021. Intake of food supplements based on algae or cyanobacteria may pose a health risk due to elevated concentrations of arsenic species, Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | BE tAs, iAs occurrence in Thirty-three food supplements containing algae and/or cyanobacteria purchased from local stores and online stores in Belgium during 2013-2016;… (n=33) |
| 18 | Ciocan et al. 2021. Lead poisoning from Ayurvedic treatment: a further case, La Medicina del Lavoro | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | IT/IN Pb, tHg, tAs occurrence in Single case: 30-year-old Indian sailor treated in Italy; ICP-MS analysis of 4 Ayurvedic drug product samples (products 1,… |
| 19 | Liu et al. 2021. Discovery and Identification of Arsenolipids Using a Precursor-Finder Strategy and Data-Independent Mass Spectrometry, Environmental Science and Technology | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | CA tAs occurrence in Krill oil capsules, tuna fillets, hairtail fish heads, and kelp purchased from retail markets in Edmonton (Canada) and… (n=4) |
| 20 | Luvonga et al. 2021. Determination of total arsenic and hydrophilic arsenic species in seafood, Journal of Food Composition and Analysis | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | US tAs, iAs occurrence in Seven homogenized seafood/seaweed study materials: spirulina powder, Atlantic kelp powder, geoduck clam, wild-caught brown shrimp, aquacultured white-leg shrimp,… (n=7) |
| 21 | Viviers et al. 2021. An assessment of heavy metal contaminants related to cannabis-based products in the South African market, Forensic Science International: Reports | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | ZA Cd, Pb, tAs, tHg, Co, V, Ni, Tl, Au, Pd, Ir, Os, Rh, Ru, Se, Ag, Pt occurrence in Three hundred ten cannabis-based products submitted to a South African contract laboratory, grouped as edible, extract, infusion, liquid,… (n=310) |
| 22 | Wang et al. 2021. AGNH Protects Against Cinnabar and Realgar-Induced Hepatorenal Toxicity in Mice via Attenuation of Oxidative Stress, Inflammation, and Apoptosis, Frontiers in Pharmacology | 2021 | Peer-reviewed | CN tHg, tAs, iAs occurrence in Mice (ICR strain) administered cinnabar (HgS) and realgar (As4S4) orally as part of traditional Chinese medicine formulation safety… |
| 23 | Duinker et al. 2020. Knowledge update on macroalgae food and feed safety, Rapport fra Havforskningen | 2020 | Government report | NO/EU iAs, Cd, Pb, tHg, Se, Fe, Zn occurrence in Norwegian and imported macroalgae analysed by the Institute of Marine Research in 2014-2019 for the Norwegian Food Safety… (n=353) |
| 24 | Falandysz et al. 2020. Mercury in traditionally foraged species of fungi (macromycetes) from the karst area across Yunnan province in China, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology | 2020 | Peer-reviewed | CN tHg occurrence in Composite samples from 42 traditionally foraged or medicinal fungal species collected at 23 sites across Yunnan province, China,… |
| 25 | Jairoun et al. 2020. Heavy Metal contamination of Dietary Supplements products available in the UAE markets and the associated risk, Scientific Reports | 2020 | Peer-reviewed | AE Cd, Pb, tAs occurrence in 277 dietary supplement products collected by random selection from the UAE market (pharmacies, para-pharmacies, nutrition shops). Categories: 43.7%… (n=277) |
| 26 | Lorenc et al. 2020. Arsenic species and their transformation pathways in marine plants. Usefulness of advanced hyphenated techniques HPLC/ICP-MS and UPLC/ESI-MS/MS in arsenic species analysis, Talanta | 2020 | Peer-reviewed | tAs, iAs occurrence in Five seaweed/algae materials analyzed in Poland: NMIJ CRM 7405-a Hijiki, a cooked/dried Hijiki product, Nori sheets for sushi,… (n=5) |
| 27 | Cherry et al. 2019. Risks and benefits of consuming edible seaweeds, Nutrition Reviews | 2019 | Peer reviewed review | GB/IE/KR iAs, tAs, Cd, Pb, tHg occurrence in Narrative review of edible seaweed nutrition, functional-food evidence, and adverse-effect concerns, including heavy-metal and arsenic-speciation context from cited… |
| 28 | Liu et al. 2018. Speciation and bioaccessibility of arsenic in traditional Chinese medicines and assessment of its potential health risk, Science of the Total Environment | 2018 | Peer-reviewed | CN tAs, iAs occurrence in Twenty-four Chinese patent medicines and sixty Chinese herbal medicines purchased from a Beijing drugstore. The patent medicines included… (n=84) |
| 29 | Ma et al. 2018. Total and inorganic arsenic contents in seaweeds: Absorption, accumulation, transformation and toxicity, Aquaculture | 2018 | Peer reviewed review | international/CN/JP tAs, iAs occurrence in Secondary literature review of published seaweed arsenic data available up to June 2017, covering total arsenic values for… |
| 30 | Shchukin et al. 2018. Comparative analysis of the content of heavy metals, aluminum, and arsenic in brown algae of various origins, Pharmaceutical Chemistry Journal | 2018 | Peer-reviewed | RU/CN tAs, Cd, tHg, Pb, Al, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Sr, Zn occurrence in Six pharmacy-purchased medicinal herbal preparations described as Laminaria thalli, bought in Moscow pharmacy chains. Raw material origins were… (n=6) |
| 31 | Bolan et al. 2017. Comparative analysis of speciation and bioaccessibility of arsenic in rice grains and complementary medicines, Chemosphere | 2017 | Peer-reviewed | AU/BD/IN tAs, iAs occurrence in Six rice-grain samples from research grain collections in Bangladesh, India, and Korea, grown under greenhouse or field conditions… (n=22) |
| 32 | Li et al. 2017. Determination of different arsenic species in food-grade spirulina powder by ion chromatography combined with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, Journal of Separation Science | 2017 | Peer-reviewed | CN tAs, iAs occurrence in Food-grade spirulina powder samples purchased at production sites in seven Chinese provinces: Yunnan, Hainan, Guangxi, Fujian, Inner Mongolia,… (n=7) |
| 33 | Parjikolaei et al. 2016. Valuable Biomolecules from Nine North Atlantic Red Macroalgae: Amino Acids, Fatty Acids, Carotenoids, Minerals and Metals, Natural Resources | 2016 | Peer-reviewed | DK tAs, Cd, Pb, Cr, Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Mo, Se occurrence in Nine North Atlantic red macroalgae species collected in Denmark, with three replicates per species for the metals figure. (n=27) |
| 34 | Sattler et al. 2016. Essential minerals and inorganic contaminants (barium, cadmium, lithium, lead and vanadium) in dried bee pollen produced in Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, Food Science and Technology | 2016 | Peer-reviewed | BR Ba, Cd, Pb, V, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Zn occurrence in Five unprocessed bee-pollen samples from Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, collected in August-October 2011 and analyzed as… (n=5) |
| 35 | Coghlan et al. 2015. Combined DNA, toxicological and heavy metal analyses provides an auditing toolkit to improve pharmacovigilance of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Scientific Reports 5:17475 | 2015 | Peer-reviewed | AU tAs, Pb, Cd occurrence in Twenty-six traditional Chinese medicine products audited in Australia; 25 screened for heavy metals by SF-ICP-MS because one aqueous… (n=26) |
| 36 | Cao et al. 2014. Pharmacokinetic properties of arsenic species after oral administration of Sargassum pallidum extract in rats using an HPLC-HG-AFS method, Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis | 2014 | Peer-reviewed | CN tAs, iAs occurrence in One dried Sargassum pallidum material collected from Yantai City, Shandong Province, China, identified by the corresponding author, deposited… (n=1) |
| 37 | EFSA 2014. Dietary exposure to inorganic arsenic in the European population, EFSA Journal 2014;12(3):3597 | 2014 | Government report | EU iAs, tAs concentrations (n=103773) |
| 38 | Al-Dhabi 2013. Heavy metal analysis in commercial Spirulina products for human consumption, Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences | 2013 | Peer-reviewed | AU/US/JP Ni, Zn, tHg, Pt, Mg, Mn occurrence in Twenty-five commercially available Spirulina dietary supplements in tablet (n = 16) and capsule (n = 9) forms, with… (n=25) |
| 39 | Díaz et al. 2012. Total and inorganic arsenic concentrations in different species of economically important algae harvested from coastal zones of Chile, Food and Chemical Toxicology | 2012 | Peer-reviewed | CL tAs, iAs occurrence in Seventy-nine algae samples covering 14 species collected in 2003-2004 from six Chilean coastal zones; direct-consumption species were collected… (n=79) |
| 40 | EFSA 2012. Cadmium dietary exposure in the European population, EFSA Journal 2012;10(1):2551 | 2012 | Government report | EU Cd occurrence in Cadmium occurrence results in food submitted to EFSA from 22 EU Member States, 3 European Economic Area or… (n=178541) |
| 41 | Uneyama et al. 2007. Arsenic in various foods: Cumulative data, Food Additives & Contaminants | 2007 | Peer-reviewed | JP/US/GB tAs, iAs occurrence in Cumulative review of arsenic measurements in food from PubMed, Japanese local-authority research databases, and national food-safety surveillance reports;… |
| 42 | García et al. 2006. Determination of soluble toxic arsenic species in alga samples by microwave-assisted extraction and high performance liquid chromatography-hydride generation-inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry, Journal of Chromatography A | 2006 | Peer-reviewed | ES/JP/DE tAs, iAs occurrence in Four algae/materials analyzed for extraction and arsenic speciation: CRM NIES No. 9 Sargassum fulvellum; lyophilized Bioma-6 Chlorella vulgaris… (n=4) |
| 43 | Nischwitz et al. 2006. Improved Arsenic Speciation Analysis for Extracts of Commercially Available Edible Marine Algae Using HPLC-ES-MS/MS, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 54(18):6507-6519 | 2006 | Peer-reviewed | US/CA/IS tAs, iAs occurrence in Twelve commercially available kelp/algal powder samples obtained from suppliers in the United States and Canada, including Ascophyllum nodosum,… (n=12) |
| 44 | Morita et al. 1990. Chemical form of arsenic in marine macroalgae, Applied Organometallic Chemistry 4(3):181-190 | 1990 | Peer reviewed review | JP tAs, iAs occurrence in Review plus HPLC/ICP/MS characterization of 38 Japanese marine algae, including edible brown, red, and green macroalgae; Table 2… (n=38) |
Page history
The five most recent substantive edits to this page. The full version history lives in git; when DOI minting comes online (see schema docs), each entry below will also link to a version-pinned DataCite DOI.
| Commit | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ae6c129 | 2026-07-01 | feat(auth): large login + role-based signup screens (design, burgundy) |