Original Research Article
Year: 2020 | Month: October-December | Volume: 5 | Issue: 4 | Pages: 317-330
Assessment of the Safety of Henna Cosmetics Sold in Lamu County- Kenya: Heavy Metals Components Levels with Respect to Standard Limits
TsanuoKassim Mohammed1, Jaleny Ochieng Paul2
1Department of Chemistry, Kenyatta University, Kenya.
2Faculty of Biological and Physical Sciences, Tom Mboya University College, Kenya.
Corresponding Author: Jaleny Paul Ochieng
ABSTRACT
Henna painting is an art of beautification which is commonly practised by the people of Lamu County. In Lamu, henna products are sold either in powdered or paste form of different colours. However, henna user sometimes faces adverse skin reactions arising from heavy metal content of the henna products. Such metals include lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd) and Nickel (Ni) which are toxic to both users and the environment. The level of these metals in henna products sold within Lamu County is not known. The aim of the study therefore, was to determine the level of Pb, Cd and Ni in henna cosmetic sold within Lamu County so as to assess their safety levels with respect to the standard limits. A total of 60 powdered and paste henna products from various brands were randomly selected and analyzed for heavy metals using Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS) after acid digestion of the samples. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) using SPSS version 17.0 was used to analyse the data. The lowest and highest mean levels (ppm) of heavy metals in the two categories of henna products were as follows: Powdered henna products: Pb (0.16±0.01 to 2.63±0.24), Cd (0.01±0.00 to 1.23±0.03) and Ni (0.13±0.01 to 2.73±0.09).Paste henna products: Pb (0.56±0.06 to 1.32±0.04), Cd (0.02±0.00 to 1.31±0.01) and Ni (0.14±0.02 to 3.01±0.09).Comparatively, no significant difference in the level of lead(p=0.065) and cadmium(p=0.577) was noted inpaste and powdered henna brands. However, a significant difference in the level of nickel (p=0.021) was recorded in the two categories of henna. One of the paste black henna product (PABL) recorded the highest level of nickel at a concentration of 3.01±0.01ppm. Generally, the powdered henna products recorded an overall mean level of Cd and Pb below the limit of 2 ppm by KeBS as well as Ni below the limit of 1 ppm by Health Canada, hence the products are recommended for use. However, the overall mean level of Ni in paste henna products was above the recommended limit of 1 ppm by Health Canada, hence such products should not be used frequently since they expose the henna users to the toxic effects of Ni. The results of the study can be used to create awareness on the need to adopt good manufacturing practice so as to protect the henna users and the environment from the harmful effects of heavy metals. In addition, the henna users can be sensitized on the high level of exposure to heavy metals in various categories and colours of henna products with respect to the set limit by standard bodies.
Keywords: KeBS, henna category, heavy metal, paste henna, powdered henna.