Evaluation of Dietary Supplement Contamination by Xenobiotic and Essential Elements Using Microwave-Enhanced Sample Digestion and Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry.
Dietary supplements were analyzed by evaluating the elemental content in six widely consumed products manufactured by four well-known companies. The elements included the neurotoxic and carcinogenic elements cadmium, mercury, aluminum, lead, arsenic, and antimony, as well as the essential elements zinc, selenium, chromium, iron, and copper, which were often not listed as ingredients on the product labels. Contamination from either xenobiotic or essential elements was found in all samples analyzed. The samples were prepared using US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Method 3052, microwave-enhanced digestion. The resulting digests were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry based on EPA Method 6020B. The analytical protocols were validated by analyzing a multivitamin standard reference material, the National Institute of Standards and Technology Standard Reference Material 3280. The application of EPA standard methods demonstrated their utility in making accurate and precise measurements in complex matrices with multiple ingredients and excipients. In the future, the use of these methods could provide a uniform quality assurance protocol that can be implemented along with other industry guidelines to improve the production of dietary supplements.
a 1 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Duquesne University , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Gregory M
GM
Zinn
b 2 Applied Isotope Technologies , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
G M Mizanur
GM
Rahman
c 3 Department of Medicine, The Children's Institute , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Scott
S
Faber
a 1 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Duquesne University , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Mesay Mulugeta
MM
Wolle
b 2 Applied Isotope Technologies , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Matt
M
Pamuku
a 1 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Duquesne University , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
H M Skip
HM
Kingston
D019587:Dietary Supplements / Q000032:analysis*; D004340:Drug Contamination; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis; D008872:Microwaves; D011786:Quality Control; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013054:Spectrophotometry, Atomic; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis*; D014481:United States; D015262:Xenobiotics / Q000032:analysis*
D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014131:Trace Elements; D015262:Xenobiotics
EPA Method 3052; EPA Method 6020B; dietary supplements; elemental contamination; inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry; microwave-enhanced digestion