Assessment of Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) and Human Health Risk Impact of Some Nigerian Poly-Herbal Formulations

The objective of this study was to assess the presence of potentially harmful substances in specific Nigerian poly-herbal formulations and to evaluate the associated health risks by calculating their carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic indices. Four poly-herbal formulations were acquired at random from Cynflac Pharmacy in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.The samples underwent wet digestion for analysis, and the presence of potentially harmful components was assessed using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS). The human health risk associated with the administration of the analysed poly-herbal formulations was evaluated by computing non-carcinogenic estimated daily intake (EDI), Target hazard quotients (THQ), and Hazard Index (HI), as well as carcinogenic risks. The concentrations of potentially harmful elements ranged from 0.036 to 0.26 mg/kg for Cd, 0.003 to 0.54 mg/kg for Cr, 0.37 to 0.52 mg/kg for Ni, 0.13 to 1.5 mg/kg for Cu, 0.002 to 1.4 mg/kg for Pb, 0.43 to 2.8 mg/kg for Zn, 0.54 to 0.86 mg/kg for Mn, and 4.4 to 6.5 mg/kg for Fe. Nevertheless, Nickel was not identified in the Rz and Jn poly-herbal formulations. The investigation indicated that the concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Zn were within the permitted limits set by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The concentrations of Ni (Gk and Yy), Mn, and Fe were found to exceed the permitted limits set by the World Health Organisation (WHO). From a perspective of human health, the evaluations of non-carcinogenic risk were found to be within acceptable limits and were lower than 1. However, the evaluation of carcinogenic risk revealed that a majority of the samples of the poly-herbal formulation exceeded the average incremental lifetime cancer risk of 10 − 4. According to the findings of this study, consuming these poly-herbal formulations may provide a cancer-causing health risk to the consumer. Hence, it is imperative to implement a consistent and rigorous regulatory oversight to guarantee the safety of poly-herbal formulations and consumers in Nigeria.