DETERMINATION OF SOME HEAVY METALS IN SELECTED ORGANIC AND AFRICAN BLACK SOAPS COMMONLY USED IN DELTA STATE NIGERIA

This study intended to determine some heavy metal (mercury, cadmium, lead and arsenic) in two commercial cosmetics soaps. The term “heavy metal” refers to any metallic elements that has a relatively high density and are commonly associated with pollution and toxicity problems. Heavy metals contained in cosmetics are generally impurities on cosmetics ingredients. Sample preparation was done by using the wet destruction using atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) variance of AA600 model at specific wavelength respectively. Results showed that the concentration of cadmium was 1.00 and 1.25, Arsenic (1.85,1.35), lead (2.95,2.45) and mercury ( <0.001). Heavy metals were detected in all samples. Fortunately, they were within the safe limits. It’s suggested that government agencies and other related organizations should monitor the manufacturers and distributors of soap and other cosmetic products to regulate their heavy metal.