Research Article
The Benefits and Risks of Consuming Brewed Tea: Beware of Toxic Element Contamination
Table 4
Toxicant (heavy metal) levels according to country of origin.
| Tea type | Tea country of origin | High levels | Moderate levels | Low levels |
| Green tea organic | China | Pb, Al | As | Cd | Green tea organic | Sri Lanka | | | Low in Pb, Cd, Al, As | Green tea organic | Japan | | As, Pb, Cd, Al | | Green tea standard | China | High in Al | Pb, As | Low in Cd | White tea | India | | | Lowest in Al, Pb, Cd, As | White tea | China | | Pb, Al, As | Low in Cd | Oolong tea organic | China | Highest in As, high in Pb, Al | | Low in Cd | Oolong tea standard | China | Highest in Pb | Al, Cd, As | | Black tea organic | Blend India Sri Lanka | Al | Pb | Low in Cd, As | Black tea standard | India Sri Lanka | Al | | Lowest Pb, low in Cd, As |
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Pb: lead, Cd: cadmium, Al: aluminum, As: arsenic.
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