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In conclusion, lab testing for heavy metals is a crucial tool for identifying potential health risks, protecting the environment, and ensuring regulatory compliance.
WHY HAIR IS A PREFERRED TISSUE FOR TESTING?
Hair is considered an ideal tissue for detecting toxic and nutrient element levels for several reasons:
1. Hair grows at a steady rate, typically 1-2 cm per month, allowing it to provide a chronological record of element exposure and metabolism (1).
2. Toxic elements can be concentrated in hair 200-300 times more than in blood or urine, making it a more sensitive biomarker for exposure to toxic elements such as arsenic, aluminum, cadmium, lead, antimony, and mercury (2).
3. Hair element levels are not regulated by homeostatic mechanisms like blood, which means that deviations in hair element levels can be detected earlier, often before the appearance of overt symptoms (3).
4. Scalp hair is easy to sample and non-invasive compared to other tissue sampling methods (4).
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