# Comparison of selected metals in the fillers of 14 commercial hemp cigarette brands to commercial tobacco cigarettes

## TL;DR

This study compares metal levels in hemp cigarette fillers to tobacco cigarettes, finding some metals exceed state limits, raising concerns about potential health risks.

## Contribution

The paper is the first to report metal concentrations in commercial hemp cigarette fillers and compare them to tobacco products.

## Key findings

- Hemp cigarette filler cadmium levels were below detectable limits and lower than in tobacco products.
- Chromium, nickel, arsenic, and lead in some hemp brands exceeded state action limits.
- Metal concentrations in hemp cigarettes were generally similar to tobacco products, though means differed.

## Abstract

Cannabis sativa L. containing < 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is currently defined as hemp. Many different legal products in the United States now contain hemp and are marketed for their cannabinoid effects, as an alternative to tobacco products, or even as an aid for tobacco smoking cessation. The hemp cigarettes analyzed have similar designs to tobacco cigarettes with a filter and filler wrapped in paper. Cannabis sativa, like tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), is a hyperaccumulator of metals. Currently, no publications have reported analyses of metals in these cigarette-like products. Hemp and cannabidiol (CBD) products are increasing in popularity. Thus, reporting the metal concentrations from a variety of hemp cigarette brands can help assess the potential for harmful exposures. We analyzed the hemp filler in 14 commercial brands for beryllium (Be), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and uranium (U) content.

The hemp cigarette filler metals concentrations are compared to previously published metals levels in tobacco cigarette and little cigar filler. NIST Reference Material (RM) 8210 Hemp Plant was also analyzed to assess and confirm analytical accuracy. Of note, all hemp cigarette filler cadmium concentrations were below our lowest reportable level, and statistically lower than our previously published U.S. tobacco cigarettes and little cigars filler. The other metal concentration ranges were similar to previous tobacco cigarettes and little cigars results, although mean concentrations were statistically different in many cases. Different states have testing requirements with action limits for selected metals concentrations in Cannabis sativa L. Several hemp cigarette brands had chromium, nickel, arsenic, and lead concentrations that were above some state action limits.