Rice and drinking water are recognized as the dominant sources of arsenic (As) for human intake, while
little is known about As accumulation and speciation in Chinese Herbal Medicines (CHMs), which have
been available for many hundreds of years for the treatment of diseases in both eastern and western
cultures. Inorganic arsenic was the predominant species in all of CHMs samples. The levels of inorganic
arsenic in CHMs from fields and markets or pharmacies ranged from 63 to 550 ng/g with a mean of
208 ng/g and 94 to 8683 ng/g with a mean of 1092 ng/g, respectively. The highest concentration was
found in the Chrysanthemum from pharmacies. It indicates that the risk of inorganic As in CHMs to
human health is higher in medicines from markets or pharmacies than that collected directly from fields.
Some CHMs may make a considerable contribution to the human intake of inorganic arsenic.