Detox and binders
Does chlorella (or spirulina) actually remove heavy metals?
An open-label study reported lower hair mercury and a larger blood-mercury change than controls after 9 g/day of chlorella for 3 months. A second study, using a multi-ingredient product, reported lower hair metals at 90 days. No spirulina trial with a metal outcome was located, so spirulina is not graded. Neither chlorella study shows removal of a stored body burden with a clinical outcome.
Studies
- Maruyama 2018: open-label, 35 versus 23 healthy volunteers, 9 g/day for 3 months. Hair mercury fell (p=0.041). Blood change was greater than control (p=0.038). Hair n=33 and blood n=19 were analysed. Four of six authors were employed by a chlorella company. No PMID was found.
- Merino 2019: 16 adults with titanium dental implants and/or amalgam, plus 21 controls. Hair mercury, silver, tin, and lead decreased versus baseline at 90 days. The product had more than one ingredient. PMID 31014007.
Sources
Heavy Metal Index
Heavy Metal Index: Mercury. This Heavy Metal Index URL returned HTTP 200 on 15 October 2026. Figures on this page are not copied from that index. They come from the sources named above.
What's safe to buy
The Heavy Metal Tested and Certified public register listed no licensees on 15 October 2026. That page reported 0 certified brands and 0 certified products, and it stated that no brand has completed the three-lot baseline. A specimen layout on the register is an illustration, not a licensee. This page does not name or rank any brand.
The program states that certification is a measurement of a product against a published limit, not a statement that the product is safe. If a licensee is later listed for this category, it will be on the register.
This page summarizes cited documents. It does not diagnose or prescribe. Reviewed 15 October 2026.