Using substandard incense could raise lead levels: doctorsBy Chiu Chih-jou and Esme Yeh / Staff reporter, with staff writerBurning substandard incense containing lead-based pigments risks raising blood lead levels, doctors warned. Photo: CNAShe and her family across three generations were found to have lead poisoning, Lin said. Studies have found that children from families that frequently burn incense had slightly higher blood lead levels than their peers, but not to the extent of lead poisoning, Yang said, adding that lead poisoning caused purely by burning incense was rare. Measuring lead levels through blood tests is the most straightforward way to find out whether a person is at risk of lead poisoning, he said. Although the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s blood lead reference value has been lowered to 3.5mcg/dL, blood lead levels have no safe range, with “the lower, the better,” Yang said.

Source: Taipei Times February 19, 2026 17:22 UTC