Corrosion and elution of harmful metals from metal buttons

Metals present in metal items may due to the corrosion processes that occur in sweat cause adverse health effects, such as allergic reactions, on direct and prolonged contact with the skin. For example, 20% of female population and about 6% of male population are allergic to nickel. Therefore, three different textile accessories were tested for metal leaching: the samples were kept at 30 °C in the artificial sweat solution for different time periods and quantified. The results have shown that the limits prescribed by international standards were much exceeded. Samples of such properties present a high risk for human health and should be used with special attention.