High levels of lead discovered in 12 cinnamon, spice products
High levels of lead have been found in 12 cinnamon and spice powder brands, according to nonprofit Consumer Reports.
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Several companies this week said they’d stop selling cinnamon products after Consumer Reports found items tainted with lead.
The consumer nonprofit found traces of lead in cinnamon powder and multi-spice powders from a dozen brands. Consumer Reports used a threshold of 1 part per million that New York state uses to recall products. Food safety experts from the nonprofit advised people to “avoid those products.”
The companies include Paras, EGN, Mimi’s Products, Bowl & Basket, Rani Brand, Zara Foods, Three Rivers, Yu Yee Brand, BaiLiFeng, Spicy King, Badia and Deep. It’s unclear how the products ended up with elevated lead levels.
However, the powders aren’t the only items that have been found to contain lead, a neurotoxin that can be harmful at any level. Regulation on lead in food and other everyday products is an increasing concern, especially as traditional sources of lead exposure from paint, gasoline and pipes have declined considerably.
How does lead end up in food?
Lead occurs naturally, though how it ends up in the food supply is complicated. In a globalized economy, the U.S. often imports foods, particularly spices. Those items can be sourced from countries where there’s less regulation. Lead has been used to make food products look more appealing, but nearby industrial activity can also taint water and soil used on crops.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration didn’t respond to an email request for comment on the Consumer Reports findings.
Other food products with recent lead concerns
- In March, the FDA said that testing on six ground cinnamon products found they had elevated levels of lead.
- In April, a separate Consumer Reports report recommended Lunchables be removed from the National School Lunch Program because of higher levels of sodium and lead, though the product’s maker called it misleading and said their products met regulations.
- In November, WanaBana recalled cinnamon applesauce products. The company sourced cinnamon manufactured in Ecuador that was tainted with lead chromate, an additive that seeks to brighten the spice. There were at least 500 cases across the U.S. of children who ate the snack and had elevated lead levels.
Why is lead dangerous?
Lead is especially concerning because children’s bodies absorb it more easily than adults, whether they breathe it in, ingest it or touch it. Children who have iron deficiencies, a condition more common in premature babies or those with low birth weight, take in lead even more.
High levels of lead can cause seizures, coma and death. But even at low levels, it can cause behavioral problems, loss of IQ and attention deficit disorders. Children can also have stunted growth and impaired hearing or speech.
Regulation around lead restrictions, such as pipes, paint and gasoline, has contributed to precipitous declines in lead exposure in children in the U.S. Additionally, Medicaid covers the cost of blood tests to detect lead in children, and many private insurers do the same. In 1988, more than a quarter of children 5 and younger had elevated lead levels in their blood. In 2014, that number was 2%.
Certain communities are still at greater risk of lead exposure. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says this includes children of color, immigrants and refugees, families in poverty, and people in older housing. But the changing face of exposure — to food or other household items — reaffirms that everyone is at risk.
Jonathan Limehouse of contributed to this report.
