(DailyDig.com) – The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned on March 6 that their investigation into ground cinnamon products showed that they have a high level of lead contamination. Experts recommend discarding all products sold by discount retailers.
The FDA has urged recalls of the tainted ground cinnamon, as lengthy exposure to the product may not be safe, especially for children. The FDA has advised six distributors to recall their products and warn consumers not to use them.
According to the agency, they launched a survey targeting cinnamon products in October 2023. That was when a recall of cinnamon applesauce products was found to be tainted with lead, which caused about 500 children in the US to become ill.
The current FDA notice on ground cinnamon products has levels of lead ranging from 2.03 to 3.4 ppm (parts per million). This is lower than the levels of the applesauce products, which were 2,270 to 5,110 ppm.
The FDA stated that the new lead-tainted ground cinnamon has not produced any reported illnesses or health effects. No lead exposure in humans is safe, but long-term exposure could cause significant health issues, mostly in children. Some of the health effects, according to the CDC, are behavior problems, learning disabilities, speech issues, and low IQ.
The brands and outlets include:
MK is sold at SF Supermarket.
Supreme Tradition is sold at Family Dollar and Dollar Tree stores.
Marcum is sold at Save A Lot stores.
Swad is sold at Patel Brothers.
The La Fiesta is sold at SuperMercados and La Superior.
El Chilar is sold at La Joya Morelense.
A spokesperson for Family Dollar and Dollar Tree stores stated that customers can return products to nearby stores for a refund.
The FDA said that they notified all the facility operators of US distributors, processors, and manufacturers of cinnamon to impress on them the need to prevent any contamination of their products.
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