Ground cinnamon sold in U.S. discount stores is contaminated with high levels of lead and should be discarded.
  • LinkOpensChest.wav@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    37·
    3 months ago

    Holy shit, one of the labels actually says it may expose you to lead. They knew, and they sold it anyway.

    And I still can’t get over the fact that kids had to be poisoned before the FDA took note.

    This is a systemic failure.

    • whodatdair@lemmy.blahaj.zone
      28·
      3 months ago

      If people don’t wake up, “deregulation” is going to defang the fda, epa, and other agencies that were set up because people were being hurt and killed.

      If you don’t know about it, look up “the poison squad” - people were putting things like borax in food because it made it prettier, it took a guy literally feeding volunteers various things people were adding to food to prove they were poison. There were no rules for what you could sell as food.

      If you want to feel really sad, look up “swill milk” - babies died being fed it because it had such little nutritional value. It often had chalk mixed in to make it appear less watery.

      Capitalism encourages people to hurt others for personal gain. We need these organizations to keep a lid on the worst of us.

      • Ms. ArmoredThirteen@lemmy.ml
        8·
        3 months ago

        The history of milk is way worse than chalk. Plaster, cow brain, rotting eggs, and formaldehyde all went into the mix among other things.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    8·
    3 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    Ground cinnamon sold by U.S. discount retailers is contaminated with high levels of lead and should be discarded, federal health officials said Wednesday.

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said cinnamon sold by stores including the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar contains lead at levels that could be unsafe for people, particularly children, with prolonged exposure to the spice.

    FDA officials launched what they called a “targeted survey” of cinnamon products sold in discount stores after an October 2023 recall of lead-tainted cinnamon applesauce pouches that sickened nearly 500 U.S. children.

    No illnesses or other health effects have been reported in connection with the new ground cinnamon alert, the FDA said.

    Long-term exposure of lead can cause problems, especially in growing children, including learning disabilities, behavioral difficulties and lower IQ.

    The agency sent a letter to all cinnamon manufacturers, processors, distributors and facility operators in the U.S. reminding them they’re required to prevent contamination from chemical hazards in food, including spices.

    The original article contains 396 words, the summary contains 161 words. Saved 59%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • auth@lemmy.ml
    4·
    3 months ago

    the US food supply is a big fuck show… from fish to olive oil to cinnamon powder…