Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

Study: Lead Poisoning Could Lurk in Spices

We are a family that loves to cook from scratch. We aren't afraid to try new things and we take pride in having children that love a wide array of foods. My husband Thom is a chef, which doesn't hurt! Thom can whip up a fabulous meal from a limited supply of ingredients grabbed from the pantry. It is amazing to watch and to eat!

You can imagine our horror when we stumbled upon this recent news report linked above. The most frustrating aspect is that we can't find one single link that breaks down the risk by specific spice. Reports seem focused on ethnicity, such as "Indian or Mexican spices," rather than "oregano," or "basil." Are we to throw out each and every one of our powdered spices? Have we unknowingly exposed our entire family to lead and should we have everyone tested immediately? We use heavy amounts of spices in our daily creation of meals so this is not just unfounded panic.

We found this article on-line, meaning: it's not a 'space' issue that limited the report form having enough details to be useful. Instead, it included just enough information to incite fear, but few facts that might help alleviate it. Where indeed is the link to a list of the spices tested? Or references to the name brands? Are only imported spices at risk, so we could be safe with 'grown in the USA' labels? We get none of this information.

What about spices that are mixed into other products and then sold? We have, for example a jar of "Kitchens of India Onion and Yogurt Cooking Sauce: Dehli Dum Aloo" in the fridge, made with spices imported from Kolkata, India. What is the lead risk there? Or is that product 'safe' because it is in another form, and maybe was inspected by the FDA?

The article mentions Chili Powder as coming up at high lead levels. So what happens when I go to Taco Bell and have burrito? Is that safe?

Who knows? Our article at TIME.com tells us none of this.

So TIME Magazine, welcome to your place on our S.ugar H.oney I.ced T.ea List.


But TIME is not the only one.

And try to make sense of this:
"Currently the Food and Drug Administration, which oversees the safety of food products imported into the U.S., does not have specific guidelines for screening lead in dried products like spices. That's because the FDA feels there is no safe level of lead in dried products, since studies have not yet established that lead exposure doesn't lead to adverse health effects."

Ummm. What??

So let me get this straight: The FDA says no level of lead is safe in food products. So instead of setting the 'pass' level at zero parts per billion, for example; they decided not to test it at all?

That's like taking the speedometer out of your car, and then arguing that you can't be given a speeding citation because you don't know how fast you were going.

So, FDA, we are looking at you. And this is not our Happy Face.