Don’t eat these lead-tainted cinnamon products

[Consumer Reports]   Dear Friend, Recent national recalls of products containing cinnamon due to dangerous lead levels underscore the seriousness of Consumer Reports’ latest tests of this widely used spice. What we found is troubling: in one-third of the cinnamon products we bought from stores and tested, just a quarter-teaspoon had more lead than you should consume in an entire day. We tested 36 ground cinnamon products for lead and found a third had above 1 part per million of lead, the threshold that triggers a recall in New York, the only state in the nation that regulates heavy metals in spices. These lead levels have such serious health risks, our food safety experts recommend throwing these products away. Despite the dangers of consuming lead – which include brain and nervous system damage, developmental delays, and reproductive issues – we still have no national limit on this heavy metal in most foods. Our latest test results underscore the need for the Food and Drug Administration to stop stalling, and act immediately to stop the health threat posed by heavy metals, especially to our children! [Join us in demanding the FDA set and enforce strict national limits on lead and other toxic heavy metals in spices.]( All Americans should be protected, not just those living in states with the courage to act.  [Sign the Petition NOW! »](  The good news is that our tests found many cinnamon products and spice blends that we recommend that had lower lead levels, so we know that companies can take action and achieve safer levels closer to zero. For years, CR and consumers like you have pressured the FDA to set strong limits on heavy metals in food. So far, the agency has only set a few limits –including for lead in fruit juices, and arsenic in apple juice and infant rice cereal, with stated plans to address heavy metals in other baby food. But CR has tested other foods and uncovered problematic levels of lead, including chocolate and kids’ snacks, which warrant action from the underfunded and slow-moving agency. Meanwhile, New York limits lead in spices to 1 part per million. If higher levels are detected, the state can trigger a recall. Since that NY law went into effect in 2016, more than 100 spices have been pulled from store shelves there. Let’s make sure your family – and all U.S. families – has these same health protections. [Sign our petition to the FDA to immediately set strong national limits on toxic heavy metals.](  [Sign the Petition NOW! »](  Thanks for adding your name and urging the FDA to protect everyone in the U.S. from dangerous lead in our food. You can learn more about the findings of our test project in [The 12 Cinnamon Powders You Should Never Use](. Meg BohneConsumer Reports [Unsubscribe from Consumer Reports action alerts.]( © 2022 Consumer Reports, 101 Truman Avenue, Yonkers, NY, 10703 [Contact Consumer Reports](