Cinnamon products prompt Washington Poison Center health warnings
Mar 25, 2024, 2:20 PM | Updated: 8:37 pm
Stick and ground cinnamon is displayed for a photograph in Concord, New Hampshire. (File photo: Larry Crowe, AP)
(File photo: Larry Crowe, AP)
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Washington Poison Center have issued health alerts for an array of cinnamon products.
Earlier this month, the FDA reported unsafe levels of lead had been found in six ground cinnamon products.
The Washington Poison Center said shoppers should throw out: “La Fiesta Cinnamon Ground,” “Marcum Cinnamon Ground,” “Supreme Tradition Ground Cinnamon,” “MK Cinnamon Powder,” “Swad Cinnamon Powder” and “El Chilar Ground Cinnamon ‘Canela Molida.'”
The products most commonly sold in Washington are “La Fiesta Brand Cinnamon Ground” and “Supreme Tradition Ground Cinnamon.”
They are primarily available at Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, La Superior and SuperMercados.
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If a child has eaten one of the products, their family should talk to a healthcare provider about getting a blood test for lead poisoning, wrote the poison center in a post on Monday.
The poison center said so far, no one has reported illness from the products. However, the lead can be harmful if someone has been using the product for months to years.
“Anyone can experience lead poisoning, but poisoning in infants, toddlers, and young children is especially concerning due to lead’s harmful effects on growth and development,” wrote the poison center. “Most children with lead poisoning will not look or act sick. Instead, children with lead poisoning may experience slower growth, fatigue, difficulty concentrating and learning, and difficulty regulating their emotions.”
A blood test is the only way to know if you have lead poisoning.
If lead is found in the system, a provider may recommend dietary changes, referrals to developmental services, follow-up testing or other measures.
The FDA has issued an alert after finding lead in these six cinnamon products. (Image courtesy of the FDA)
The FDA said it recalled the cinnamon products following an October 2023 recall of cinnamon apple puree and applesauce products.
The FDA then surveyed ground cinnamon products from retail stores and analyzed the samples for lead and chromium.
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“The FDA will continue to work with manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to remove unsafe products from the market and to further investigate the sources of the lead contamination as appropriate,” wrote the FDA’s website.
For any questions about lead poisoning, call the Washington Poison Center at 1-800-222-1222.
Julia Dallas is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read her stories here. Follow Julia on X, formerly known as Twitter, here and email her here.
