LEAD AND ARSENIC IN YOUR COOKING SPICES
If you use spices to cook, like most people do, then chances are you have been consuming heavy metals like lead, arsenic and cadmium. According to a study by Consumer Reports, (an American nonprofit organization that does independent research on different consumer products), about thirty percent of dry spices contain these heavy metals in quantities that are unsafe or dangerous for health. It is especially concerning if you are feeding your children food made with such spices. their fragile and developing organs are not strong enough to withstand the dangerous effects of these heavy metals.
Common effects of heavy metals in the body include: Nervous system disorders: Kidney dysfunction: Gastrointestinal disorders: immune system dysfunction: Skin lesions: Vascular damage; Birth defects; and Risk of cancer
I was alarmed and appalled when I stumbled upon this information a few days ago. I have been using dry spices to make food for my family for the past many years. So have I been poisoning my young family instead of nourishing them? According to the article on the Consume Reports website, most of the spices in my kitchen including curry power, turmeric, ginger, cumin powder, paprika, might contain lead and arsenic. . Surprisingly it does not matter whether the item is organic or not. Many popular brands like Mccormik, Traders Joes, Whole Foods were all found to contain spices with toxic metals. How can this happen? Why isn’t anyone controlling this?
The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is an organization that is meant to regulate such products to ensure their safety for consumers. However, there are no nationally set limits for heavy metals in the US, and so it’s hard to enforce it. The FDA seems to focus more on ensuring that spices have no bacteria or microbes in them. So we the consumers are left to decide for ourselves how much lead and arsenic we want to consume. I do not wish to consume any amount of lead or arsenic at all, regardless of the quantity. So what is the solution to this? .
The first thing to do is to get rid of all your dried and ground spices and replace them with fresh ones. For instance, buy fresh ginger, garlic and turmeric and grind them yourself. Better still, grow your own spices in your backyard or using pots indoors. This is very possible if you really want to do it. Your health and that of your family depend on it. No one else will do it for you. You cannot trust the government to protect you from this. You need to take initiative. My rule of thumb is, if any food is not in the form in which it came from the earth, I do not eat it.
It is really not hard to grow your own food. Just try it. You will save yourself and your children from unnecessary illnesses. Take action today.
