Heavy metals, including lead, found in many dark chocolate bars
A new study finds that dark chocolate products sold nationwide may contain excessive amounts of heavy metals.
A new study finds that dark chocolate products sold nationwide may contain excessive amounts of heavy metals.
The research, led by scientists at George Washington University and published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed Frontiers in Nutrition, examined over 70 dark chocolate products from retailers such as Whole Foods Market, Amazon and GNC. The products were tested to see whether the heavy metals lead, cadmium or arsenic were in them.
Overall, 43% of the products studied exceeded acceptable levels of lead and 35% exceeded cadmium levels, according to the study, which was based on a California law that sets maximum allowable dose levels for heavy metals in food. Food researchers often use the 1986 regulations, known as Prop 65, as a safety standard because the Food and Drug Administration doesn’t set limits on heavy metals in most foods, said Leigh Frame, director of integrative medicine at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and lead author of the study.
The FDA does have suggested limits for chocolate and sugar-based candy but only for children.
According to the California guidelines, the threshold for heavy metals in foods is 0.5 micrograms a day. For the study, the scientists estimated the number of micrograms a day people would be exposed to if they ate the suggested serving amounts on the chocolate product labels. They found that the chocolate samples ranged from 0 to as high as 3.316 mcg per daily serving. Levels of cadmium, a carcinogen at high levels, ranged from 0.29 to 14.12 mcg, with the limit being 4.1 mcg per day.
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