Lead in Mexican Candy By Katie Miller May 2004

LEAD (Pb) -dormant in Earth’s crust until unleashed by drilling, mining, or manufacturing -no smell, no taste -stays in environment; does not break down -makes body think it is calcium so absorbed by bones -EXPOSURE old lead-based paint, bare soil, drinking water, food, ceramics, dyes

Lead Poisoning -~ 434,000 children ages 1-5 poisoned yearly -Low levels—reduced IQ, behavioral problems, memory loss, weak muscles, stunt growth -High levels—kidney problems, seizures, coma, death -Swallowed lead absorbed in small intestines -15% soft tissue, 85% bones -May be permanent if absorbed by bones, released into blood stream over time -Some lead damage is irreversible

-Delays mental development, Impairs hearing/speech, lowers IQ -Interferes w/ body’s production of hemoglobin, disrupts Flow of oxygen causing anemia -Inhibits ability to produce proteins -Unable to remove lead from body; may cause failure or damage WOMEN: stillbirth, miscarriage, irregular cycles MEN: reduced sperm count -Stores lead for years, slowly releasing into blood; For pregnant women, lead is mistaken for calcium and sent to the developing fetus Nervous System Liver Kidneys Bloodstream Bones Reproductive System LEAD: AFFECTS ON THE BODY

- California Health Dept aware of problem since 1993, although just made public on April 25, in 4 samples tested high in lead -112 different brands have already tested at dangerously high lead levels -despite dangers, little has been done to correct problem; Mexico denies the lead levels in the candy STATISTICS

WHY and HOW is lead in candy!?! -Middlemen and farmers weigh down the bags w/ materials to increase profits -some things found in bags of ground chili: -car battery connector, rocks, nails, ball bearings, dirt and other debris -23 of 25 chili samples contained lead from 0.3 ppm- 4 ppm (CONTINUED … )

at 3 ppm lead, a child only needs 2 grams of chili to be considered dangerous 5 chili mills tested all had very high levels of lead in Mexican states of Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Jalisco and Michoacan 79% of candy testing high for lead content contained chili as its main ingredient therefore, chili powder is main culprit for lead contamination in the candy

Common Candies… with high lead counts… Bolirindo (Tamarind) -tested positive 18 out of 35 times Lucas ppm, tested high 18 out of 31 times Vero Mango -tested high 9 out of 38 times

Testing -1 gram each sample placed in centrifuge tube w/ deionized water and nitric acid -allowed to sit while heating until liquefies -filtered and placed into Graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometer -heated to 1600° to measure lead content

Final Report First Reported: 11/07/03 Lab Number Result Analyte Sample # Reported Limit 3050B/ Pb B/7421 < 0.2 Pb 39A B/ Pb 39B B/7421 < 0.2 Pb 40A B/ Pb 40B B/7421 < 0.2 Pb B/7421 < 0.2 Pb 42A B/ Pb 42B B/7421 < 0.2 Pb 43A B/ Pb 43B B/7421 < 0.2 Pb Metals Analysis of Bulks Sample Data from candy

Testing in Southern California Part Per Million Pb content Federal Regulatory Concern 0.5 ppm California’s level Of concern 0.2 ppm 180 Samples of Candy and wrappers tested -14 tested at high levels

Concluding Facts… -Unfortunately, little has been done to solve this serious problem -Too high of a cost to clean and label every bag of chili -Farmers can’t afford to take necessary steps to insure safe handling/processing techniques -Many U.S. states (especially CA) have taken action, but it is difficult to fix the problem Typical market where lead filled candy is sold