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Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

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Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#21

Post by valarauko »

no_butterscotch wrote: post #4

I wonder if this turmeric spread and was sold in the West. My mother recently started taking "golden turmeric" and insists that it's a cure for a lot of ills. Maybe that's true I don't know, she sent me some articles a couple years ago. It was clear that she was influenced by Facebook groups. Hopefully the turmeric she takes is safe :(

I suggest asking your Indian friends where they buy their spices from, and check out your local Indian grocery store - the spices are from major Indian brands and undergo a lot of testing, with additional certification for export to the US.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#22

Post by Natsu »

valarauko wrote: post #19

I'm a little surprised at the initial confusion about the source of lead, or perhaps it's the way the article has been written. As someone who grew up in India, our school textbooks in the 90s had a list of common food adulterants, and turmeric adulteration with lead chromate was common knowledge to middle schoolers. I recall the curriculum included how to detect adulteration with simple at home tests. After turmeric…

What sort of test would you do for this? Did you have to buy a test kit?

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#23

Post by bee_rider »

CoastalCoder wrote: post #5

Interesting article. One thing I'm left wondering though is: for the offending vendors, how aware were they of the potential harm they were causing? IMHO the punishment should, in some sense, scale with that detail. As a parent, if I found out that someone was knowingly poisoning my children for profit, I'd have some very uncharitable urges.

Maybe to some extent it should scale with that detail. However, to some extent everyone in the food processing chain has a responsibility to be diligent and competent, right? If we let people off the hook for not knowing the quality of their suppliers, and finding out is expensive, then we’re applying a filter in favor of incompetence.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#24

Post by snapetom »

Forsyth's work was submitted here on HN four years ago, if you want to read the study.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S001393511...

They found no elevated lead in Indian samples in their study, but they note Indian tumeric have been subject to lead recalls in the past. And of course, proper and transparent sourcing from manufacturers, is an issue.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#25

Post by morsch »

no_butterscotch wrote: post #4

I wonder if this turmeric spread and was sold in the West. My mother recently started taking "golden turmeric" and insists that it's a cure for a lot of ills. Maybe that's true I don't know, she sent me some articles a couple years ago. It was clear that she was influenced by Facebook groups. Hopefully the turmeric she takes is safe :(

Fwiw a study done in Germany in 2022 found no traces of lead in 19 turmeric products of all price ranges.

https://www.oekotest.de/essen-trinken/Kurkuma-Labor-findet-M...

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#26

Post by glonq »

I have a friend who strongly gravitates towards non-traditional solutions for every health & medical problem.

Upon hearing that I had developed cancer, she whipped up a batch of turmeric-infused notions and potions for me, which I appreciate. I haven't touched them yet. Maybe I'll get them tested first; the last thing I need right now is lead poisoning!

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#27

Post by akavi »

valarauko wrote: post #19

I'm a little surprised at the initial confusion about the source of lead, or perhaps it's the way the article has been written. As someone who grew up in India, our school textbooks in the 90s had a list of common food adulterants, and turmeric adulteration with lead chromate was common knowledge to middle schoolers. I recall the curriculum included how to detect adulteration with simple at home tests. After turmeric…

As an ABCD, likewise. My mom told me to specifically buy turmeric at western grocery stores (as opposed to other spices, which could be had for better prices at Indian grocery stores) because of concerns around lead.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#28

Post by sidewndr46 »

valarauko wrote: post #19

I'm a little surprised at the initial confusion about the source of lead, or perhaps it's the way the article has been written. As someone who grew up in India, our school textbooks in the 90s had a list of common food adulterants, and turmeric adulteration with lead chromate was common knowledge to middle schoolers. I recall the curriculum included how to detect adulteration with simple at home tests. After turmeric…

This reminds me of how scurvy was apparently well known in the age of sail but sort of forgotten with the industrial revolution. It showed back up again in Arctic expeditions from what I understand.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#29

Post by newaccount74 »

I don't understand how lead pigments are still legal in some parts of the world at all. What kind of things need a bright yellow color that will slowly poison you if you touch it?

Also, those handheld XRF spectrometers are amazing tech. I wish they were more affordable.

Re: Turmeric’s unexpected link to lead poisoning in Bangladesh

#30

Post by sidewndr46 »

akavi wrote: post #27
valarauko wrote: post #19

I'm a little surprised at the initial confusion about the source of lead, or perhaps it's the way the article has been written. As someone who grew up in India, our school textbooks in the 90s had a list of common food adulterants, and turmeric adulteration with lead chromate was common knowledge to middle schoolers. I recall the curriculum included how to detect adulteration with simple at home tests. After turmeric…

As an ABCD, likewise. My mom told me to specifically buy turmeric at western grocery stores (as opposed to other spices, which could be had for better prices at Indian grocery stores) because of concerns around lead.

What is an ABCD?
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