PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Health officials are asking Pennsylvania parents to check their pantries for tainted treats. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports at least 22 toddlers in 14 states got sick from lead in tainted pouches of applesauce and cinnamon apple puree.
The now-recalled products include WanaBana apple cinnamon fruit puree and cinnamon applesauce pouches from Weis and Schnucks sold in stores and online. At least one of the cases was in Pennsylvania.
"A parent would be alarmed to think that they were feeding their child lead, which is a poison," said Joyce Ravinskas, part of UPMC's Lead Poisoning Prevention and Education Program.
Ravinskas said lead exposure can have harmful long-term effects on children. All the children who became sick from the pouches were between the ages of 1 and 3 years old.
"Lead affects the central nervous system, specifically the damage to the brain and the development of that brain," Ravinskas said.
The CDC said one child's recorded blood lead level was eight times higher than the level that raises concern.
Children who are exposed to lead have symptoms that include headache, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Others do not display symptoms at all.
"The only way to know is a blood test. We can't look at a child and think 'Does this child have lead?' The blood test is the best way, and all children should be tested," Ravinskas said.
In the wake of the recalls, Ravinskas said her organization is returning to homes where the source of lead could not be found to ask parents if they ever purchased these products.
"That could be the source and we want to know about it," she said. "We want to make sure they're off all the shelves."
The CDC recommends any child who may have consumed these products be tested for lead.
For more information about the tainted products, visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration webpage.