Study questions safety of sindoor for babies, says it
can be harmful
Indian cultures and traditions have
used sindoor or vermilion – a red coloured powder – since time immemorial. Be
it weddings, festivals or religious rituals – sindoor is always a part of
occasions. But is it safe? A study conducted by a team of researchers have
negated the safety of the product after examining samples from US and India,
saying that has unsafe levels of lead.
As per the research, lead is a
highly toxic poison associated with lower IQ, behavioural problems and growth
delays in children who often are exposed hand to mouth. Sindoor, also called
vermillion, is used by women to place a bindi, or red dot, cosmetically on
their foreheads. Married women also put it in their hair and it is used by men
and children for religious purposes.
In a study published in the American
Journal of Public Health, the researchers reported that that 83 percent of the
samples collected from the US in New Jersey and 78 percent collected from India
had at least 1.0 microgram of lead per gram of cosmetic powder.
About one-third of the samples
exceeded the 20 microgram of lead per gram of cosmetic powder limit imposed by
the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). "There is no safe level of
lead," said co-author of the study Derek Shendell, Associate Professor at
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
"That's why we believe sindoor
powder shouldn't be sold or brought into the United States unless it is lead
free," Shendell said. In the study, the researchers, including Manthan
Shah, a scientist with the US Environmental Protection Agency, tested 118
samples of sindoor, which included 95 from South Asian stores in New Jersey and
23 from stores in Mumbai and New Delhi.
Although other cosmetics such as kajal
and tiro, eye products used in India and Nigeria, have been banned by the FDA
because of elevated lead content, the FDA only issued a general warning about
sindoor after testing by the Illinois Department of Health a decade ago
discovered a high lead content in one brand.
The researchers said at a minimum
there is a need to monitor sindoor lead levels and make the public aware of the
potential hazards.
21.09.2017
Pleasure in the job puts
perfection in the work
Aristotle
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