Should You Worry About Lead In Your Dark Chocolate?
Looking into the details of a recent report showing lead and cadmium in dark chocolate
Dark chocolate is a fascinating beast. It is, at the same time, both an indulgent, rich treat, and a health food that people will argue is hugely beneficial to your life. While it certainly has its detractors — my two-year-old niece is not a fan — a sinfully rich bar is one of the most popular examples of a food that we desperately wish to be healthy even though it probably isn’t.
Also, according to recent headlines, it contains levels of lead and cadmium that are harmful to human health. Worrying.
So should you give up your dark chocolate treats forever and switch to something with fewer heavy metals? While the headlines are terrifying, the data is perhaps not as worrying as it might first appear.
I wouldn’t throw away your Hershey’s just yet.
The Science
The headlines are all based on a report from the independent watchdog Consumer Reports, which found that levels of both cadmium and lead — two heavy metals known…
