OFFICIAL STATEMENT RE: NBC LEAD RESULTS REPORT
We at Lazarus Naturals apply batch labels to all of our products which link to verifiable third-party analyses either with a vinyl sticker on older products or direct ink-jet printing on newer products. Our correspondence with NBC revealed that the product did not have a batch number and was purchased from Groupon--a platform we have not used, nor authorized wholesalers to use-- in addition to the current challenge of removing multiple counterfeit Lazarus Naturals products from unapproved marketplaces, we cannot reasonably confirm that the product in question is an actual Lazarus Naturals product. It is also worth noting that NBC also purchased several Lazarus Naturals products directly from our website, all of which tested and passed a full panel of testing.
Regardless of these facts, the article brings up an issue that we feel is important to address. The article states that the product in question “contained dangerous amounts of lead according to FDA standards,” which, based on our understanding of FDA guidelines, is not the case. For heavy metals in non-specified food and dietary supplement products, the FDA establishes an “Interim Reference Level” (IRL) for potentially hazardous heavy metals to ensure products that make it to market do not contain levels of heavy metals that would incur health risks upon end users. Per the statement on IRLs for lead in food, foodwares, and dietary supplements:
The FDA assesses whether the amount of lead in a food product is high enough to raise a person’s blood lead level to a point of concern. To do this, the agency establishes a maximum daily intake for lead, called the Interim Reference Level (IRL). In determining the IRL, the FDA takes into account the amount of a particular food a person would need to consume daily, as well as other factors, that would result in blood lead levels of of 5µg per deciliter, the level at which the CDC recommends clinical monitoring of lead exposure in children. The FDA has established the current IRL at 3 µg per day for children and 12.5 µg per day for adults. These levels allow for differences across populations and are set nearly ten-times less than the actual amount of intake from food required to reach the CDC’s blood reference level.
https://www.fda.gov/food/metals-and-your-food/lead-food-foodwares-and-dietary-supplements
The product in question tested for approximately 1.7 µg (micrograms) of lead per serving, which is well under the established daily intake limits for both children and adults and 10 times lower than the intake amount required to reach blood levels that the CDC would consider a health risk. Lazarus Naturals does not understand the basis for NBC’s claims as the product is clearly in compliance with the FDA levels applied to similar products, as described above. The hemp-derived CBD industry is in its infancy and we believe it is of utmost importance that there is transparency and enforcement of appropriate standards to ensure consumer safety and confidence in products. While we appreciate the efforts of NBC to investigate product quality, we highly encourage NBC along with other news sources to exercise appropriate due diligence in researching safety standards and FDA guidelines and to acquire product directly from manufacturers to eliminate the potential for tampering or fraud.
At Lazarus Naturals, product safety is our highest priority. We are actively implementing current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) and rigorously analyze the safety and efficacy of our products. We are confident that all our products are at safe levels for not only lead but all heavy metals and pesticides. Lead occurs naturally in the soil and de minimis levels are considered safe in foods and dietary supplements. If you would like to read more about heavy metals and pesticides and our policies and practices please read our most recent blog which is linked to below.
https://www.lazarusnaturals.com/blog/pesticides-and-heavy-metals