FDA Investigating Illnesses that May Be Linked to Lucky Charms

The NY Post reports that FDA is investigating illnesses that people claim are related to Lucky Charms cereal.  On website iwaspoisoned.com, there have been over 400 reports of consumers complaining that they began vomiting and experiencing diarrhea after eating a bowl of Lucky Charms.

A few things to note.

- The illnesses from the consumer reporting website report similar symptoms and the onset time for symptoms occur soon after consumption.  This would lead one to believe it is not an issue more often associated with cereal products, namely bacterial infection from vegetative pathogens such as Salmonella.

- FDA stated that they have not had any reported cases to their web portal.  (as reported by Fox 8)

“The FDA is aware of reports and is looking into the matter. The FDA takes seriously any reports of possible adulteration of a food that may also cause illnesses or injury. Depending on the seriousness of the problem, an FDA investigator may visit the person who made the complaint, collect product samples, and initiate inspections. Complaints of a less serious nature or those that appear to be isolated incidents are monitored and the information may be used during a future inspection of a company to help the FDA identify problem areas in a production plant. The complaints are also discussed with company management during these inspections. 

As additional background, the FDA hosts its own adverse event reporting system through our Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN). The CFSAN Adverse Event Reporting System(CAERS) is a database that contains information on adverse event and product complaint reports submitted to FDA for foods, dietary supplements, and cosmetics. The database is designed to support CFSAN’s safety surveillance program. Since 2004, the FDA’s CAERS data has received 41 reports related to Lucky Charms. However, only 3 Adverse Event Reports in 2021 with only 1 of those reports appearing to be related to the complaints listed in IWasPoisoned.com. Furthermore, the agency has received no calls at the FDA’s Food and Cosmetic Information Centerrelated to Lucky Charms.”

NY Post
FDA investigating illnesses linked to Lucky Charms (nypost.com)
FDA investigating illnesses linked to Lucky Charms
By Lisa Fickenscher
April 5, 2022 3:02pm Updated

The Food and Drug Administration is investigating why hundreds of consumers have reported becoming ill after eating Lucky Charms cereal, The Post has learned.

On Friday, The Post reported that the sugary cereal made by General Mills is believed to be making people sick, with consumers complaining that they began vomiting and experiencing diarrhea after eating a bowl of Lucky Charms.

Since then, more than 400 people have flooded iwaspoisoned.com — a website that tracks foodborne illnesses. Some have complained that their poop turned green.

Now the Food and Drug Administration said it’s aware of the reports “and is looking into the matter,” the agency told The Post.

“The FDA takes seriously any reports of possible adulteration of a food that may also cause illnesses or injury,” an FDA spokesperson said in a statement, adding, “Depending on the seriousness of the problem, an FDA investigator may visit the person who made the complaint, collect product samples, and initiate inspections.”

“The complaints are also discussed with company management during these inspections,” the spokesperson added, declining to say whether the FDA had contacted General Mills.

General Mills told The Post last week that it did not believe its cereal was making people sick, but it conceded that there is an “ongoing review” of the matter.

Nearly 140 people from July 2021 to March 2022 reported via Iwaspoisoned.com that they got sick after eating Lucky Charms.

General Mills did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.