Mexican hot sauces contain high amounts of lead, study finds Out of 25 tested bottles, four were found to exceed 0.1ppm lead Chemical can damage a child's developing brain and lower IQ Nevada researchers demand more rigorous screening tests Lead exposure can damage a child's developing brain A study has found that there is more than just chilli lurking in hot sauce - as researchers found high amounts of poisonous lead in a range of spicy relishes. A variety of piquant sauces were tested, and discovered to exceed 0.1 ppm lead - the U.S Food and Drug Administration standard for unsafe levels of the chemical. Out of 25 bottles of imported hot sauces, four - all from Mexico and made by different manufacturers - were found to have a high amount of the metal. Lead exposure can damage a child's developing brain and lead to a lower IQ. Overall, lead poisoning in the U.S. has declined significantly since it was removed from paints and gasoline formulas. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) researchers Jennifer Berger Ritchie and Professor Shawn Gerstenbergera subjected the variety of sauces to the tests as hot relishes have long been suspected of containing lead. Their study, published in the Journal of Environmental Science and Health, explained how the products were shaken for a minute and then analyzed for lead concentrations and pH levels, the UNLV website reported. They also tested the lead content of the packaging, as that has a history of seeping into products and contaminating them. It was then that they found that 16 per cent of the Mexican and South American products contained the high levels - but did not specify which ones they had tested. University of Nevada, Las Vegas researchers Jennifer Berger Ritchie and Professor Shawn Gerstenbergera subjected the variety of sauces to the tests (posed) They warned that if hot sauce is a regular feature of someone's diet - particularly a child where spicy food is part of their culture - they could be at risk. Following the shocking find, researchers have demanded a more demanding testing process. Prof Gerstenberger told the UNLV: 'The results indicate the need for more rigorous screening protocols for products imported in Mexico, including an applicable standard for hot sauce. Without enforceable standards for hot sauces and condiments, manufacturers will not be encouraged to improve quality control measures designed to reduce the amounts of lead and other toxic elements before exporting. Lead had long been considered a threat to a child. In January, research found that cities where lead pollution was reduced experienced falling levels of robbery and violent crime around 20 years later. Similarly, an increase in lead pollution prompted an increase in violence two decades later, scientists found. Researchers believe that exposure to toxic lead in the environment damages children's brains and could make them more likely to commit violent crime when they grow up. Professor Howard Mielke, of Tulane University in New Orleans, who has studied the effect of lead on children, said there was a "strong association" between criminal activity and lead. Dr Alastair Hay, professor of environmental toxicology at Leeds University, said: "We know that lead exposure in children and infants, when the brain is developing, damages the brain, and we know that children who are exposed to lead have a lower IQ. These children tend to be more impulsive and find it more difficult to concentrate. What these studies are saying is that following exposure in infancy the effect on the body seems to predispose, or is certainly strongly linked, with violent behaviour in adulthood.