[nutritionfacts.org]

"On his first day of life, an infant was hospitalized with seizures. Researchers concluded that his mother’s daily spirulina use starting in the fourth month of pregnancy was likely to blame. I’ve talked previously about the liver and nerve toxins present in many spirulina supplements, but the supplement companies swear up and down that spirulina doesn’t produce those toxins, and they may be right (See my video Infant Seizures Linked to Mother’s Spirulina Use).

But if spirulina doesn’t produce toxins, how is it that toxins are found in spirulina supplements on store shelves? It appears to be contamination of spirulina with toxin-producing blue-green algae.

For example, if we look at the new U.S. Pharmacopeia safety evaluation of spirulina, researchers conclude that “the available evidence does not indicate a serious risk to health or other public health concern when spirulina is properly identified, formulated, and used.” Ah, but that’s the catch. Spirulina is often grown and collected in open lakes and we have no idea what other algae are going to crop up.

The researchers reported a range of adverse reactions of people taking spirulina products, ­­but they attribute these issues to non-spirulina algae toxin contaminants within spirulina supplements. So unless there’s third-party testing of each batch (which no company could presumably afford to do), I continue to encourage people to avoid spirulina (and blue-green algae) products.

If one still wants something green to sprinkle on their popcorn, I’d recommend chlorella instead (Is Chlorella Good for You?)."

I take spirulina all the time, from a raw organic source which lab tests for heavy metals, radiation, and all sorts of contaminants... never had a problem. I can see how this could be an issue for newborns though, just like they shouldn't eat nuts or honey that young either.

very poor cause and effect analysis

seizures can be caused by a plethora of factors ( they are as endless as the stars)

i agree that there are reasons for concern

but this article simply did not portray convincing evidence

that's all

Jtp, what is your source of raw spirulina?

The scientific literature does report problems with blue green algaes such as spirulina and E3 live. E3 live is the major culprit, but spirulina also has a similar problem to a lesser extent. I can't remember the problem, but it is certain toxins the blue green algaes aquire from the air when they are growing. It doesn't effect most people negatively, but some people are effected.

A girl l knew had a very bad reaction to spirulina also.

I can't find the links, but here is an easy to read link which shows some issues:

Various forms of blue-green algae can be naturally contaminated with highly toxic substances called microcystins. 30,31,35

Some states, such as Oregon, require producers to strictly limit the concentration of microcystins in blue-green algae products, but the same protections cannot be assumed to have been applied to all products on the market. Furthermore, the maximum safe intake of microcystins is not clear, and it is possible that when blue-green algae is used for a long time, toxic effects might build up. Long-term use by children raises particular concerns, especially in light of the widely popularized, but unsubstantiated belief, that blue-green algae is useful for attention deficit disorder.

Blue-green algae can also contain a different kind of highly toxic substance, called anatoxin
[www.med.nyu.edu]

www.thesproutarian.com

I think it's mostly dependent on the company selling spirulina and if they have the integrity and diligence to thoroughly test for contaminants. Some may just be very sensitive, just like some are very sensitive to gluten or certain varieties of nuts.

"Jtp, what is your source of raw spirulina?"

Sorry, must not have seen this question. I get my spirulina from [www.rawpower.com]