Cocoa based products like chocolates, candies; cocoa powder may sometimes contain heavy metals like lead, arsenic, cadmium, and nickel from environmental origins. WHO has defined maximum level of heavy metals in chocolates as they are potentially harmful to human health? This review explains about the possible risks involved in overconsumption or chronic consumption of cocoa based products containing cadmium beyond its upper limit. Cadmium has no biological function to play in human or animal body. In fact cadmium is one of the most toxic elements as it tends to stay in liver and kidneys with a very long half-life of 10-30 years and presents serious risks to human health. Epidemiological data suggest that occupational and environmental cadmium exposure may be related to various types of cancer, including breast, lung, prostate, nasopharynx, pancreas, and kidney cancers. It has been also demonstrated that environmental cadmium may be a risk factor for osteoporosis. The liver and kidneys are extremely sensitive to cadmium’s toxic effects.
