Lead and monosodium glutamate (MSG) found in five brands of instant noodles have led the health department's food safety wing to plan to get samples of locally manufactured noodles and vermicelli tested in accredited laboratories.

According to the wing's officials, noodles are manufactured in areas such as Patna City and Rajvanshi Nagar among others.

Mukeshji Kashyap, a food safety officer, said: " We suspect that local noodles may contain MSG (popularly known as ajinomoto). In Chinese food items, ajinomoto is used in excessive quantities but people now use ajinomoto in food at home. The maximum limit of using ajinomoto is 500 microgram per kilogram of any food product. We plan to spread awareness on this issue."

On Saturday, the wing clamped a month's ban on the sale of five brands, including those of Hindustan Unilever Limited, Glaxosmithkline Consumer Healthcare Limited, Capital Foods Pvt. Ltd, Indo Nissin Foods Limited and ITC Limited. The lead content was found beyond permissible limits in the samples. Doctors advised residents to avoid packaged food products because of the lead.

"Lead is a heavy metal and is widely used as a food preservative. People must avoid using packaged food products as much as they can," said physician Diwakar Tejaswi.

Sources said the packs also did not mention containing any MSG. But when checked, MSG, a kind of misbranding under the Food Safety Act, 2006, was detected.

The wing had banned Maggi noodles of Nestlé India on June 6 and on July 4, which was extended till the next order. The five brands whose sale was banned are sold in the market under the following names - Knorr Mast Masala Soupy Noodles, Foodles Multi grain and Ata Masala Noodles, Ching's Manchurian Instant Noodles, Ching's Secret Veg Hakka Noodles, Top Ramen Curry, Top Ramen Super Noodles More Masala, Yippee Noodles Magic Masala and Yippee Noodles Classic Masala.

Sources said in the Patna market, two types of local noodles are available - scented and unscented. "Scented ones might have MSG. So we plan to get them checked," said a food safety wing official, preferring anonymity.

"The problem has been found mostly in children in which they showed symptoms such as restlessness, mental retardation, liver and kidney complications," said physician Tejaswi.

Head of neuro-medicine department of Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Ashok Kumar, said reports from western countries suggest that excessive consumption of ajinamoto could cause problems, especially in children.