Parents of children poisoned by toxic lead in baby fruit pouches have revealed their children are now suffering speech delays, dark circles, and behavioral issues.

Alyssa Magnuson, a 29-year-old from Minnesota, took her then 11-month-old daughter, Stevie, for a routine blood test last fall and was in 'disbelief and shock' when her child's lead levels were more than 16 times above the safe limit.

'I literally didn't think there was any possible way lead could have gotten into her system,' she said.  

Stevie is one of more than 400 youngsters in 44 states who have become sick after consuming cinnamon applesauce pouches that were contaminated with 'extremely high' levels of lead.

Lead exposure has been shown to seriously harm children's health, slowing growth and development and causing damage to the brain and nervous system.  

Dr Jennifer Sample, a pediatric toxicologist, told the Associated Press that there is no amount of lead exposure that is safe for children, and the effects on brain development can show up years later. 

'It's irritability. It's behavioral concerns. It's learning difficulties,' she said. 

Now, parents across the country fear that the symptoms their children are experiencing could last for years to come.  

Inspectors at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that WanaBana, Schnucks, and Weis pouches all contained cinnamon manufactured in a plant in Ecuador, which were sent to another factory in the country that makes the pouches.