Talk:Filé powder

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 "Traditionally, filé powder is made from sassafras, which has been shown
 to cause liver cancer in laboratory studies [...]"

 "Filé powder has also been made traditionally from Sassafras leaves,
 which do not contain safrole, the volatile oil linked with cancer in lab
 rats. [...]"

So, what is the deal here; does sassafras leaves contain the, possibly, cancer causing safrole oil, or does it not? Quite 14:50, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

It's apparently carcinogenic to some degree, and manufacture of the product is discouraged, or even prohibited. Trafficking in saffrole is monitored by the FDA. See the article on Sassafras.

Sprinkled sparingly? In what recipe? The recipe handed down through my family requires quite generous amounts of file.