CNNMoney.com > Small Business > News9 forbidden foods3 of 9A (surprisingly) legal high AbsintheBanned in: The U.S.Absinthe is legal in the United States, contrary to popular belief, as long as the spirit is levels of thujone - a toxic chemical present in wormwood, one of the herbs used to make absinthe - do not surpass the Food and Drug Administration's limit of 10 parts per million.