Arsenic has been found in some foods that use organic brown rice syrup as a sweetener, including infant formula and cereal bars, according to a new study by researchers at Dartmouth College. The majority of the detected arsenic, a contaminant often found in rice, was the type that is known to be a human carcinogen.
Important findings of the study, published online Feb. 16 by the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives include:
- Two of 17 infant formulas tested listed organic brown rice syrup as
the primary ingredient. One had a total arsenic concentration that was
six times the federal limit of 10 parts per billion (ppb) for total
arsenic in bottled or public drinking water. This is particularly
worrisome for babies because they are especially vulnerable to arsenic’s
toxic effects due to their small size and the corresponding arsenic
consumption per pound of body weight.
- Twenty-two of 29 cereal bars or energy bars tested listed at least
one of these four rice products—organic brown rice syrup, rice flour,
rice grain or rice flakes - among the top five ingredients. The seven
other bars were among the lowest in total arsenic, ranging from 8 to 27
ppb, while those containing syrup or other forms of rice ranged from 23
to 128 ppb.
- Tests of high-energy products known as “energy shots” that are used by endurance athletes and others showed that one of the three gel-like blocks contained 84 ppb of total arsenic, while the other two contained 171 ppb.
The Dartmouth researchers conclude that given the increasing prevalence of hidden arsenic in food, “there is an urgent need for regulatory limits on As (arsenic) in food.” They also cited Consumer Reports’ recent investigation, which found elevated levels of arsenic in apple and grape juices, as further evidence that U.S. consumers are being exposed to worrisome concentrations of arsenic in foods and beverages. Legislation was introduced Feb. 8 in the U.S. House of Representatives calling on the Food and Drug Administration to establish standards for both arsenic and lead in fruit juices; there are currently no federal thresholds for arsenic in juices or most foods.
As we previously reported, other research from Dartmouth published online in late 2011 suggested that many people in the U.S. may be exposed to potentially harmful levels of arsenic through consumption of rice. Studies by other researchers also have shown that rice can be a significant source of dietary exposure to this toxin. Rice is among the plants that are unusually efficient at taking up arsenic from the soil, and much of the rice produced in the U.S. is grown on land formerly used to grow cotton, where arsenical pesticides were widely used for many years, just as they were in orchards and vineyards.
“In the absence of regulations for levels of arsenic in food, I would certainly advise parents who are concerned about their children's exposure to arsenic not to feed them formula where brown rice syrup is the main ingredient,” says Brian Jackson, Ph.D., lead author of this latest study and a member of Dartmouth’s Superfund Research Program, which is funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. He noted, however, that infant formulas containing added rice starch did not appear to be a concern in terms of elevated arsenic.
Jackson also pointed out that brown rice syrup is likely to have
higher arsenic concentrations than other sweeteners whether the rice is
grown organically or not. “That's because the rice takes up natural
arsenic from the soil and when the rice is used to make brown rice
syrup, much of that arsenic ends up there,” he said. “We focused on
organic brown rice syrup because this seems to be a sweetener of choice
for some organic food products.”
Among advice Jackson provided
when we asked him what consumers currently can do to limit their dietary
exposure to arsenic via rice in products Dartmouth researchers have
tested:
- Individuals who consume a lot of rice, including those on
gluten-free diets, should try to add variety to their diets and check
ingredient labels, as many gluten-free foods are rice-based.
- As the new research showed, parents can reduce young children’s
dietary arsenic exposure by limiting their consumption of formula in
which organic brown rice syrup is a main ingredient. Another study by
Dartmouth researchers published online in January 2012
found that total arsenic in some rice-fortified baby foods, such as
jars containing meat-rice combinations, as well as fruit and vegetable
purees for babies, ranged from less than 1 ppb up to 22 ppb, the
majority of which was the carcinogenic form.
- Eating an occasional cereal bar does not pose much risk, but the latest study’s results add to the increasing recognition that food is a significant, or in many cases, the main arsenic exposure route for people. Therefore it’s wise to limit daily consumption of foods known to contain arsenic, keeping in mind that even seemingly small exposures from juices, rice or rice-fortified foods add up.
—Andrea Rock
YUP and fungicide in OJ
Quoting sreichelt26:
Didn't they find arsenic in apple juice too not that long ago?
I'm not afraid to be glad that I breastfeed, I feel sad for the mama's who HAVE to use formula whether to supplement or fully feed, they should not have to worry about this stuff!!
Quoting momma2b2008:
There's no arsenic in my milk! Thank god!! :-) Another GREAT reason to breast feed!! :-)
Technically, there is. We eat, drink, and inhale numerous carcinogens every day. Of course of that gets passed through our milk. Just as cows milk is "tainted" by whatever they are injected with, so too is our milk.
Well the thing is though arsenic IS naturally occuring like in apple juice the concern is that the levels in formula are TONS higher than allowed. The BIG issue I have is that the one with the highest level is Natures One...the ONE baby formula that I recommend becuase of its all natural ingredients. It really upsets me honestly.
Actually their could be if you eat/drink anything that has arsenic in it but the levels are much lower and not unsafe.
Quoting momma2b2008:
There's no arsenic in my milk! Thank god!! :-) Another GREAT reason to breast feed!! :-)
In ER with baby
- JaxMomma78
on Feb. 16, 2012 at 9:33 PM