High levels of arsenic found in some rice varieties, report says
· Toronto Sun
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Testing of 52 rice products found a heavy metal in all of the rice with some having higher levels of inorganic arsenic than others, Consumer Reports found.
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Brown rice averaged higher levels than white rice, and basmati and sushi rice had lower average inorganic arsenic — the more dangerous form of the metal — levels than other rice types tested.
Arsenic comes in two forms — organic and inorganic — and the latter is more toxic and often found as a water and soil contaminant.
According to some estimates, rice picks up 10 times more arsenic than other crops grown in similar soil because it is typically harvested from flooded fields, where the element is more readily taken up from soil and water.
Consumer Reports , which tested rice for organic arsenic in 2012 and 2014, recently conducted new research to see if levels of inorganic arsenic, the more dangerous form of the metal, declined. However, their published results show the problem persists.
“As we did more than a decade ago, we found measurable levels of inorganic arsenic in all of the samples of the products,” James E. Rogers, PhD, director of food safety at Consumer Reports, said in a statement.
“In 42% of the products, the average inorganic arsenic levels were high enough that an adult eating just one serving a day over time would have a significantly increased risk for skin cancer, bladder cancer, and type 2 diabetes.”
Consumer Reports also tested for cadmium, lead, and mercury and found detectable levels of arsenic, cadmium, and mercury in all 142 samples, and lead in 66 of them.
FDA should set limits for rice products: CR
While there are no federal arsenic limits for rice in the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set a limit of 100 parts per billion (ppb) for inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereals.
When these cereals exceed that level, the FDA may take various enforcement actions, including working with companies to recall products the agency deems unsafe.
Seventeen of the products Consumer Reports tested averaged 100 ppb or more.
Given that there is no safe level of inorganic arsenic, Consumer Reports editors believe the FDA should set limits for all rice products.
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The report added their findings were a spot check of the market and should not be used to draw definitive conclusions about specific brands.
However, choosing lower-arsenic rice varieties, rotating in other grains such as quinoa, barley, farro, oats, and sorghum, cooking rice in excess water and draining it afterwards, and limiting your rice intake to a few servings a week, may help reduce exposure to inorganic arsenic.