Arsenic in our Rice

2013-09-30 08:34:55

How concerned should you be about the level of arsenic in your diet? That depends on a number of factors but surprisingly one of these includes how much rice and rice products you are consuming. Inorganic arsenic is a known carcinogen and toxin that is found in a number of items. It easily passes the placenta increasing risk of miscarriage and impaired fetal growth.⁽¹⁾ It also increases the risk of a number of cancers and contributes to cardiovascular disease, neurologic deficits, and neurologic developmental issues in children.⁽²⁾ Research over the past few years has brought to light that there is a significant and potentially dangerous amount of inorganic arsenic found in rice and rice based products. Some of this arsenic comes from pesticide use, however in areas such as South and South East Asia, a significant amount appears to come from arsenic contaminated ground water being used for rice cultivation.⁽³⁾ A recently published study in the journal Scientific Reports looked at the impact of such exposure directly on human health.⁽⁴⁾ It involved over 400 individuals from West Bengal, India, otherwise not significantly exposed to arsenic through drinking water and found a significant association between rice arsenic levels >200ug/kg and genetic damage, which was measured through micronuclei in cells of the participants. After taking into account confounding factors such as age, gender and tobacco use, the findings remained. With the large number of people in the world consuming rice as a staple, there are serious and legitimate concerns over its impact on human health. If you currently consume a significant amount of rice you may want to consider getting more informed as well as exploring alternative grains. Consumer Reports tested over 200 commonly used rice products commercially available in North America purchased in April, May and August 2012 and assessed them for total arsenic, inorganic arsenic and organic arsenic. Their result can be helpful in making healthier decisions and are available at: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2012/11/arsenic-in-your-food/index.htm.