Arsenic on the Dinner Table

Arsenic is a heavy metal that occurs naturally on the Earth and is found in many minerals.  Widespread arsenic contamination in groundwater has led to a massive epidemic in Bangladesh and neighboring countries. The arsenic in groundwater is often of natural origin, and is released from the sediment into the groundwater. 

In the United States, arsenic is most commonly found in the ground water of the southwest, but parts of New England, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the Dakotas are also know to have signification concentrations of arsenic.  Increased levels of skin cancer have been associated with arsenic exposure in Wisconsin. 

Millions of private wells have unknown arsenic levels, many contain levels that exceed established limits set by the World Health Organization. Low-level exposure to arsenic compromises the initial immune response to H1N1 or swine flu.  People exposed to arsenic in drinking water may be at increased risk for bladder cancer, skin cancer, other serious illnesses and even death. 

While the WHO set arsenic levels for ground water, there is not a set standard for arsenic in food.  The heavy metal has now found its way onto the dinner table – in rice.  Rice is a major food staple and mainstay for rural populations.  It is mainly cultivated by small farmers and is central to the food security of over half the world population. 

Rice can be grown practically anywhere and is the second-highest grain produced worldwide.  The traditional method of cultivating rice is flooding the field while setting the seedlings.  This method requires sound planning and servicing of water damming and channeling, but reduces the growth of pest plants and deters vermin.  It also makes it easier for rice to absorb the arsenic from soil and water.

Arsenic levels have climbed over the years, thanks mostly to fertilizers containing arsenic.  This isn’t a matter of trace amounts; these are moderate to moderately high levels of arsenic.  Researchers found geographical distinctions in arsenic levels, with white rice grown in Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, and Texas containing higher levels than rice samples from other parts of the country.  

Bangladeshi farmers have even banished the use of insecticides.  The Livelihood Improvement Through Ecology (LITE) project has trained 2,000 farmers to perform experiments in their own fields which demonstrate that insecticides can be eliminated.  Insecticide use among participating farmers was reduced by 99 per cent and by 90 per cent among non-participating farmers in the same villages without any drop in yield.  Not only have farmers cut their own exposure to health and environment-threatening chemicals, they have also increased their income by not purchasing the unnecessary insect ides.

Obviously the FDA sees the need for  arsenic standards, they have set a safety threshold for drinking water, but had not included food products, including rice, juice, or even infant formula.  The FDA is set to announce it has concerns about rice and arsenic and is studying the issue.  China has such a standard in place and rice from Asia is already has lower arsenic levels that produced in the U.S.