Tag Archives: rice cereal

Advice on Arsenic in Baby Foods

Posted on by

The issue of arsenic, mainly in rice cereal, has been discussed on this blog: Arsenic in Rice –New Recommendations

Renewed widespread publicity on this is likely following a recent NY Times Article: Should You Be Worried About the Arsenic in Your Baby Food?

Here’s an excerpt:

Rice cereal is often a baby’s first solid food, but it contains relatively high amounts of arsenic, a source of growing concern…rice cereals still contain six times more inorganic arsenic, on average, than infant cereals made with other grains like barley or oatmeal.

The new report comes from Healthy Babies Bright Futures, an alliance of scientists, nonprofit groups and private donors that aims to reduce children’s exposures to chemicals that may harm developing brains. One step parents can take immediately to reduce children’s exposure to arsenic is to feed infants cereals made with other grains, the group suggests…

For years, pediatricians have encouraged parents to introduce babies to a wide variety of grains in order to minimize exposure to arsenic…

The Healthy Babies Bright Futures alliance … found that over all, oatmeal, barley, buckwheat, organic quinoa, wheat and rice-free multigrain baby cereals contained much lower amounts of inorganic arsenic than rice cereals..

The average level of arsenic in the rice cereals tested recently was 85 parts per billion, down from an average level of 103 parts per billion found by the F.D.A. when it tested baby cereals in 2013 and 2014…

To reduce your family’s exposure to arsenic, the report suggests choosing a variety of grains including those low in arsenic.

My take: While the levels of arsenic are low, for the infants who are likely more vulnerable, it makes sense to recommend oatmeal cereal rather than rice cereal when introducing solid foods.

 

Arsenic in Rice –New Recommendations

Posted on by

Over the last two years, there has been increased concern about arsenic in rice.  This has been addressed by consumer reports, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and is being looked into by the FDA.

Due to the concerns about arsenic in rice, the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN) committee on nutrition has published a consensus statement (JPGN 2015; 60: 142-145).  Pediatric gastroenterologists and pediatricians need to familiarize themselves with the report and their recommendations.

Key points:

  • Inorganic arsenic is a carcinogen.
  • “Arsenic content in raw rice varies from 0.1 to 0.4 mg of inorganic arsenic/kg of dry mass.  Rice has a much higher arsenic level than that in other grains.”
  • “Brown rice contains higher concentrations of arsenic.”
  • There is increased inorganic arsenic in products made from rice bran such as rice drinks is much higher due to the concentration of arsenic in the bran layers.
  • “Traditionally in European adults, an average of 9g of rice is consumed daily compared with 300g/day in Asian diets.”
  • “In the US population, mean childhood (1-6 years of age) dietary intake of inorganic arsenic is 3.2 mcg per day”
  • Currently, in the UK, the Food Standards Agency recommends against substitution of breastmilk, formula, or cow’s milk formula by rice drinks up to 4.5 years of age;  in contrast, in Sweden, recommendations advise no rice-based drinks for children <6 years.

Committee Conclusions/Recommendations:

  • “Inorganic arsenic intake during childhood is likely to affect long-term health”
  • “There is a lack of published data on the amount of arsenic in rice protein-based infant formula”
  • Inorganic arsenic in childhood should be as low as possible and the content in dietary products needs to be regulated
  • Rice drinks should not be used in infants and young children
  • Inorganic arsenic exposure can be reduced by including a variety of grains such as oat, barley, wheat, and maize.
  • Rice protein-based infant formulas remain an option in those with cow’s milk protein allergy,,.”the potential risks should be considered”

This is a link to the full length article (available via JPGNonline twitter feed): JGPN “Arsenic in Rice: A Cause for Concern”

This topic has been addressed by Nutrition4Kids website as well. Nutrition4Kids FDA Studying Arsenic

Bottomline: If there is an impact of arsenic in rice on long-term health, it is unclear; the amounts of these exposures are tiny in most cases.  Yet, given the availability of alternatives to rice and rice-based drinks, some changes in practice (ie. adhering to these guidelines) may be worthwhile.