Commentary
Potential Exposure to Arsenic from Infant Rice Cereal
Authors:
Courtney C. Carignan ,
Children's Environmental Health & Disease Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH;Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH;Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA
About Courtney C.
PhD
Tracy Punshon,
Children's Environmental Health & Disease Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH;Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
About Tracy
PhD
Margaret R. Karagas,
Children's Environmental Health & Disease Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH;Department of Epidemiology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH
About Margaret R.
PhD
Kathryn L. Cottingham
Children's Environmental Health & Disease Prevention Research Center at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH;Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
About Kathryn L.
PhD
Abstract
Background
Rice is known to be high in arsenic, including in infant rice cereal. Although arsenic in drinking water is currently regulated, there are currently no US regulations regarding arsenic concentrations in food.
Objective
We used published values to estimate arsenic exposure via rice cereal relative to breast milkor formula for 6- to 12-month-old infants in the general US population.
Results
We found that arsenic exposure from 3 servings of rice cereal exceeded that of formula made with water containing arsenic at 10 μg/L, the US Environmental Protection Agency maximum contaminant level.
Conclusions
Our findings suggest that rice cereal can markedly increase arsenic exposure among US infants relative to breast milk and formula.
How to Cite:
Carignan, C.C., Punshon, T., Karagas, M.R. and Cottingham, K.L., 2016. Potential Exposure to Arsenic from Infant Rice Cereal. Annals of Global Health, 82(1), pp.221–224. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2016.01.020
Published on
17 Jun 2016.
Peer Reviewed
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