nutritionfactsorg--2020-11-17--The Antioxidant Power of Açaí vs. Apples

There are so many açaí products on the market now , from frozen pulp in smoothie packs to freeze-dried powder and supplements .
How is it eaten traditionally ?
“ In the Brazilian Amazon , the Indian tribes of the forest cut down the tree and eat the palm heart…then urinate on the rest of the tree to attract a species of palm beetle to lay its eggs inside the tree .
Several weeks later , they return to harvest 3–4 pounds of beetle grub larvae….
” I think I ’ ll just stick to my smoothie pack .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as food and beverage ” in the Amazon , açaí berries have only been researched scientifically since the beginning of this century .
A number of years ago , I reviewed that research in my video Clinical Studies on Açaí Berries , starting with in vitro studies showing that açaí could kill leukemia cells in a petri dish at levels you might expect to find in the bloodstream after eating one or two cups of açaí pulp and could also cut the growth of colon cancer cells in half .
Unfortunately , as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Effects of Açaí vs. Apples , subsequent published studies have failed to find such benefits for that particular type of colon cancer , a different type of colon cancer , or an estrogen-receptor negative form of breast cancer .
An açaí extract did appear to kill off a line of estrogen-receptor positive breast cancer cells , but to achieve that level of açaí nutrients in your breast , you ’ d have to eat about 400 cups of açaí pulp .
The problem with many of these petri dish studies is that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ achieve in your bloodstream .
For example , as you can see at 1:48 in my video , açaí berries may exert a neuroprotective effect , blocking the buildup of amyloid fibers implicated in Alzheimer ’ s—but only at a dose reached by drinking about 2,000 cups at one time .
They may also have an anti-allergy effect or decrease bone loss—at a mere 1,000 cups a day .
In my previous video Clinical Studies on Açaí Berries , I also talked about a clinical study in which subjects were asked to drink @ @ @ @ @ @ @ açaí in a smoothie .
They appeared to get significant improvements in blood sugar , insulin levels , and cholesterol .
Now , there was no control group and it was a small study , but there ’ d never been a bigger study trying to replicate it until a study published in 2016 .
As you can see at 2:37 in my video , researchers gave subjects the same amount of açaí for the same duration as the previous study , but they found no significant improvements in blood sugars , insulin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ study fail to show the benefits seen in the first study ?
Well , this study was publicly funded with “ no conflicts of interest , ” while the first study was funded by an açaí company , which always makes you suspect that perhaps it was somehow designed to get the desired result .
And , indeed , the participants in that first study were not just given açaí smoothies , but they were explicitly told to avoid processed meat , “ for example bacon and hot dogs.
” No wonder their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the month .
Now , the new study did find a decrease in markers of oxidative stress in the participants ’ bloodstreams , a sign of how rich in antioxidants açaí berries can be .
Those who hock supplements love to talk about how açaí consumption can “ triple antioxidant capacity ” of your blood .
And , if you look at the study they cite , you ’ ll find that the antioxidant capacity of participants ’ blood did actually triple after eating açaí—but the same or even better tripling was achieved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the researchers used as a control that happens to be significantly cheaper than açaí berries or supplements .
You can see the graph at 3:42 in my video .
A new study has shown significant improvements in artery function after eating açaí berries , but are they any more effective than other common fruits and vegetables ?
You can learn more about that in my video The Benefits of Açaí vs. Blueberries for Artery Function .
What ’ s so great about antioxidants ?
Check out : Where else can you get them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a Pinch and Antioxidant Power of Plants vs .
Animal Foods .
What are the nutritional aspects of those grub-kabobs ?
See Bug Appétit : Barriers to Entomophagy and Good Grub : The Healthiest Meat .
PS : If you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

There are so many açaí products on the market now, from frozen pulp in smoothie packs to freeze-dried powder and supplements. How is it eaten traditionally? “In the Brazilian Amazon, the Indian tribes of the forest cut down the tree and eat the palm heart…then urinate on the rest of the tree to attract a species of palm beetle to lay its eggs inside the tree. Several weeks later, they return to harvest 3–4 pounds of beetle grub larvae….” I think I’ll just stick to my smoothie pack.
“Despite being used for a long time as food and beverage” in the Amazon, açaí berries have only been researched scientifically since the beginning of this century. A number of years ago, I reviewed that research in my video Clinical Studies on Açaí Berries, starting with in vitro studies showing that açaí could kill leukemia cells in a petri dish at levels you might expect to find in the bloodstream after eating one or two cups of açaí pulp and could also cut the growth of colon cancer cells in half.
Unfortunately, as I discuss in my video The Antioxidant Effects of Açaí vs. Apples, subsequent published studies have failed to find such benefits for that particular type of colon cancer, a different type of colon cancer, or an estrogen-receptor negative form of breast cancer. An açaí extract did appear to kill off a line of estrogen-receptor positive breast cancer cells, but to achieve that level of açaí nutrients in your breast, you’d have to eat about 400 cups of açaí pulp.
The problem with many of these petri dish studies is that they use concentrations that you could never realistically achieve in your bloodstream. For example, as you can see at 1:48 in my video, açaí berries may exert a neuroprotective effect, blocking the buildup of amyloid fibers implicated in Alzheimer’s—but only at a dose reached by drinking about 2,000 cups at one time. They may also have an anti-allergy effect or decrease bone loss—at a mere 1,000 cups a day.
In my previous video Clinical Studies on Açaí Berries, I also talked about a clinical study in which subjects were asked to drink less than a cup a day of açaí in a smoothie. They appeared to get significant improvements in blood sugar, insulin levels, and cholesterol. Now, there was no control group and it was a small study, but there’d never been a bigger study trying to replicate it until a study published in 2016.
As you can see at 2:37 in my video, researchers gave subjects the same amount of açaí for the same duration as the previous study, but they found no significant improvements in blood sugars, insulin, or cholesterol. Why did this study fail to show the benefits seen in the first study? Well, this study was publicly funded with “no conflicts of interest,” while the first study was funded by an açaí company, which always makes you suspect that perhaps it was somehow designed to get the desired result. And, indeed, the participants in that first study were not just given açaí smoothies, but they were explicitly told to avoid processed meat, “for example bacon and hot dogs.” No wonder their numbers looked better at the end of the month. Now, the new study did find a decrease in markers of oxidative stress in the participants’ bloodstreams, a sign of how rich in antioxidants açaí berries can be.
Those who hock supplements love to talk about how açaí consumption can “triple antioxidant capacity” of your blood. And, if you look at the study they cite, you’ll find that the antioxidant capacity of participants’ blood did actually triple after eating açaí—but the same or even better tripling was achieved after consuming just plain applesauce, which the researchers used as a control that happens to be significantly cheaper than açaí berries or supplements. You can see the graph at 3:42 in my video.
A new study has shown significant improvements in artery function after eating açaí berries, but are they any more effective than other common fruits and vegetables? You can learn more about that in my video The Benefits of Açaí vs. Blueberries for Artery Function.
What’s so great about antioxidants? Check out:
Where else can you get them? See Flashback Friday: Antioxidants in a Pinch and Antioxidant Power of Plants vs. Animal Foods.
What are the nutritional aspects of those grub-kabobs? See Bug Appétit: Barriers to Entomophagy and Good Grub: The Healthiest Meat.
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-11-19--Volume 52 Out Now… And Still Time to Order the Cookbook

Thank you to everyone who made a donation for my birthday last month .
It means the world to me !
I ’ m very appreciative and humbled .
My new cookbook will be out on Dec 8 , just under a month from now !
You can preorder your copy now and get it as soon as it lands , and get a sneak peek of some recipes on our Instagram .
Did you know my best-selling books How Not to Die and How Not to Diet are available in dozens of languages ?
For international ordering information , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sorghum , and Plant-Based Meats in the New Volume My new volume , out today , is available as a streaming video so you can start watching the upcoming months of videos immediately .
See the full list of topics here .
All of these videos will eventually be available for free online on NutritionFacts.org , but they ’ re available now for those who don ’ t want to wait .
And , remember , if you watch the videos on NutritionFacts.org or YouTube , you can access captions in several different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the settings wheel on the lower-right corner of the video and then “ Subtitles/CC.
” If you are a $ 25+ monthly supporter and opted in to our donor rewards , you ’ d already be an expert on these new topics by now , having received an early , complimentary link to the new download .
If you ’ d like to receive them before they ’ re available to the public , please consider becoming a monthly supporter .
Sign up on the donation page to become a $ 25+ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to receive the newest downloads for free as long as your contributions are current .
Join me for another live Instagram Q & A , this time with my good friend and distinguished colleague , Vesanto Melina , MS , R.D .
Head over to the NutritionFacts.org Instagram page on November 25 at 8pm ET to get the answers to all of your health and nutrition questions .
Rockstar dietitian Brenda Davis has a brand-new book out with pediatrician Reshma Shah .
NOURISH is the nutrition guide parents have been waiting for .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and accessible resource for families who want to raise their children to be the healthiest they can be .
Vitamin B12 deficiency is known as “ The Great Masquerader.
” Take a look at the many facets of the symptoms .
What are the best Green-Light ( whole food , plant-based ) sources of vitamin B12 to meet the optimal dosage ?
What Is the Safest Metabolism Booster ?
To lose weight , drink water .
Two cups of water can result in a surge of the adrenal hormone noradrenaline in your bloodstream @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a few cigarettes or downed a few cups of coffee .
Every month , I do a Q & A live from my treadmill , and Nov. 25 is the day this month .
Join on our Facebook page or YouTube channel at 3pm ET .
I ’ ll be streaming to both at the same time !
You can find links to all of my past live Q & As here on NutritionFacts.org .
If that ’ s not enough , remember I also have an audio podcast to keep you company @

Thank you to everyone who made a donation for my birthday last month. It means the world to me! I’m very appreciative and humbled.
My new cookbook will be out on Dec 8, just under a month from now! You can preorder your copy now and get it as soon as it lands, and get a sneak peek of some recipes on our Instagram.
Did you know my best-selling books How Not to Die and How Not to Diet are available in dozens of languages? For international ordering information, go here.
More on B12, Sorghum, and Plant-Based Meats in the New Volume
My new volume, out today, is available as a streaming video so you can start watching the upcoming months of videos immediately. See the full list of topics here. All of these videos will eventually be available for free online on NutritionFacts.org, but they’re available now for those who don’t want to wait.
And, remember, if you watch the videos on NutritionFacts.org or YouTube, you can access captions in several different languages. To find yours, click on the settings wheel on the lower-right corner of the video and then “Subtitles/CC.”
If you are a $25+ monthly supporter and opted in to our donor rewards , you’d already be an expert on these new topics by now, having received an early, complimentary link to the new download. If you’d like to receive them before they’re available to the public, please consider becoming a monthly supporter. Sign up on the donation page to become a $25+ monthly contributor and be given an opportunity to receive the newest downloads for free as long as your contributions are current.
Seeking Spanish Translation Volunteers We are looking for professional EN-ES translators to join our volunteer team to help translate our videos and blogs. For more information and to apply, go here.
Doctor and Dietitian Q&A
Join me for another live Instagram Q&A, this time with my good friend and distinguished colleague, Vesanto Melina, MS, R.D.
Head over to the NutritionFacts.org Instagram page on November 25 at 8pm ET to get the answers to all of your health and nutrition questions.
New Book from Brenda Davis!
Rockstar dietitian Brenda Davis has a brand-new book out with pediatrician Reshma Shah. NOURISH is the nutrition guide parents have been waiting for. It is a reliable, evidence-based, and accessible resource for families who want to raise their children to be the healthiest they can be.
The Symptoms of Vitamin B12 Deficiency
Vitamin B12 deficiency is known as “The Great Masquerader.” Take a look at the many facets of the symptoms.
The Healthiest Food Sources of Vitamin B12
What are the best Green-Light (whole food, plant-based) sources of vitamin B12 to meet the optimal dosage?
What Is the Safest Metabolism Booster?
To lose weight, drink water. Two cups of water can result in a surge of the adrenal hormone noradrenaline in your bloodstream, as if you had just smoked a few cigarettes or downed a few cups of coffee.
Live Q&A on Nov. 25
Every month, I do a Q&A live from my treadmill, and Nov. 25 is the day this month.
Join on our Facebook page or YouTube channel at 3pm ET. I’ll be streaming to both at the same time!
You can find links to all of my past live Q&As here on NutritionFacts.org. If that’s not enough, remember I also have an audio podcast to keep you company.


nutritionfactsorg--2020-11-24--Açaí vs. Wild Blueberries for Artery Function

“ Plant-based diets…have been found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease ” and some of our other leading causes of death and disability .
“ Studies have shown that the longest living and least dementia-prone populations subsist on plant-based diets.
” So why focus on açaí berries , just one plant , for brain health and performance ?
Well , “ foods rich in polyphenols…improve brain health , ” and açaí berries contain lots of polyphenols and antioxidants , so perhaps that ’ s why they could be beneficial .
If you ’ re only looking at polyphenols , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dozen foods that contain more per serving , like black elderberry , regular fruits like plums , flaxseeds , dark chocolate , and even just a cup of coffee .
As you can see at 1:02 in my video The Benefits of Açaí vs. Blueberries for Artery Function , in terms of antioxidants , açaí berries may have ten times more antioxidant content than more typical fruits , like peaches and papayas , and five times more antioxidants than strawberries .
But blackberries , for instance , appear to have even more antioxidants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more widely available .
Açaí berries don ’ t just have potential brain benefits , however .
Might they also protect the lungs against harm induced by cigarette smoke ?
You may remember the study where the addition of açaí berries to cigarettes protected against emphysema—in smoking mice , that is .
That ’ s not very helpful .
There is a long list of impressive-looking benefits until you dig a little deeper .
For example , I was excited to see a “ [ r ] eduction of coronary disease risk due @ @ @ @ @ @ @ berries , but then I pulled the study and found they were talking about a vasodilator effect…in the mesenteric vascular bed of rats .
There hadn ’ t been any studies on açaí berries and artery function in humans until a study published in 2016 .
Researchers gave overweight men either a smoothie containing about two-thirds of a cup of frozen açaí pulp and half a banana or an artificially colored placebo smoothie containing the banana but no açaí .
As you can see at 2:26 in my video , within two hours @ @ @ @ @ @ @ açaí group had a significant improvement in artery function that lasted for at least six hours , a one or two point bump that is clinically significant .
In fact , those walking around with just one point higher tend to go on to suffer 13 percent fewer cardiovascular events like fatal heart attacks .
As I show at 2:52 in my video , you can get the same effect from wild blueberries , though : about a one-and-a-half-point bump in artery function two hours after blueberry consumption .
This effect peaks then @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cups of blueberries , with two and a half cups and three and a half cups showing no further benefits .
What about cooked blueberries ?
As you can see at 3:12 in my video , if you baked the blueberries into a bun , like a blueberry muffin , you get the same dramatic improvement in artery function .
Cocoa can do it , too .
As shown at 3:30 in my video , after having one tablespoon of cocoa , you gain about one point , and two tablespoons gives you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which is double what you get with açaí berries .
One and a quarter cups ’ worth of multicolored grapes also give a nice boost in artery function , but enough to counter an “ acute endothelial insult , ” a sudden attack on the vulnerable inner layer of our arteries ?
Researchers gave participants a “ McDonald ’ s sausage egg breakfast sandwich and two hash browns.
” They weren ’ t messing around !
As you can see at 3:56 in my video , without the grapes , artery function was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the arteries stayed stiffened and crippled three hours later .
But when they ate that McMuffin with all those grapes , the harmful effect was blunted .
Eat a meal with hamburger meat , and artery function drops .
But if you eat that same meal with some spices , including a teaspoon and a half of turmeric , artery function actually improves .
What about orange juice ?
Four cups a day of commercial orange juice from concentrate for four weeks showed no change in artery function .
What about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That ’ s one of the reasons berries , not citrus , are the healthiest fruits .
For a beverage that can improve your artery function , try green tea .
Two cups of green tea gives you that same effect we saw with cocoa , gaining nearly four points within just 30 minutes .
And , as you can see at 5:05 in my video , that same crazy effect is also seen with black tea , with twice as powerful an effect as the açaí berries .
So , why @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plant ?
Why açaí berries ?
Well , the real reason may be because the author owns a patent on an açaí-based dietary supplement .
How do the antioxidant effects of açaí berries compare to applesauce ?
See The Antioxidant Effects of Açaí vs. Apples .
What about the effects of other foods on artery function ?
Coronary artery disease is , after all , our leading cause of death for men and women .
See : What else can blueberries do ?
Check out : • None How to Slow Brain Aging @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Benefits of Blueberries for the Brain • None Benefits of Blueberries for Blood Pressure May Be Blocked by Yogurt • None Best Brain Foods : Berries & Nuts Put to the Test PS : If you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

“Plant-based diets…have been found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease” and some of our other leading causes of death and disability. “Studies have shown that the longest living and least dementia-prone populations subsist on plant-based diets.” So why focus on açaí berries, just one plant, for brain health and performance?
Well, “foods rich in polyphenols…improve brain health,” and açaí berries contain lots of polyphenols and antioxidants, so perhaps that’s why they could be beneficial. If you’re only looking at polyphenols, though, there are more than a dozen foods that contain more per serving, like black elderberry, regular fruits like plums, flaxseeds, dark chocolate, and even just a cup of coffee.
As you can see at 1:02 in my video The Benefits of Açaí vs. Blueberries for Artery Function, in terms of antioxidants, açaí berries may have ten times more antioxidant content than more typical fruits, like peaches and papayas, and five times more antioxidants than strawberries. But blackberries, for instance, appear to have even more antioxidants than açaí berries and are cheaper and more widely available.
Açaí berries don’t just have potential brain benefits, however. Might they also protect the lungs against harm induced by cigarette smoke? You may remember the study where the addition of açaí berries to cigarettes protected against emphysema—in smoking mice, that is. That’s not very helpful. There is a long list of impressive-looking benefits until you dig a little deeper. For example, I was excited to see a “[r]eduction of coronary disease risk due to the vasodilation effect” of açaí berries, but then I pulled the study and found they were talking about a vasodilator effect…in the mesenteric vascular bed of rats. There hadn’t been any studies on açaí berries and artery function in humans until a study published in 2016.
Researchers gave overweight men either a smoothie containing about two-thirds of a cup of frozen açaí pulp and half a banana or an artificially colored placebo smoothie containing the banana but no açaí. As you can see at 2:26 in my video, within two hours of consumption of their smoothie, the açaí group had a significant improvement in artery function that lasted for at least six hours, a one or two point bump that is clinically significant. In fact, those walking around with just one point higher tend to go on to suffer 13 percent fewer cardiovascular events like fatal heart attacks.
As I show at 2:52 in my video, you can get the same effect from wild blueberries, though: about a one-and-a-half-point bump in artery function two hours after blueberry consumption. This effect peaks then plateaus at about one and a half cups of blueberries, with two and a half cups and three and a half cups showing no further benefits.
What about cooked blueberries? As you can see at 3:12 in my video, if you baked the blueberries into a bun, like a blueberry muffin, you get the same dramatic improvement in artery function.
Cocoa can do it, too. As shown at 3:30 in my video, after having one tablespoon of cocoa, you gain about one point, and two tablespoons gives you a whopping four points or so, which is double what you get with açaí berries.
One and a quarter cups’ worth of multicolored grapes also give a nice boost in artery function, but enough to counter an “acute endothelial insult,” a sudden attack on the vulnerable inner layer of our arteries? Researchers gave participants a “McDonald’s sausage egg breakfast sandwich and two hash browns.” They weren’t messing around! As you can see at 3:56 in my video, without the grapes, artery function was cut nearly in half within an hour, and the arteries stayed stiffened and crippled three hours later. But when they ate that McMuffin with all those grapes, the harmful effect was blunted.
Eat a meal with hamburger meat, and artery function drops. But if you eat that same meal with some spices, including a teaspoon and a half of turmeric, artery function actually improves.
What about orange juice? Four cups a day of commercial orange juice from concentrate for four weeks showed no change in artery function. What about freshly squeezed orange juice? Still nothing. That’s one of the reasons berries, not citrus, are the healthiest fruits.
For a beverage that can improve your artery function, try green tea. Two cups of green tea gives you that same effect we saw with cocoa, gaining nearly four points within just 30 minutes. And, as you can see at 5:05 in my video, that same crazy effect is also seen with black tea, with twice as powerful an effect as the açaí berries.
So, why all the focus on just that one plant? Why açaí berries? Well, the real reason may be because the author owns a patent on an açaí-based dietary supplement.
How do the antioxidant effects of açaí berries compare to applesauce? See The Antioxidant Effects of Açaí vs. Apples.
What about the effects of other foods on artery function? Coronary artery disease is, after all, our leading cause of death for men and women. See:
What else can blueberries do? Check out:
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-11-26--Why Was Chicken the Primary Source of Arsenic Exposure in Children?

What was the National Chicken Council ’ s response to public health authorities calling for the industry to stop feeding arsenic-based drugs to poultry ?
“ Dietary practices influence our exposure to pesticides , toxic heavy metals , persistent organic pollutants , and industrial pollutants….A diet high in fish and other animal products , for example , results in greater exposure to persistent organic compounds and metals than does a plant-based diet because these compounds bioaccumulate up the food chain.
” Researchers at UC Davis analyzed the diets of children and adults in California to see just how bad things @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exceeded by all children—100 percent of children—for arsenic , the banned pesticides dieldrin and DDT , metabolite DDE , as well as dioxins , and not just by a little .
As you can see at 0:51 in my video Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
, researchers found more than a hundred times the acceptable daily exposure for arsenic in preschoolers , school-aged children , parents , and older adults , about ten times the acceptable levels for various pesticides , and up to a thousand times the daily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these toxins coming from ?
The number-one source of dioxins in the diets of Californian preschoolers , kids , parents , and grandparents appears to be dairy for all age groups , followed by meat , and then white potatoes , refined grains , mushrooms , poultry , and fish .
These days , our DDT legacy is also mostly from dairy .
Dieldrin was created as a safer alternative to DDT , but it was banned just two years later , in 1974 , though it ’ s still found in our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meat , and , evidently , cucumbers .
Chlordane made it into the 1980s before being banned , though we ’ re still exposed through dairy ( and cukes ) .
Lead is — foodwise — also mostly from dairy , and mercury is not surprisingly mostly from tuna and other seafood .
But the primary source of arsenic in children ?
Surprisingly , mostly from chicken .
Why ?
Let me tell you a tale of arsenic in chicken .
Arsenic is “ well known as a poison by anyone who reads @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and with its long and colourful history , arsenic is not something that people want in their food.
” So , when a biostatistics student went to the USDA in 2000 in search of a project for his master ’ s degree , he decided to look into it .
He found a startling difference : Arsenic levels in chicken were three times higher than in other meats .
His veterinary colleagues weren ’ t at all surprised and explained that four different types of arsenic-containing antibiotic drugs are fed to poultry—and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ While arsenic-based drugs had been fed to poultry since the 1940s , recognition of this source of exposure [ for humans ] only occurred after appropriate statistical analysis of the data ” —that is , after this student churned through the data .
It was published in 2004 and expanded upon in 2006 .
The National Chicken Council ( NCC ) was none too pleased , saying lots of foods are contaminated with arsenic .
“ By focusing specifically on chicken , IATP [ the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ producing a publicity-oriented document focused on the objective of forcing [ chicken ] producers to stop using these safe and effective products ” —by which the NCC means these arsenic-containing drugs .
In fact , the NCC admits to using them but says we don ’ t need to worry because chicken producers use organic arsenic , “ not the inorganic form made infamous in ‘ Arsenic and Old Lace.
’ ” Okay , so we don ’ t need to worry—until , apparently , we cook it .
When chicken is cooked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arsenic drug in the meat turns into the ” Arsenic and Old Lace ” variety .
So , the Poison-Free Poultry Act of 2009 was introduced into Congress , flopped , and was followed by the subsequent introduction of the Poison-Free Poultry Act of 2011 .
Did the second attempt fare any better ?
No , legislators once again said pish posh to poison-poor poultry .
So , in 2013 , a coalition of nine organizations got together and sued the FDA , and by December 31 , 2015 , all arsenic-containing poultry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , arsenic is no longer to be fed to chickens .
The bad news is that without giving birds the arsenic-containing drug roxarsone , chicken may lose some of its “ appealing pink color.
” In the end , the poultry industry got away with exposing the American public to arsenic for 72 years .
“ It should be noted that the European Union has never approved drugs containing arsenic for animal consumption ” in the first place , saying , Hmm , feed our animals arsenic ?
No thanks , nein danke @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Europe has also long since banned the “ urgent threat to human health ” posed by feeding farm animals millions of pounds of human antibiotics .
As you can see at 5:30 in my video , feeding chickens en masse literally tons of drugs like tetracyclines and penicillins to fatten them faster is a problem that gets worse every year instead of better and dates back to 1951 when drug companies whipped out the ALL CAPS in advertisements , promising “ PROFITS…several times higher !
” , a dangerous practice the poultry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ years…and counting .
If you don ’ t eat poultry and are feeling a little cocky , you may want to check out my 12-video series on arsenic in rice before you gloat too much : • None Where Does the Arsenic in Rice , Mushrooms , and Wine Come From ?
• None The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet • None Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed • None Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Have the Least Arsenic ?
• None How to Cook Rice to Lower Arsenic Levels • None How Risky Is the Arsenic in Rice ?
• None How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• None Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
Think feeding arsenic to chickens is weird ?
Check out Illegal Drugs in Chicken Feathers .
And for more on the critical public health threat posed by antibiotic overuse in animal agriculture , see : PS : If you haven ’ t yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

What was the National Chicken Council’s response to public health authorities calling for the industry to stop feeding arsenic-based drugs to poultry?
“Dietary practices influence our exposure to pesticides, toxic heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, and industrial pollutants….A diet high in fish and other animal products, for example, results in greater exposure to persistent organic compounds and metals than does a plant-based diet because these compounds bioaccumulate up the food chain.” Researchers at UC Davis analyzed the diets of children and adults in California to see just how bad things have gotten.
Cancer benchmark levels were exceeded by all children—100 percent of children—for arsenic, the banned pesticides dieldrin and DDT, metabolite DDE, as well as dioxins, and not just by a little. As you can see at 0:51 in my video Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From?, researchers found more than a hundred times the acceptable daily exposure for arsenic in preschoolers, school-aged children, parents, and older adults, about ten times the acceptable levels for various pesticides, and up to a thousand times the daily dose for dioxins. Where are all these toxins coming from?
The number-one source of dioxins in the diets of Californian preschoolers, kids, parents, and grandparents appears to be dairy for all age groups, followed by meat, and then white potatoes, refined grains, mushrooms, poultry, and fish.
These days, our DDT legacy is also mostly from dairy. Dieldrin was created as a safer alternative to DDT, but it was banned just two years later, in 1974, though it’s still found in our bodies, mostly thanks to dairy, meat, and, evidently, cucumbers.
Chlordane made it into the 1980s before being banned, though we’re still exposed through dairy (and cukes). Lead is — foodwise — also mostly from dairy, and mercury is not surprisingly mostly from tuna and other seafood. But the primary source of arsenic in children? Surprisingly, mostly from chicken. Why?
Let me tell you a tale of arsenic in chicken. Arsenic is “well known as a poison by anyone who reads mysteries or the history of the Borgias, and with its long and colourful history, arsenic is not something that people want in their food.” So, when a biostatistics student went to the USDA in 2000 in search of a project for his master’s degree, he decided to look into it. He found a startling difference: Arsenic levels in chicken were three times higher than in other meats. His veterinary colleagues weren’t at all surprised and explained that four different types of arsenic-containing antibiotic drugs are fed to poultry—and have been fed to them since 1944.
“While arsenic-based drugs had been fed to poultry since the 1940s, recognition of this source of exposure [for humans] only occurred after appropriate statistical analysis of the data”—that is, after this student churned through the data. It was published in 2004 and expanded upon in 2006. The National Chicken Council (NCC) was none too pleased, saying lots of foods are contaminated with arsenic. “By focusing specifically on chicken, IATP [the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy] makes it clear that it is producing a publicity-oriented document focused on the objective of forcing [chicken] producers to stop using these safe and effective products”—by which the NCC means these arsenic-containing drugs. In fact, the NCC admits to using them but says we don’t need to worry because chicken producers use organic arsenic, “not the inorganic form made infamous in ‘Arsenic and Old Lace.’” Okay, so we don’t need to worry—until, apparently, we cook it. When chicken is cooked, it appears that some of the arsenic drug in the meat turns into the ”Arsenic and Old Lace” variety. So, the Poison-Free Poultry Act of 2009 was introduced into Congress, flopped, and was followed by the subsequent introduction of the Poison-Free Poultry Act of 2011. Did the second attempt fare any better? No, legislators once again said pish posh to poison-poor poultry. So, in 2013, a coalition of nine organizations got together and sued the FDA, and by December 31, 2015, all arsenic-containing poultry drugs were withdrawn. As of 2016, arsenic is no longer to be fed to chickens. The bad news is that without giving birds the arsenic-containing drug roxarsone, chicken may lose some of its “appealing pink color.”
In the end, the poultry industry got away with exposing the American public to arsenic for 72 years. “It should be noted that the European Union has never approved drugs containing arsenic for animal consumption” in the first place, saying, Hmm, feed our animals arsenic? No thanks, nein danke, no grazie, non, merci.
Europe has also long since banned the “urgent threat to human health” posed by feeding farm animals millions of pounds of human antibiotics. As you can see at 5:30 in my video, feeding chickens en masse literally tons of drugs like tetracyclines and penicillins to fatten them faster is a problem that gets worse every year instead of better and dates back to 1951 when drug companies whipped out the ALL CAPS in advertisements, promising “PROFITS…several times higher!”, a dangerous practice the poultry industry has gotten away with for 68 years…and counting.
If you don’t eat poultry and are feeling a little cocky, you may want to check out my 12-video series on arsenic in rice before you gloat too much:
Think feeding arsenic to chickens is weird? Check out Illegal Drugs in Chicken Feathers.
And for more on the critical public health threat posed by antibiotic overuse in animal agriculture, see:
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-12-01--Where Does the Arsenic in Rice, Mushrooms, and Wine Come From?

What happens when our crops are grown in soil contaminated with arsenic-based pesticides and arsenic drug-laced chicken manure ?
When arsenic-containing drugs are fed to chickens , not only does the arsenic grow out into their feathers , which are then fed back to them as a slaughterhouse byproduct , but the arsenic can also get into their tissues and then into our tissues when we eat eggs or meat , a cycle depicted at the start of my video Where Does the Arsenic in Rice , Mushrooms , and Wine Come From ?
.
This explains why national studies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poultry have tended to have more arsenic flowing through their bodies .
Why would the industry do that ?
In modern poultry farms , often called CAFOs for concentrated animal feeding operations , there can be 200,000 birds under one roof and the floors of these buildings become covered with feces .
While this so-called factory farming decreases costs , it also increases the risk of disease .
That ’ s where arsenic-containing drugs and other antibiotic feed additives can come in : to try to cut down the spread of disease in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re feeling a little smug because you don ’ t eat chicken , what do you think happens to the poop ?
As depicted at 1:17 in my video , from chicken manure , the arsenic from the drugs in the animal feed can get into our crops , into the air , and into the groundwater , and find its way into our bodies whether we eat meat or not .
Yes , but how much arsenic are we really talking about ?
Well , we raise billions of chickens a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the vast majority were fed arsenic , then , if you do the math , we ’ re talking about dumping a half million pounds of arsenic into the environment every year—much of it onto our crops or shoveled directly into the mouths of other farm animals .
Most of the arsenic in chicken waste is water soluble , so , there are certainly concerns about it seeping into the groundwater .
But , if it ’ s used as a fertilizer , what about our food ?
Studies on the levels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dating back to the 1970s identified two foods , fish aside , with the highest levels—chicken and rice—both of which can accumulate arsenic in the same way .
Deliver an arsenic-containing drug like roxarsone to chickens , and it ends up in their manure , which ends up in the soil , which ends up in our pilaf .
“ Rice is [ now ] the primary source of As [ arsenic ] exposure in a non seafood diet.
” I was surprised to learn that mushrooms are in the top-five food sources @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sense after I found out that poultry litter is commonly used as a starting material to grow mushrooms in the United States .
As you can see at 2:58 in my video , over the years , the arsenic content in mushrooms has rivaled arsenic concentration in rice , though people tend to eat more rice than mushrooms on a daily basis .
Arsenic levels in mushrooms seemed to be dipping starting about a decade ago , which was confirmed in a 2016 paper that looked at a dozen different types of mushrooms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , portobello , shiitake , trumpet , oyster , nameko , maitake , alba clamshell , brown clamshell , and chanterelle .
Now , mushrooms are only averaging about half the arsenic content as rice , as you can see at 3:37 in my video .
Just like some mushrooms have less arsenic than others , some rice has less .
Rice grown in California has 40 percent less arsenic than rice grown in Arkansas , Louisiana , Mississippi , Missouri , and Texas .
Why ?
Well , arsenic-based pesticides had been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ millions of acres of cotton fields , a practice noted to be “ dangerous ” back in 1927 .
Arsenic pesticides are now effectively banned , so it ’ s not simply a matter of buying organic versus conventional rice because millions of pounds of arsenic had been laid down in the soil well before the rice was even planted .
The rice industry is well aware of this .
There ’ s an arsenic-toxicity disorder in rice called “ straighthead , ” where rice planted in soil too heavily contaminated with arsenic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , instead of choosing cleaner cropland , they just developed arsenic-resistant strains of rice .
Now , lots of arsenic can build up in rice without the plant getting hurt .
Can the same be said , however , for the rice consumer ?
It ’ s the same story with wine .
Arsenic pesticides were used , decade after decade , and even though they ’ ve since been banned , arsenic can still be sucked up from the soil , leading to “ the pervasive presence of arsenic in [ American @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a potential health risk.
” Curiously , the researchers sum up their article by saying that “ chronic arsenic exposure is known to lower IQ in children , ” but if kids are drinking that much wine , arsenic toxicity is probably the least of their worries .
Hold on .
Chickens are being fed arsenic-based drugs ?
See Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
to find out more .
I expect the arsenic-in-rice issue brought up a lot of questions , and giving you answers is exactly why I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet • Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed • Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
• Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic ?
• How to Cook Rice to Lower Arsenic Levels • How Risky Is the Arsenic in Rice ?
• How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
PS : If @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

What happens when our crops are grown in soil contaminated with arsenic-based pesticides and arsenic drug-laced chicken manure?
When arsenic-containing drugs are fed to chickens, not only does the arsenic grow out into their feathers, which are then fed back to them as a slaughterhouse byproduct, but the arsenic can also get into their tissues and then into our tissues when we eat eggs or meat, a cycle depicted at the start of my video Where Does the Arsenic in Rice, Mushrooms, and Wine Come From?. This explains why national studies have found that those who eat more poultry have tended to have more arsenic flowing through their bodies. Why would the industry do that? In modern poultry farms, often called CAFOs for concentrated animal feeding operations, there can be 200,000 birds under one roof and the floors of these buildings become covered with feces. While this so-called factory farming decreases costs, it also increases the risk of disease. That’s where arsenic-containing drugs and other antibiotic feed additives can come in: to try to cut down the spread of disease in such an unnatural environment. If you’re feeling a little smug because you don’t eat chicken, what do you think happens to the poop?
As depicted at 1:17 in my video, from chicken manure, the arsenic from the drugs in the animal feed can get into our crops, into the air, and into the groundwater, and find its way into our bodies whether we eat meat or not. Yes, but how much arsenic are we really talking about? Well, we raise billions of chickens a year, and, if, historically, the vast majority were fed arsenic, then, if you do the math, we’re talking about dumping a half million pounds of arsenic into the environment every year—much of it onto our crops or shoveled directly into the mouths of other farm animals.
Most of the arsenic in chicken waste is water soluble, so, there are certainly concerns about it seeping into the groundwater. But, if it’s used as a fertilizer, what about our food? Studies on the levels of arsenic in the U.S. food supply dating back to the 1970s identified two foods, fish aside, with the highest levels—chicken and rice—both of which can accumulate arsenic in the same way. Deliver an arsenic-containing drug like roxarsone to chickens, and it ends up in their manure, which ends up in the soil, which ends up in our pilaf. “Rice is [now] the primary source of As [arsenic] exposure in a non seafood diet.”
I was surprised to learn that mushrooms are in the top-five food sources of arsenic, but then it made sense after I found out that poultry litter is commonly used as a starting material to grow mushrooms in the United States. As you can see at 2:58 in my video, over the years, the arsenic content in mushrooms has rivaled arsenic concentration in rice, though people tend to eat more rice than mushrooms on a daily basis. Arsenic levels in mushrooms seemed to be dipping starting about a decade ago, which was confirmed in a 2016 paper that looked at a dozen different types of mushrooms: plain white button mushrooms, cremini, portobello, shiitake, trumpet, oyster, nameko, maitake, alba clamshell, brown clamshell, and chanterelle. Now, mushrooms are only averaging about half the arsenic content as rice, as you can see at 3:37 in my video.
Just like some mushrooms have less arsenic than others, some rice has less. Rice grown in California has 40 percent less arsenic than rice grown in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas. Why? Well, arsenic-based pesticides had been used for more than a century on millions of acres of cotton fields, a practice noted to be “dangerous” back in 1927. Arsenic pesticides are now effectively banned, so it’s not simply a matter of buying organic versus conventional rice because millions of pounds of arsenic had been laid down in the soil well before the rice was even planted.
The rice industry is well aware of this. There’s an arsenic-toxicity disorder in rice called “straighthead,” where rice planted in soil too heavily contaminated with arsenic doesn’t grow right. So, instead of choosing cleaner cropland, they just developed arsenic-resistant strains of rice. Now, lots of arsenic can build up in rice without the plant getting hurt. Can the same be said, however, for the rice consumer?
It’s the same story with wine. Arsenic pesticides were used, decade after decade, and even though they’ve since been banned, arsenic can still be sucked up from the soil, leading to “the pervasive presence of arsenic in [American] wine [that] can pose a potential health risk.” Curiously, the researchers sum up their article by saying that “chronic arsenic exposure is known to lower IQ in children,” but if kids are drinking that much wine, arsenic toxicity is probably the least of their worries.
Hold on. Chickens are being fed arsenic-based drugs? See Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From? to find out more.
I expect the arsenic-in-rice issue brought up a lot of questions, and giving you answers is exactly why I’m here! Check out:
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-12-03--The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet

Even at low-level exposure , arsenic is not just a class I carcinogen , but may also impair our immune function and increase our risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes .
When people hear about arsenic , they think of it as an acute poison , and , indeed , a tiny amount—a hundred milligrams , about one-tenth the weight of a paperclip—could kill you in an hour .
But , there is also chronic arsenic poisoning , where even a dose 10,000 times as small can be harmful if you ’ re exposed day-after-day for years at a time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet .
Chief among the concerns is cancer .
Arsenic is classified as a class I carcinogen , which is the highest level and includes things known to cause cancer in humans .
Other class I carcinogens are asbestos , cigarette smoke , formaldehyde , plutonium , and processed meat ( the consumption of bacon , ham , hot dogs , deli meat , and the like ) .
So , arsenic is pretty bad , to say the least , implicated in tens of thousands—or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every year .
Of course , cancer is our number-two killer .
What about heart disease , our leading cause of death ?
“ Long-term exposure to low to moderate arsenic levels was associated with cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality , ” meaning heart attacks and strokes .
Arsenic is also considered an immunotoxicant , meaning it ’ s toxic to our immune system .
How do we know that ?
There ’ s a virus called varicella , which is what causes chickenpox—the first time we get it .
Our immune system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not stamp it out .
The virus retreats into our nerve cells where it lies in wait for our immune function to dip .
And , when it does , the virus re-emerges and causes a disease called shingles .
We ’ ve all been exposed to the virus , but only about one in three of us will get shingles because our immune system is able to keep it at bay .
However , the virus can slip its muzzle as we get older or immunosuppressed , for instance , if we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a common side effect , because the arsenic drugs not only kill the cancer but also some of our immune cells , too .
That ’ s at high doses , though .
Might even low doses of arsenic , like the kind we ’ re exposed to in our daily diet , impact our immune function ?
Researchers tested the levels of arsenic in the urine of thousands of Americans , along with their levels of anti-virus antibodies , and , indeed , they found that the more arsenic the subjects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lower their defenses .
And , if you ’ re pregnant , arsenic can pass to your baby , possibly increasing the risk of miscarriage or infant mortality , and “ may affect an infant ’ s immune development and susceptibility to infections early in life.
” Indeed , a study out of New Hampshire on infant infections in relation to prenatal arsenic exposure found that the more arsenic the mom was exposed to during pregnancy , the higher the baby ’ s risk of infection during infancy .
However , “ it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are transgenerational ” —that is , whether changes in gene expression can impact the health of not only your own children but your grandchildren as well .
Regardless , arsenic exposure isn ’ t good for mom ’ s own health , as it is associated with increasing blood pressure .
Hold on .
If arsenic suppresses immune system function , then , as a silver lining , would we , for example , have fewer allergies , which is a kind of over-reaction of the immune system ?
Apparently not .
Those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ higher rates of food allergies , tend not to sleep as well , and tend not to feel as well .
When people were asked how they would rate their health , those reporting “ excellent ” or “ very good ” tended to have lower levels of arsenic , compared to those who reported their general health condition as “ good , ” “ fair , ” or “ poor , ” who tended to have higher arsenic levels .
What about diabetes ?
You can see the results of two dozen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ diabetes at 4:07 in my video .
Any result above one suggests increased risk for diabetes , and any result below one suggests lower risk .
The findings ?
“ Our results support an association between ingested arsenic and DM [ diabetes ] in humans.
” Population studies can ’ t prove cause and effect , though .
“ While it would be nice to demonstrate a cause and effect relationship…is it necessary ?
” We know arsenic is a carcinogen .
We know it causes cancer .
What more do we need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Where is arsenic found in our diet ?
See my videos Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
and Where Does the Arsenic in Rice , Mushrooms , and Wine Come From ?
.
Ready for a deep dive into the rice issue ?
Check out : • Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed • Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
• Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic ?
• How to Cook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Risky Is the Arsenic in Rice ?
• How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
• How Many Cancers Have Been Caused by Arsenic-Laced Chicken ?
PS : If you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

Even at low-level exposure, arsenic is not just a class I carcinogen, but may also impair our immune function and increase our risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
When people hear about arsenic, they think of it as an acute poison, and, indeed, a tiny amount—a hundred milligrams, about one-tenth the weight of a paperclip—could kill you in an hour. But, there is also chronic arsenic poisoning, where even a dose 10,000 times as small can be harmful if you’re exposed day-after-day for years at a time as I discuss in my video The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet. Chief among the concerns is cancer.
Arsenic is classified as a class I carcinogen, which is the highest level and includes things known to cause cancer in humans. Other class I carcinogens are asbestos, cigarette smoke, formaldehyde, plutonium, and processed meat (the consumption of bacon, ham, hot dogs, deli meat, and the like). So, arsenic is pretty bad, to say the least, implicated in tens of thousands—or even hundreds of thousands—of cancer cases worldwide every year.
Of course, cancer is our number-two killer. What about heart disease, our leading cause of death? “Long-term exposure to low to moderate arsenic levels was associated with cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality,” meaning heart attacks and strokes.
Arsenic is also considered an immunotoxicant, meaning it’s toxic to our immune system. How do we know that? There’s a virus called varicella, which is what causes chickenpox—the first time we get it. Our immune system is able to stamp it down but not stamp it out. The virus retreats into our nerve cells where it lies in wait for our immune function to dip. And, when it does, the virus re-emerges and causes a disease called shingles. We’ve all been exposed to the virus, but only about one in three of us will get shingles because our immune system is able to keep it at bay. However, the virus can slip its muzzle as we get older or immunosuppressed, for instance, if we’re given arsenic chemotherapy. Shingles is a common side effect, because the arsenic drugs not only kill the cancer but also some of our immune cells, too. That’s at high doses, though. Might even low doses of arsenic, like the kind we’re exposed to in our daily diet, impact our immune function? Researchers tested the levels of arsenic in the urine of thousands of Americans, along with their levels of anti-virus antibodies, and, indeed, they found that the more arsenic the subjects had flowing through their bodies, the lower their defenses.
And, if you’re pregnant, arsenic can pass to your baby, possibly increasing the risk of miscarriage or infant mortality, and “may affect an infant’s immune development and susceptibility to infections early in life.” Indeed, a study out of New Hampshire on infant infections in relation to prenatal arsenic exposure found that the more arsenic the mom was exposed to during pregnancy, the higher the baby’s risk of infection during infancy. However, “it’s unknown whether arsenic-induced epigenetic changes are transgenerational”—that is, whether changes in gene expression can impact the health of not only your own children but your grandchildren as well. Regardless, arsenic exposure isn’t good for mom’s own health, as it is associated with increasing blood pressure.
Hold on. If arsenic suppresses immune system function, then, as a silver lining, would we, for example, have fewer allergies, which is a kind of over-reaction of the immune system? Apparently not. Those with higher arsenic levels tend to have higher rates of food allergies, tend not to sleep as well, and tend not to feel as well. When people were asked how they would rate their health, those reporting “excellent” or “very good” tended to have lower levels of arsenic, compared to those who reported their general health condition as “good,” “fair,” or “poor,” who tended to have higher arsenic levels.
What about diabetes? You can see the results of two dozen population studies on arsenic exposure and confirmed diabetes at 4:07 in my video. Any result above one suggests increased risk for diabetes, and any result below one suggests lower risk. The findings? “Our results support an association between ingested arsenic and DM [diabetes] in humans.” Population studies can’t prove cause and effect, though. “While it would be nice to demonstrate a cause and effect relationship…is it necessary?”
We know arsenic is a carcinogen. We know it causes cancer. What more do we need to take steps to decrease our exposure?
Where is arsenic found in our diet? See my videos Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From? and Where Does the Arsenic in Rice, Mushrooms, and Wine Come From?.
Ready for a deep dive into the rice issue? Check out:
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-12-08--Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed

A daily half-cup of cooked rice may carry a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk of arsenic .
What about seaweed from the coast of Maine ?
“ At one point during the reign of King Cotton , farmers in the south central United States controlled boll weevils with arsenic-based pesticides , and residual arsenic still contaminates the soil.
” Different plants have different reactions to arsenic exposure .
Tomatoes , for example , don ’ t seem to accumulate much arsenic , but rice plants are really good at sucking it out of the ground—so much so that rice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” meaning you can plant rice on contaminated land as a way to clear arsenic from the soil .
Of course , you ’ re then supposed to throw the rice—and the arsenic—away .
But in the South , where 80 percent of U.S. rice is grown , we instead feed it to people .
As you can see at 0:52 in my video Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed , national surveys have shown that most arsenic exposure has been measured coming from the meat in our diet , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from fish and other seafood .
Well , given that seafood is contributing 90 percent of our arsenic exposure from food , why are we even talking about the 4 percent from rice ?
The arsenic compounds in seafood are mainly organic—used here as a chemistry term having nothing to do with pesticides .
Because of the way our body can deal with organic arsenic compounds , “ they have historically been viewed as harmless.
” Recently , there have been some questions about that assumption , but there ’ s no question @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which you get more of from rice .
As you can see at 1:43 in my video , rice contains more of the toxic inorganic arsenic than does seafood , with one exception : Hijiki , an edible seaweed , is a hundred times more contaminated than rice , leading some researchers to refer to it as the “ so-called edible hijiki seaweed.
” Governments have started to agree .
In 2001 , the Canadian government advised the public not to eat hijiki , followed by the United Kingdom , the European Commission @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety advised the public not to eat hijiki and banned imports and sales of it .
Japan , where there is actually a hijiki industry , just advised moderation .
What about seaweed from the coast of Maine—domestic , commercially harvested seaweed from New England ?
Thankfully , only one type , a type of kelp , had significant levels of arsenic .
But , it would take more than a teaspoon to exceed the provisional daily limit for arsenic , and , at that point , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ daily limit for iodine by about 3,000 percent , which is ten times more than reported in a life-threatening case report attributed to a kelp supplement .
I recommend avoiding hijiki due to its excess arsenic content and avoiding kelp due to its excess iodine content , but all other seaweeds should be fine , as long as you don ’ t eat them with too much rice .
In the report mentioned earlier where we learned that rice has more of the toxic inorganic arsenic than fish , we can see that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ per kilogram of raw white rice .
What does that mean ?
That ’ s only 88.7 parts per billion , which is like 88.7 drops of arsenic in an Olympic-size swimming pool of rice .
How much cancer risk are we talking about ?
To put it into context , the “ usual level of acceptable risk for carcinogens ” is one extra cancer case per million .
That ’ s how we typically regulate cancer-causing substances .
If a chemical company wants to release a new chemical , we want them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cause more than one in a million excess cancer cases .
The problem with arsenic in rice is that the excess cancer risk associated with eating just about a half cup of cooked rice a day could be closer to one in ten thousand , not one in a million , as you can see at 4:07 in my video .
That ’ s a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk .
The FDA has calculated that one serving a day of the most common rice , long grain white , would cause @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases , but 136 in a million .
And that ’ s just the cancer effects of arsenic .
What about all the non-cancer effects ?
The FDA acknowledges that , in addition to cancer , the toxic arsenic found in rice “ has been associated with many non-cancer effects , including ischemic heart disease , diabetes , skin lesions , renal [ kidney ] disease , hypertension , and stroke.
” Why , then , did the FDA only calculate the cancer risks of arsenic ?
“ Assessing all the risks associated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and resources and would delay taking any needed action to protect public health ” from the risks of rice .
“ Although physicians can help patients reduce their dietary arsenic exposure , regulatory agencies , food producers , and legislative bodies have the most important roles ” in terms of public health-scale changes .
“ Arsenic content in U.S.-grown rice has been relatively constant throughout the last 30 years , ” which is a bad thing .
“ Where grain arsenic concentration is elevated due to ongoing contamination , the ideal scenario is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Some toxic arsenic in foods is from natural contamination of the land , but soil contamination has also come from the dumping of arsenic-containing pesticides , as well as the use of arsenic-based drugs in poultry production and then the spreading of arsenic-laced chicken manure on the land .
Regardless of why south central U.S. rice paddies are so contaminated , we shouldn ’ t be growing rice in arsenic-contaminated soil .
What does the rice industry have to say for itself ?
Well , it started a website called ArsenicFacts .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ arsenic is everywhere , we ’ re all exposed to it every day , and it ’ s in most foods .
But shouldn ’ t we try to cut down on the most concentrated sources ?
Isn ’ t that like saying look , diesel exhaust is everywhere , so why not suck on a tailpipe ?
The industry website quotes a nutrition professor saying , “ All foods contain arsenic .
So , if you eliminate arsenic from your diet , you will decrease your risk…and you ’ ll die of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Morris saying that the only way to completely avoid secondhand smoke is to never breathe—but then you ’ ll asphyxiate , so you might as well just start smoking yourself .
If you can ’ t avoid it , you might as well consume the most toxic source you can find ?
!
That ’ s the same tack the poultry industry took .
Arsenic and chicken ?
“ No need to worry ” because there ’ s a little arsenic everywhere .
That ’ s why it ’ s okay the industry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
If you can ’ t beat ’ em , join ’ em .
How can the rice industry get away with selling a product containing a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk ?
I cover that and so much more in my other videos on arsenic and rice , which also include concrete recommendations on how to mediate your risk .
• Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
• Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic ?
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Levels • How Risky Is the Arsenic in Rice ?
• How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
Pesticides were not the only source of arsenic .
Poultry poop , too , if you can believe it !
I cover that story in Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
and Where Does the Arsenic in Rice , Mushrooms , and Wine Come From ?
.
Chronic low-dose arsenic exposure is associated with more than just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Much Arsenic in the Diet .
PS : If you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : @ @ @ @ @ @

A daily half-cup of cooked rice may carry a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk of arsenic. What about seaweed from the coast of Maine?
“At one point during the reign of King Cotton, farmers in the south central United States controlled boll weevils with arsenic-based pesticides, and residual arsenic still contaminates the soil.” Different plants have different reactions to arsenic exposure. Tomatoes, for example, don’t seem to accumulate much arsenic, but rice plants are really good at sucking it out of the ground—so much so that rice can be used for “arsenic phytoremediation,” meaning you can plant rice on contaminated land as a way to clear arsenic from the soil. Of course, you’re then supposed to throw the rice—and the arsenic—away. But in the South, where 80 percent of U.S. rice is grown, we instead feed it to people.
As you can see at 0:52 in my video Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed, national surveys have shown that most arsenic exposure has been measured coming from the meat in our diet, rather than from grains, with most from fish and other seafood. Well, given that seafood is contributing 90 percent of our arsenic exposure from food, why are we even talking about the 4 percent from rice?
The arsenic compounds in seafood are mainly organic—used here as a chemistry term having nothing to do with pesticides. Because of the way our body can deal with organic arsenic compounds, “they have historically been viewed as harmless.” Recently, there have been some questions about that assumption, but there’s no question about the toxicity of inorganic arsenic, which you get more of from rice.
As you can see at 1:43 in my video, rice contains more of the toxic inorganic arsenic than does seafood, with one exception: Hijiki, an edible seaweed, is a hundred times more contaminated than rice, leading some researchers to refer to it as the “so-called edible hijiki seaweed.” Governments have started to agree. In 2001, the Canadian government advised the public not to eat hijiki, followed by the United Kingdom, the European Commission, Australia, and New Zealand. The Hong Kong Centre for Food Safety advised the public not to eat hijiki and banned imports and sales of it. Japan, where there is actually a hijiki industry, just advised moderation.
What about seaweed from the coast of Maine—domestic, commercially harvested seaweed from New England? Thankfully, only one type, a type of kelp, had significant levels of arsenic. But, it would take more than a teaspoon to exceed the provisional daily limit for arsenic, and, at that point, you’d be exceeding the upper daily limit for iodine by about 3,000 percent, which is ten times more than reported in a life-threatening case report attributed to a kelp supplement.
I recommend avoiding hijiki due to its excess arsenic content and avoiding kelp due to its excess iodine content, but all other seaweeds should be fine, as long as you don’t eat them with too much rice.
In the report mentioned earlier where we learned that rice has more of the toxic inorganic arsenic than fish, we can see that there are 88.7 micrograms of inorganic arsenic per kilogram of raw white rice. What does that mean? That’s only 88.7 parts per billion, which is like 88.7 drops of arsenic in an Olympic-size swimming pool of rice. How much cancer risk are we talking about? To put it into context, the “usual level of acceptable risk for carcinogens” is one extra cancer case per million. That’s how we typically regulate cancer-causing substances. If a chemical company wants to release a new chemical, we want them to show that it doesn’t cause more than one in a million excess cancer cases.
The problem with arsenic in rice is that the excess cancer risk associated with eating just about a half cup of cooked rice a day could be closer to one in ten thousand, not one in a million, as you can see at 4:07 in my video. That’s a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk. The FDA has calculated that one serving a day of the most common rice, long grain white, would cause not 1 in a million extra cancer cases, but 136 in a million.
And that’s just the cancer effects of arsenic. What about all the non-cancer effects? The FDA acknowledges that, in addition to cancer, the toxic arsenic found in rice “has been associated with many non-cancer effects, including ischemic heart disease, diabetes, skin lesions, renal [kidney] disease, hypertension, and stroke.” Why, then, did the FDA only calculate the cancer risks of arsenic? “Assessing all the risks associated with inorganic arsenic would take considerable time and resources and would delay taking any needed action to protect public health” from the risks of rice.
“Although physicians can help patients reduce their dietary arsenic exposure, regulatory agencies, food producers, and legislative bodies have the most important roles” in terms of public health-scale changes. “Arsenic content in U.S.-grown rice has been relatively constant throughout the last 30 years,” which is a bad thing.
“Where grain arsenic concentration is elevated due to ongoing contamination, the ideal scenario is to stop the contamination at the source.” Some toxic arsenic in foods is from natural contamination of the land, but soil contamination has also come from the dumping of arsenic-containing pesticides, as well as the use of arsenic-based drugs in poultry production and then the spreading of arsenic-laced chicken manure on the land. Regardless of why south central U.S. rice paddies are so contaminated, we shouldn’t be growing rice in arsenic-contaminated soil.
What does the rice industry have to say for itself? Well, it started a website called ArsenicFacts. Its main argument appears to be that arsenic is everywhere, we’re all exposed to it every day, and it’s in most foods. But shouldn’t we try to cut down on the most concentrated sources? Isn’t that like saying look, diesel exhaust is everywhere, so why not suck on a tailpipe? The industry website quotes a nutrition professor saying, “All foods contain arsenic. So, if you eliminate arsenic from your diet, you will decrease your risk…and you’ll die of starvation.” That’s like Philip Morris saying that the only way to completely avoid secondhand smoke is to never breathe—but then you’ll asphyxiate, so you might as well just start smoking yourself. If you can’t avoid it, you might as well consume the most toxic source you can find?!
That’s the same tack the poultry industry took. Arsenic and chicken? “No need to worry” because there’s a little arsenic everywhere. That’s why it’s okay the industry fed chickens arsenic-based drugs for 70 years. If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.
How can the rice industry get away with selling a product containing a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk? I cover that and so much more in my other videos on arsenic and rice, which also include concrete recommendations on how to mediate your risk.
Check out:
Pesticides were not the only source of arsenic. Poultry poop, too, if you can believe it! I cover that story in Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From? and Where Does the Arsenic in Rice, Mushrooms, and Wine Come From?.
Chronic low-dose arsenic exposure is associated with more than just cancer. See The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet.
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-12-10--Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic?

Arsenic levels were tested in 5,800 rice samples from 25 countries.The arsenic found in five servings of rice a week poses a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk .
What did the rice industry have to say about that ?
When the story first broke in the media that U.S. rice had some of the highest arsenic levels in the world , the USA Rice Federation said , “ Enough nonsense about arsenic already !
” in the August 9 , 2005 , issue of USA Rice Daily , its daily newsletter .
The study , in its mind , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ highest degree , but also maliciously untrue.
” One of the researchers responded , “ By not addressing this problem [ of arsenic ] that has been ignored for decades , the U.S. cotton-belt rice industry is doing itself an injustice .
“ Had the problem been addressed in the past , given that it is well known that arsenic in paddy soils was a problem in the U.S….safe soils would have been identified and low grain arsenic rice varieties developed.
” Instead , arsenic-resistant varieties have been developed that build up excessive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I discuss arsenic levels in rice in my video Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic ?
.
Not all rice producers have been so dismissive , though .
After a subsequent Consumer Reports exposé , one rice company detailed “ how it is taking matters into its own hands.
” Lundberg Farms started testing hundreds of samples of its rice to share the results with the FDA .
“ We ’ re committed to providing safe food , ” said the CEO , “ to really listening to our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very openly….
” Lundberg Farms isn ’ t just sharing its results with the FDA , but with everyone .
If you visit its website or go to 1:37 in my video , you can see it apparently followed through on its testing promise for its brown rice .
Lundberg Farms use parts per million ( ppm ) instead of parts per billion ( ppb ) to make it look better than it is , but compared with the average U.S. brown rice level of 154 ppb , Lundberg does do better .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ its aromatic brown rice , presumably its brown basmati and brown jasmine , averages less than national white rice levels , as do , apparently , Lundberg ’ s red and black rices , at 90 ppb .
In fact , none of its samples even reached the average U.S. brown rice level .
Consumer Reports found most other brands to be pretty comparable to the U.S. average arsenic levels in brown rice , as you can see at 2:15 in my video , including Uncle Ben ’ s and Walmart ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ however , scored the worst with its 365 Everyday Value long grain brown rice , about a third higher than these others and exceeding the national average .
In the largest review to date , based on 5,800 rice samples from 25 countries , the highest total arsenic average came from the United States .
U.S. studies averaged overall about double that of rice out of Asia , with the high levels in the United States blamed on “ the heavy [ historical ] use of arsenic-based pesticides.
” But arsenic levels were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Yes , U.S. rice averages twice the arsenic of Asian rice and nearly all rice samples tested in upstate New York that were imported from India or Pakistan had arsenic levels lower than 95 percent of domestically produced rice .
But , “ [ r ] ice grown in the U.S. showed the widest overall range…and the largest number of outliers , ” due primarily to where it was grown , as you can see at 3:01 in my video .
There is significantly more arsenic in Texas and Arkansas rice than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comparable to rice produced around the rest of the world .
These are presumably some of the data that led Consumer Reports to suggest brown basmati from California , India , or Pakistan might be among the safer rice choices.If the arsenic is from pesticides , would organic rice have less than conventionally grown rice ?
No , because arsenic pesticides were banned about 30 years ago .
It ’ s just that 30,000 tons of arsenic chemicals had already been dumped onto cotton fields in the southern United States , “ so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remain in the environment ” even if you don ’ t add an ounce of new pesticides .
That ’ s why the industry specifically selects for arsenic-resistant varieties of rice plants in the South .
If only there were arsenic-resistant humans .
What about other brands of rice ?
That was the subject of Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
.
For even more background , see : • Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
• Where Does @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Wine Come From ?
• The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet • Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed You may also be interested in : • How to Cook Rice to Lower Arsenic Levels • How Risky Is the Arsenic in Rice ?
• How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
Kudos to Consumers Union , the wonderful organization that publishes Consumer Reports , for its pioneering work on this and so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to Able : Combating Disabling Diseases with Food • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

Arsenic levels were tested in 5,800 rice samples from 25 countries.The arsenic found in five servings of rice a week poses a hundred times the acceptable cancer risk. What did the rice industry have to say about that? When the story first broke in the media that U.S. rice had some of the highest arsenic levels in the world, the USA Rice Federation said, “Enough nonsense about arsenic already!” in the August 9, 2005, issue of USA Rice Daily, its daily newsletter. The study, in its mind, was “not only inaccurate in the highest degree, but also maliciously untrue.” One of the researchers responded, “By not addressing this problem [of arsenic] that has been ignored for decades, the U.S. cotton-belt rice industry is doing itself an injustice. “Had the problem been addressed in the past, given that it is well known that arsenic in paddy soils was a problem in the U.S….safe soils would have been identified and low grain arsenic rice varieties developed.” Instead, arsenic-resistant varieties have been developed that build up excessive levels of arsenic without dying themselves. I discuss arsenic levels in rice in my video Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic?.
Not all rice producers have been so dismissive, though. After a subsequent Consumer Reports exposé, one rice company detailed “how it is taking matters into its own hands.” Lundberg Farms started testing hundreds of samples of its rice to share the results with the FDA. “We’re committed to providing safe food,” said the CEO, “to really listening to our consumers, and dealing with this problem very openly….” Lundberg Farms isn’t just sharing its results with the FDA, but with everyone.
If you visit its website or go to 1:37 in my video, you can see it apparently followed through on its testing promise for its brown rice. Lundberg Farms use parts per million (ppm) instead of parts per billion (ppb) to make it look better than it is, but compared with the average U.S. brown rice level of 154 ppb, Lundberg does do better. In fact, at 80 ppb, its aromatic brown rice, presumably its brown basmati and brown jasmine, averages less than national white rice levels, as do, apparently, Lundberg’s red and black rices, at 90 ppb. In fact, none of its samples even reached the average U.S. brown rice level.
Consumer Reports found most other brands to be pretty comparable to the U.S. average arsenic levels in brown rice, as you can see at 2:15 in my video, including Uncle Ben’s and Walmart’s Great Value brand. Whole Foods, however, scored the worst with its 365 Everyday Value long grain brown rice, about a third higher than these others and exceeding the national average.
In the largest review to date, based on 5,800 rice samples from 25 countries, the highest total arsenic average came from the United States. U.S. studies averaged overall about double that of rice out of Asia, with the high levels in the United States blamed on “the heavy [historical] use of arsenic-based pesticides.” But arsenic levels were not the same across the United States. Yes, U.S. rice averages twice the arsenic of Asian rice and nearly all rice samples tested in upstate New York that were imported from India or Pakistan had arsenic levels lower than 95 percent of domestically produced rice. But, “[r]ice grown in the U.S. showed the widest overall range…and the largest number of outliers,” due primarily to where it was grown, as you can see at 3:01 in my video. There is significantly more arsenic in Texas and Arkansas rice than rice from California. California rice is comparable to rice produced around the rest of the world. These are presumably some of the data that led Consumer Reports to suggest brown basmati from California, India, or Pakistan might be among the safer rice choices.If the arsenic is from pesticides, would organic rice have less than conventionally grown rice? No, because arsenic pesticides were banned about 30 years ago. It’s just that 30,000 tons of arsenic chemicals had already been dumped onto cotton fields in the southern United States, “so it is understandable that arsenic residues still remain in the environment” even if you don’t add an ounce of new pesticides. That’s why the industry specifically selects for arsenic-resistant varieties of rice plants in the South. If only there were arsenic-resistant humans.
What about other brands of rice? That was the subject of Which Rice Has Less Arsenic: Black, Brown, Red, White, or Wild?.
For even more background, see:
You may also be interested in:
Kudos to Consumers Union, the wonderful organization that publishes Consumer Reports, for its pioneering work on this and so many other topics.
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations:


nutritionfactsorg--2020-12-15--Which Rice Has the Least Amount of Arsenic: Black, Brown, Red, White, or Wild?

Brown rice contains more arsenic than white rice , but the arsenic in brown rice is less absorbable , so how does it wash out when you compare the urine arsenic levels of white-rice eaters to brown-rice eaters ?
Arsenic in rice is a cause for concern , according to a consensus statement by the European and North American societies for pediatric nutrition .
At the very least , “ in areas of the world where rice consumption is high in all ages , authorities should be prompted to declare which of the rice [ types ] have the lowest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the least harmful for use during infancy and childhood.
” I look into the arsenic content of different rices in my video Which Rice Has Less Arsenic : Black , Brown , Red , White , or Wild ?
.
Extensive recent testing by the FDA found that long grain white rice , which is what most people eat , appears to have more arsenic than medium or short grain rice , but this may be because most of the shorter grains are produced in California , which has significantly less contaminated rice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such as in Texas or Arkansas , where most of the long grain rice is grown .
So , it ’ s less long grain versus short grain than white rice versus brown rice , as the mean concentration of inorganic arsenic in parts per billion of long grain white rice is 102.0 and 156.5 in short , medium , and long grain brown rice , as you can see at 0:54 in my video .
What about some of the naturally pigmented varieties like red rice or black rice , which may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you can see at 1:08 in my video , they may contain even less arsenic than white rice .
One sample of black rice from China that was purchased in Kuwait had higher levels for total arsenic , so the toxic inorganic portion may only be half that , putting it on par with U.S. brown rice .
The study ’ s red rice sample from Sri Lanka was even more extraordinary , with less than a fifth of the arsenic of the Chinese black rice .
But , the Sri Lankan red @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of cadmium , evidently attributed to the cadmium content of widely used Sri Lankan fertilizers .
Colored rice samples purchased mostly in the United States were better than brown or white , and a dozen samples of red rice purchased in Europe were as bad , or even worse , as brown rice .
I was hoping that wild rice would have little or no arsenic because it ’ s a totally different plant , but an average of eight samples showed it to be nearly comparable to white , though the wild @ @ @ @ @ @ @ toxic arsenic as brown rice .
As you can see at 2:06 in my video , the arsenic found in a daily serving of white rice carries 136 times the acceptable cancer risk , but brown rice is even riskier at 162 .
Brown rice averages two-thirds more toxic arsenic than white rice .
But , is that just because brown rice tends to be a different strain or grown in different places ?
No .
If you take the exact same batch of brown rice and measure the arsenic levels before and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do get a significant drop in arsenic content .
It ’ s not what you eat , though .
It ’ s what you absorb .
The arsenic in brown rice appears to be less bioavailable than the arsenic in white rice .
The texture of brown rice may cut down on the release of arsenic from the grain , or perhaps the bran in brown rice helps bind it up .
Regardless , taking bioavailability into account , the difference in arsenic levels in white versus brown rice may be a third @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , as you can see at 2:57 in my video .
This estimate , however , was based on an in vitro gastrointestinal fluid system in which researchers strung together beakers and tubes to mimic our gut , with one flask containing stomach acid and another intestinal juices .
What happened when it was tested in humans ?
Yes , “ evidence suggests that brown rice may contain more arsenic than white rice , ” but the researchers aimed to determine how much is actually absorbed by measuring the urine levels of arsenic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
For the arsenic to get from the rice into your bladder , it has to be absorbed through your gut into your bloodstream .
As you can see at 3:45 in my video , the urine of thousands of American test subjects who don ’ t eat rice at all still contains about 8 micrograms of toxic , carcinogenic arsenic a day .
It ’ s in the air , it ’ s in the water , and there ’ s a little bit in nearly all foods .
But , eat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ white rice a day—and your arsenic exposure shoots up by 65 percent to about 13 micrograms a day .
What about those who eat a cup or more of brown rice every day , which technically contains even more arsenic ?
Their exposure shoots up the same 65 percent .
There is no difference between the urine arsenic levels of white-rice eaters compared with brown-rice eaters .
However , this was not an interventional study in which they fed people the same amount of rice to see what happened , which would have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a population study , so maybe the reason the levels are the same is that white-rice eaters eat more rice than do brown-rice eaters .
Could that be why they ended up with the same levels ?
We don ’ t know , but it should help to put the minds of brown-rice eaters to rest .
But would it be better to eat no rice at all ?
That ’ s what I ’ ll explore in my next few blogs .
If you ’ re just joining in on this topic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • Where Does the Arsenic in Chicken Come From ?
• Where Does the Arsenic in Rice , Mushrooms , and Wine Come From ?
• The Effects of Too Much Arsenic in the Diet • Cancer Risk from Arsenic in Rice and Seaweed It seems like each of these videos just raises more questions , but don ’ t worry because I ’ ve got answers for you .
See : • Which Brands and Sources of Rice Have the Least Arsenic ?
• How to Cook Rice to Lower Arsenic Levels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Rice ?
• How Much Arsenic in Rice Is Too Much ?
• Do the Pros of Brown Rice Outweigh the Cons of Arsenic ?
PS : If you haven ’ t yet , you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations : • 2016 : How Not To Die : The Role of Diet in Preventing , Arresting , and Reversing Our Top 15 Killers • 2015 : Food as Medicine : Preventing and Treating the Most Dreaded Diseases with Diet • 2014 : From Table to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • 2013 : More Than an Apple a Day • 2012 : Uprooting the Leading Causes of Death

Brown rice contains more arsenic than white rice, but the arsenic in brown rice is less absorbable, so how does it wash out when you compare the urine arsenic levels of white-rice eaters to brown-rice eaters?
Arsenic in rice is a cause for concern, according to a consensus statement by the European and North American societies for pediatric nutrition. At the very least, “in areas of the world where rice consumption is high in all ages, authorities should be prompted to declare which of the rice [types] have the lowest arsenic content and are, therefore, the least harmful for use during infancy and childhood.” I look into the arsenic content of different rices in my video Which Rice Has Less Arsenic: Black, Brown, Red, White, or Wild?.
Extensive recent testing by the FDA found that long grain white rice, which is what most people eat, appears to have more arsenic than medium or short grain rice, but this may be because most of the shorter grains are produced in California, which has significantly less contaminated rice paddies than those in the South, such as in Texas or Arkansas, where most of the long grain rice is grown. So, it’s less long grain versus short grain than white rice versus brown rice, as the mean concentration of inorganic arsenic in parts per billion of long grain white rice is 102.0 and 156.5 in short, medium, and long grain brown rice, as you can see at 0:54 in my video.
What about some of the naturally pigmented varieties like red rice or black rice, which may be even healthier than brown? As you can see at 1:08 in my video, they may contain even less arsenic than white rice. One sample of black rice from China that was purchased in Kuwait had higher levels for total arsenic, so the toxic inorganic portion may only be half that, putting it on par with U.S. brown rice. The study’s red rice sample from Sri Lanka was even more extraordinary, with less than a fifth of the arsenic of the Chinese black rice. But, the Sri Lankan red rice sample had a ridiculous high amount of cadmium, evidently attributed to the cadmium content of widely used Sri Lankan fertilizers.
Colored rice samples purchased mostly in the United States were better than brown or white, and a dozen samples of red rice purchased in Europe were as bad, or even worse, as brown rice. I was hoping that wild rice would have little or no arsenic because it’s a totally different plant, but an average of eight samples showed it to be nearly comparable to white, though the wild rice samples contained only half as much toxic arsenic as brown rice.
As you can see at 2:06 in my video, the arsenic found in a daily serving of white rice carries 136 times the acceptable cancer risk, but brown rice is even riskier at 162. Brown rice averages two-thirds more toxic arsenic than white rice. But, is that just because brown rice tends to be a different strain or grown in different places? No. If you take the exact same batch of brown rice and measure the arsenic levels before and after polishing it to white, you do get a significant drop in arsenic content.
It’s not what you eat, though. It’s what you absorb. The arsenic in brown rice appears to be less bioavailable than the arsenic in white rice. The texture of brown rice may cut down on the release of arsenic from the grain, or perhaps the bran in brown rice helps bind it up. Regardless, taking bioavailability into account, the difference in arsenic levels in white versus brown rice may be a third more, rather than 70 percent more, as you can see at 2:57 in my video. This estimate, however, was based on an in vitro gastrointestinal fluid system in which researchers strung together beakers and tubes to mimic our gut, with one flask containing stomach acid and another intestinal juices. What happened when it was tested in humans? Yes, “evidence suggests that brown rice may contain more arsenic than white rice,” but the researchers aimed to determine how much is actually absorbed by measuring the urine levels of arsenic in white-rice eaters compared with brown-rice eaters. For the arsenic to get from the rice into your bladder, it has to be absorbed through your gut into your bloodstream.
As you can see at 3:45 in my video, the urine of thousands of American test subjects who don’t eat rice at all still contains about 8 micrograms of toxic, carcinogenic arsenic a day. It’s in the air, it’s in the water, and there’s a little bit in nearly all foods. But, eat just one food—a cup or more of white rice a day—and your arsenic exposure shoots up by 65 percent to about 13 micrograms a day.
What about those who eat a cup or more of brown rice every day, which technically contains even more arsenic? Their exposure shoots up the same 65 percent. There is no difference between the urine arsenic levels of white-rice eaters compared with brown-rice eaters. However, this was not an interventional study in which they fed people the same amount of rice to see what happened, which would have been ideal. Instead, it was a population study, so maybe the reason the levels are the same is that white-rice eaters eat more rice than do brown-rice eaters. Could that be why they ended up with the same levels? We don’t know, but it should help to put the minds of brown-rice eaters to rest. But would it be better to eat no rice at all? That’s what I’ll explore in my next few blogs.
If you’re just joining in on this topic, check out these lead-up videos:
It seems like each of these videos just raises more questions, but don’t worry because I’ve got answers for you. See:
In health,
Michael Greger, M.D.
PS: If you haven’t yet, you can subscribe to my free videos here and watch my live presentations: