Infant Formula
New Zealand Rattled By Contamination Threat To “Infant Formula” IN PHOTO: A nurse prepares a bottle of milk for a baby in a file photo. Reuters/Dani Cardona

Early-life exposure to arsenic has been linked to growth defects, brain function impairment and premature death. A Dartmouth College study on urinary arsenic showed evidence that infants fed with milk formula had more exposure to arsenic than breast-fed babies. Both infant nourishment contain certain concentrations of arsenic, but infant formula had higher levels.

The researchers calculated arsenic levels in tap water, urine from 72 six-week-old babies, and in breast milk from nine mothers in New Hampshire. Arsenic concentrations were 7.5 times higher in formula-fed babies than in breast-fed infants. The highest levels were found in tap water. For most of the participants, infant formula and tap water contributed most to the exposure. These findings were published online in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Kathryn Cottingham, the study’s lead author, said that this research presents another health benefit of breastfeeding, which is lesser exposure to arsenic. The authors predict increased exposure to arsenic because of sustained practices of formula feeding in young infants. They also suggest having home tap water tested for arsenic levels to ensure safe consumption in the household. Low levels of arsenic is naturally abundant in drinking water in Western countries.

Another Dartmouth study in 2012 found evidence of high arsenic content in organic brown rice syrup (OBRS). This organic substance is widely used as an alternative sweetener to corn syrup in toddlers’ formula and other processed foods. A toddler’s milk formula with OBRS as one of the main ingredients had arsenic levels that were 6 times higher than the recommended safe drinking water limit by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Other food containing OBRS include energy shots and bar cereals. The USA Rice Federation clarified that the rice products are safe to consume because it contains organic arsenic, the benign type.

The World Health Organisation has recommended a limit of is 0.01 mg/L (10 parts per billion) arsenic in drinking water. However, new studies have associated continuous intake of water with lower levels of arsenic with arsenic poisoning. In the United States, contaminant levels in public drinking water are being monitored with regulations by the EPA. However, private well water in the countryside is not restricted by such regulations.

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