Baby Food Contains Arsenic, Lead, Other Contaminants: Study

You may be unwittingly feeding your wee one arsenic — the chemical compound used in rat poisons and insecticides — without knowing it, according to a recent study from a nonprofit that advocates for transparent labeling. The Clean Label Project said 500 tests on 60 top-brand baby products purchased over the past five months showed that 65 percent contained arsenic, including 80 percent of infant formulas.

According to the study, the 500 products — which included brands like Gerber, Enfamil, Plum Organics and Sprout — were screened for 130 toxins and contaminants that have been linked to cancer and other health conditions in humans and animals. The exact amount of the carcinogens varied among products, but the highest amounts of arsenic were found in rice-based baby foods, like snack puffs.

The study found 36 percent of the products contained lead, the metal at the root of the well-publicized Flint water crisis. Lead is particularly dangerous to young children and can cause irreversible damage, from lower IQs to behavioral disorders. No amount of lead is considered safe, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Another 60 percent of the tested products contained the industrial chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, that is used in plastic containers; and 58 percent contained cadmium, a natural toxic metal found in plant soil and smoking products.

The Clean Label Project, which is based in Denver, Colorado, said its tests were reviewed by a third-party analytical chemistry laboratory. The group’s website details the findings of the study and includes a star ranking of popular baby food products. But should you worry?

Yes, said Dr. Jennifer Lowry, a pediatrician and toxicologist at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, who was not affiliated with the research. The carcinogens found can affect fine motor skills and cognition, she told USA Today.

However, Snopes, the fact-checking website, pointed out that the Clean Label Project’s findings weren’t published in a peer-reviewed journal and that the non-profit didn’t offer data to substantiate the claims. Without knowing the levels of arsenic found in the tested foods, it’s “impossible to determine if those levels are indeed unsafe,” Snopes wrote.

Snopes was silent on the subject of baby food that contains lead, which both the CDC and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency say is dangerous to children in any amount.

The Clean Label Project study echoes some of the findings of a June study by the Environmental Defense Fund said lead was found in 20 percent of the 2,164 baby food samples it analyzed. The study also showed that eight types of baby foods had detectable lead in more than 40 percent of the samples. Baby food versions of apple and grape juice and carrots had more samples with detectable lead than regular versions, according to that study.

Removing arsenic and lead isn’t a simple matter, according to Peter Cassell, a spokesman for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has proposed a limit of 100 parts per billion of arsenic in rice cereal.

"It is important for consumers to understand that some contaminants, such as heavy metals like lead or arsenic, are in the environment and cannot simply be removed from food," Cassell told USA Today.

But Jaclyn Bowen, a food safety scientist and executive director of the Clean Label Project, told the newspaper the “baby industry needs to do a better job in protecting America’s most vulnerable population.”

Some of the baby food manufacturers cited in the study — Gerber, Mead Johnson (Enfamil) and Plum Organics — have all issued statements saying their products are safe, according to USA Today.

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images