FDA Reports Arsenic Levels in Rice Pose No Short-Term Risk

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reported that after testing
1,300 samples of rice and rice products for the presence of arsenic, the agency
has determined that although the levels varied significantly depending on the
product tested, the amount of detectable arsenic is “too low” to cause any
“immediate or short-term adverse health effects.” The new findings represent
the latest of the agency’s ongoing efforts to manage possible arsenic-related
risks associated with the consumption of rice in the United States.

FDA has apparently been monitoring arsenic levels in rice for more than 20
years and has seen no evidence of change in levels of total arsenic in rice. The
agency’s next step will be to use new tools that provide greater specificity
about different types of arsenic present in foods to analyze the effect of
long-term exposure to low levels of arsenic in rice. It plans to conduct a risk
assessment to consider how much arsenic is consumed from rice products
and whether variations in health effects exist for certain segments of the
population. See FDA News Release, September 6, 2013.