Dangerous elements, Arsenic found in Baby food in U.S

Arsenic, lead and other toxic metals that can harm brain development have been found in many popular baby foods in the United States State, including organic brands, the DailyMail reports.

This was discovered after the country's government's subcommittee on Economic and Consumer called on seven companies to submit internal data in 2019 after a nonprofit organisation, Healthy Babies Bright Futures, published results of testing it did on baby foods, according to a congressional report released Thursday.

Four of the companies shared documents with the subcommittee, including: Gerber, Beech-Nut, Earth´s Best Organics maker Hain Celestial and Happy Family Organics maker Nurture Inc. 

Walmart, Sprout Foods and Campbell Soup Co., which makes Plum Organics baby food, didn't cooperate, the subcommittee said.

According to the subcommittee, the non cooperating companies may be hiding a higher level of toxic heavy metals in their baby food products than their competitors' products'.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration considers arsenic, lead, cadmium and mercury harmful to human health.

"Children's exposure to toxic heavy metals causes permanent decreases in IQ, diminished future economic productivity, and increased risk of future criminal and antisocial behaviour," the report reads.

According to the FDA, the metals found have 'no established health benefit' and 'lead to illness, impairment, and in high doses, death.'

''Even low levels of harmful metals from individual food sources, can sometimes add up to a level of concern,'' according to the FDA.

However, there is no current federal standard on these toxins, or warning to parents about them, the report reads.

Arsenic is known to be inimical to human, as long-term exposure to the chemical element from drinking-water and food can cause cancer and skin lesions. It has also been associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes. In utero and early childhood exposure has been linked to negative impacts on cognitive development and increased deaths in young adults.

Studies have shown that many manufactured baby food contains the arsenic. 

While Beech-Nut used ingredients in its baby foods with as much at 913.4 ppb arsenic and routinely used ingredients that exceeded 300 ppb total arsenic, Hain produced finished baby foods that contained as much as 129 ppb of inorganic arsenic and used ingredients in its baby foods with as much at 309 ppb total arsenic.

Also, Nurture sold finished baby foods after testing showed they contained as much as 180 parts-per-billion of inorganic arsenic, according to a congressional report.

Gerber did not provide inorganic arsenic results for all of its ingredients, according to the report.