Arsenic in the U.S. Beverage Supply: A Curiosity or a Danger?

A flurry of studies originated by a broad range of people from researchers at universities to popular TV personalities like Dr. Oz have presented an often conflicting view of how much arsenic is found in what kinds of beverages at what risk to children. Arsenic, like lead, can have both development and neurological effects in young children, leading to substantial drops in IQ for consistent or chronic exposures. Arsenic can also cause multiple types of cancer, including that of the lungs and bladder, over long term exposures for both children and adults.

The purpose of this lecture is to review the past three years of experimental studies on arsenic in various beverages and to assess the health risk that arsenic in these beverages poses to various populations of American consumers, especially children. Children typically consume more fluid per body weight than adults and are particularly vulnerable to neurological damage from chronic arsenic exposure. While the EPA exposure limit for arsenic in drinking water is 10 parts per billion, no comparable exposure limit exists for juices, wines, sodas, or other beverages. In many cases, these beverages are consumed at levels approaching those of drinking water (especially by children). Families and communities lack a definitive guideline for how much of these contaminated beverages can be consumed before children run a substantial risk of chronic arsenic poisoning. Further, certain countries of origin, like China, have been implicated in contaminating the U.S. beverage supply. Is this a fair assessment, or does the problem extend well behind a particular country of origin? Given the types of beverages Americans drink on a daily basis, which groups of consumers, if any, are vulnerable to chronic arsenic poisoning?

This lecture session looks at the facts, side by side, for beverages ranging from drinking water to juices and to wines, and seeks to answer these questions, unpacking data from various studies to pull together a comprehensive conclusion and action plan to the problem of arsenic in consumer beverages.