Arsenic Widespread in Top Brands of Chicken

[Guest guest]

*One medical abstract (arsenic in children) follows the NYTimes news

article..

* * * *

First links in this post are from the foundation http://www.iatp.org/

that did the study.

Arsenic Widespread in Top Brands of Chicken

* Brand name chicken products sold in American supermarkets and fast

food restaurants are widely contaminated with arsenic, according to

independent test results released by IATP. The good news is that smart

choices by consumers can eliminate their intake of arsenic in chicken.

* Playing Chicken

<http://www.environmentalobservatory.org/library.cfm?refid=80529>

full report (PDF)

*

* Press release

<http://www.iatp.org/iatp/library/admin/uploadedfiles/Arsenic_Widespread_in_Chic\

ken_Testing_Finds.pdf>

*

* Q & A about the report

<http://www.environmentalobservatory.org/library.cfm?refid=80533>

(PDF)

*

* Summary of arsenic test results

<http://www.environmentalobservatory.org/library.cfm?refid=80537>

* * * *

April 5, 2006

Eating Well

Chicken With Arsenic? Is That O.K.?

By MARIAN BURROS

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/05/dining/05well.html

ARSENIC may be called the king of poisons, but it is everywhere: in the

environment, in the water we drink and sometimes in the food we eat.

The amount is not enough to kill anyone in one fell swoop, but arsenic

is a recognized cancer-causing agent and many experts say that no level

should be considered safe. Arsenic may also contribute to other

life-threatening illnesses, including heart disease and diabetes, and to

a decline in mental functioning.

Yet it is deliberately being added to chicken in this country, with many

scientists saying it is unnecessary. Until recently there was a very

high chance that if you ate chicken some arsenic would be present

because it has been a government-approved additive in poultry feed for

decades. It is used to kill parasites and to promote growth.

The chicken industry's largest trade group says that arsenic levels in

its birds are safe. " We are not aware of any study that shows

implications of any possibility of harm to human health as the result of

the use of these products at the levels directed, " said Lobb, a

spokesman for the National Chicken Council.

Chickens are not the only environmental source of arsenic. In addition

to drinking water, for which the Environmental Protection Agency now

sets a level of 10 parts per billion, other poultry, rice, fish and a

number of foods also contain the poison. Soils are contaminated with

arsenical pesticides from chicken manure; chicken litter containing

arsenic is fed to other animals; and until 2003, arsenic was used in

pressure-treated wood for decks and playground equipment.

Human exposure to it has been compounded because the consumption of

chicken has exploded. In 1960, each American ate 28 pounds of chicken a

year. For 2005, the figure is estimated at about 87 pounds per person.

In spite of this threefold rise, the F.D.A. tolerance level for arsenic

in chicken of 500 parts per billion, set decades ago, has not been revised.

A 2004 Department of Agriculture study on arsenic concluded that " the

higher than previously recognized concentrations of arsenic in chicken

combined with increasing levels of chicken consumption may indicate a

need to review assumptions regarding overall ingested arsenic intake. "

" When this source of arsenic is added to others, the exposure is

cumulative, and people could be in trouble, " said Dr. Ted Schettler, a

physician and the science director at the Science & Environmental Health

Network, founded by a consortium of environmental groups.

Those at greatest risk from arsenic are small children and people who

consume chicken at a higher rate than what is considered average: two

ounces per day for a 154-pound person. The good news for consumers is

that arsenic-free chicken is more readily available than it has been in

the past, as more processors eliminate its use.

Tyson Foods, the nation's largest chicken producer, has stopped using

arsenic in its chicken feed. In addition, Bell & and Eberly

chickens are arsenic-free. There is a growing market in organic chicken

and birds labeled " antibiotic-free " : neither contains arsenic.

Dr. Mushak, a toxicologist and arsenic expert, said that the fact

that Tyson stopped using arsenic in 2004 is encouraging. " What that

tells me as a toxicologist and health-risk assessor is that if a

vertically integrated company like Tyson can do that then presumably

anyone can get away from using arsenic. "

But there are still plenty of chickens out there with arsenic.

A report by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, based in

Minnesota, examined the levels of arsenic in supermarket chicken and

chicken sold in fast-food outlets and found considerable variation. None

of the samples in the study, collected in December 2004 and January

2005, exceeded the F.D.A. tolerance levels. (The report is at iatp.org.)

Dr. Wallinga, a physician who is the director of the food and

health program for the institute, a nonprofit advocacy group that

promotes sustainability and family farms, tested 155 samples of raw

chicken from 12 producers and 90 samples from 10 fast-food restaurants.

Chicken from five of the brands had either no detectable levels of

arsenic or levels so low they could be from environmental contamination:

Gerber's Poultry, Raised Right, Smart Chicken and Rosie and Rocky Jr.,

both from Petaluma Poultry.

None of the fast-food chicken purchased was arsenic-free, but some had

extremely low levels. KFC thighs bought in Minnesota, where the

company's supplier does not use arsenic, had 2.2 parts per billion. The

company would not comment on its suppliers in other states.

The report offers many caveats to the findings, cautioning that the

results " are not definitive " because the sample size is small. The

method used, says the report, " gives a snapshot picture of the arsenic

found in those brands on that one day of testing. "

Dr. Mushak described the Wallinga report as a pilot study. " It was done

during a limited time period, with limited geographical reach and a

limited number of sampling, but the information they came up with is not

that far afield from the other information that is out there, " he said,

referring to the small amount of research that preceded Dr. Wallinga's

work, including the Department of Agriculture study.

Dr. Tamar Lasky, an epidemiologist and the lead researcher on the

Agriculture study, commended Dr. Wallinga for taking the initiative.

" We are at the beginning stages of understanding an issue that we,

including scientists, knew very little about, " she said.

In the Wallinga study, the chicken from Perdue, Farms and Gold'n

Plump tested positive for arsenic and the companies acknowledged that

they sometimes use it. Trader Joe's samples also tested positive for

arsenic but the company said it would have no comment.

Mc's, the country's largest fast-food chain, said it does not use

chicken with arsenic but the test revealed the presence of more than

incidental amounts. Perhaps the chickens were purchased before the

company started demanding arsenic-free chickens a couple of years ago.

Because there are still many more arsenic-fed than arsenic-free chickens

for sale, consumers can reduce their exposure by buying from companies

that have stopped using arsenic, or by choosing chickens labeled organic

or antibiotic-free. They can also remove the skin from the chicken

treated with arsenic, which reduces levels significantly.

Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company

* * * *

1: Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2002 Aug;23(4):303-8.

*

Treatment of autism spectrum children with thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl

disulfide: a pilot study*.

Lonsdale D, Shamberger RJ, Audhya T.

Preventive Medicine Group, 24700 Center Ridge Road, Westlake, OH

44145, USA. dlonsdale@...

OBJECTIVES: In a Pilot Study, the clinical and biochemical effects

of thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide (TTFD) on autistic spectrum

children were investigated. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Ten children were

studied. Diagnosis was confirmed through the use of form E2, a computer

assessed symptom score. For practical reasons, TTFD was administered

twice daily for two months in the form of rectal suppositories, each

containing 50 mg of TTFD. Symptomatic responses were determined through

the use of the computer assessed Autism Treatment Evaluation Checklist

(ATEC) forms. The erythrocyte transketolase (TKA) and thiamine

pyrophosphate effect (TPPE), were measured at outset and on completion

of the study to document intracellular thiamine deficiency. Urines from

patients were examined at outset, after 30 days and after 60 days of

treatment and the concentrations of SH-reactive metals, total protein,

sulfate, sulfite, thiosulfate and thiocyanate were determined. The

concentrations of metals in hair were also determined. RESULTS: At the

beginning of the study thiamine deficiency was observed in 3 out of the

10 patients. Out of 10 patients, 6 had initial urine samples containing

arsenic in greater concentration than healthy controls. Traces of

mercury were seen in urines from all of these autistic children.

Following administration of TTFD an increase in cadmium was seen in 2

children and in lead in one child. Nickel was increased in the urine of

one patient during treatment. Sulfur metabolites in urine did not differ

from those measured in healthy children. CONCLUSIONS: Thiamine

tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide appears to have a beneficial clinical

effect on some autistic children, since 8 of the 10 children improved

clinically. We obtained evidence of an association of this increasingly

occurring disease with presence of urinary SH-reactive metals, arsenic

in particular.

Publication Types:

* Clinical Trial

PMID: 12195231

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