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– A House Oversight Committee report says alarming amounts of toxic heavy metals – including arsenic, lead, cadmium and mercury – have been found in major brand baby food products. The heavy metals can endanger the neurological development of infants in infants. The chairman of the subcommittee expressed frustration with the federal regulators, the Washington Post reports. “Over the past decade, advocates and scientists have brought this to the attention of the Food and Drug Administration,” said the Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi. “The FDA needs to set standards from now on and regulate this industry much more strictly.” The agency said it is reviewing the panel’s findings. The panel asked seven labels for the results of their internal tests. Gerber, Beech-Nut, HappyBABY and Earth’s Best Organic Baby Food did it; Plum Organics baby food, Walmart’s Parent’s Choice, and Sprout Foods did not.
Since the heavy metals occur naturally, there is no need to panic, a Consumer reports said expert. “You want to minimize the risk,” he said, per CBS. “You can’t eliminate it completely, but you can minimize it.” He suggests that parents make sure their child’s diet is varied and avoid snacks high in heavy metals, such as crackers and puffs. Rice and sweet potato products absorb pollutants more easily, he said. A US agency ranks arsenic as the most dangerous naturally occurring substance, with lead No. 2. “Exposure to these toxic heavy metals affects the development of the brain and nervous system of babies,” said an expert from the Environmental Defense Fund. “It affects their behavior, permanently lowers their IQ and, if you want to buy it off to dollars, their life potential.” The committee has posted its report here. (There is a way to cook rice that reduces the arsenic in it, researchers say.)