Healthy Babies Bright Future or HBBF released a new study that raised alarms about baby foods. The study that was published by the nonprofit organization found that 95% of the baby foods that they tested contained traces of toxic and harmful chemicals such as arsenic and lead.
The baby food safety issue is not new
This discovery is not new. According to HBBF, this issue is years old, but the new tests of well-known products show that there is a continuing widespread exposure to toxic chemicals and heavy metals. The study looked for lead, arsenic, mercury, and cadmium in numerous brands, and they found out that one in four baby foods have all four dangerous metals, while 40% contained at least three toxins.
The impact on a child's health
The researches warned that even if they only found traces of chemicals and metals in the food, these contaminants can still alter the developing brain, and it can affect a child's IQ. The impacts add up with each snack or meal that the baby eats. HBBF tested around 13 different kinds of foods in 168 baby food containers made by 61 brands, including popular brands such as Beech-Nut, Parents Choice, Gerber, Earth's Best, and Enfamil. All of them were tested, and only 9 of them were found to have no toxic metals.
Traces of lead were the most common; in the samples that were tested, around 94% of lead was found. In large quantities, lead intake can damage a child's brain development. Arsenic was the second most common metal that was found, with 73% found in the samples tested, and four out of seven rice cereals for infants that were tested had arsenic levels that exceeded the guidance of the FDA. Arsenic is a known carcinogen, and it can contribute to heart disease.
Rice is the most common source of arsenic; a lot of health experts advise parents to limit the rice intake of their child. Instead of rice puff snacks, HBBF suggests giving children rice-free snacks, which are 93% less toxic. Parents can give their child multi-grain cereals or even oatmeals.
Instead of rice rusks and teething biscuits, experts recommend parents to opt for other soothing foods like chilled cucumber or frozen banana. Even fruit juices can contain lead or arsenic, so the group recommends parents to give their children water to drink, which has 68% less harmful metals. Instead of giving babies sweet potatoes and carrots, parents can feed their babies different kinds of vegetables.
The report also stated that there is no enforceable federal safety limit for metals for most of the baby foods that were tested. HBBF is urging baby food companies to take necessary steps to reduce the metals and toxins that are found in their products, and it is also calling for the FDA to pass a tougher standard.
