First order of business, I'm finally back to blogging after an extensive intermission! Here are my excuses: I finished my masters degree in Clinical Research Management, moved (of course), and... oh yeah, had a THIRD baby...
Now what about this crazy Dr. Oz fueled apple juice debate. My mother (who tends to over dramatize media hyped health concerns) brought it to my attention. My personal concern is that my 3 year old LOVES apple juice and really does drink a lot of it. I do dilute, and try to limit his juice intake due to the high sugar levels, but generally he drinks quite a bit of apple juice.
So here is what Dr. Oz says about the issue:
"American apple juice is made from apple concentrate, 60% of which is imported from China. Other countries may use pesticides that contain arsenic, a heavy metal known to cause cancer. After testing dozens of samples from three different cities in America, Dr. Oz discovered that some of the nation's best known brands of apple juice contain arsenic."
Upon further research, I have learned that the FDA states that Dr. Oz did not differentiate between organic and inorganic arsenic, therefore measuring "total arsenic" levels of apple juice. The FDA only really cares about inorganic arsenic, believing that organic arsenic is not as toxic as it is "not known to be a carcinogen".
Furthermore, FDA " disputes the high amounts Dr. Oz says he found -- 36 parts per billion -- and adds that in its own tests, including juice from the same lot Dr. Oz tested, levels were at 2 to 6 ppb" (LA Times).
Now here is what the fruit juice companies are saying: "The results of tests for arsenic in apple juice that were shared by the Dr. Oz Show with the Juice Products Association should not be interpreted as fact. Subsequent testing of the same lots of juice from two of the named brands, using an appropriate method for testing arsenic levels in juice, found significantly lower levels of arsenic, all well under any FDA level of concern.
Test results reported by the Dr. Oz Show were based upon a method intended for testing water. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a specific method for testing fruit juice because juice contains many more naturally occurring compounds than water. In addition, comparing the trace levels of arsenic in apple juice to the regulatory guidelines for drinking water are not appropriate because regulatory agencies have set lower thresholds for drinking water than for food and other beverages because people consume larger amounts of water." (from fruitjuicefacts.org)
Fruitjuicefacts.org also say:
Is it safe to drink apple juice?
"Yes. Apple juice is a safe and nutritious beverage for people of all ages. Consumers can be assured that apple juice processors are carefully testing their products for safety and data collected by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) indicate there is no safety concern for apple juice."
Now here are my two cents --
Is it safe to drink apple juice? Yes. Its not going to prevent me from giving it to my kids, however, I don't really understand why there is a different standard for water and juice when it comes to arsenic. I mean... what if you don't drink water?! Many children won't drink water, or at least don't drink enough of it... and lets be honest, some adults only drink soda, juice, etc. So I really don't think that you can assume that most people drink more water then other fluids, and therefore have a different standard based on this reasoning.
I will still dilute and continue to limit the amount of juice my kids drink... we generally place more of an emphasis on water and milk anyways. However, I find Dr. Oz's results VERY interesting. I'm going to copy and paste them here for you:
"The EPA has a limit on arsenic in drinking water – the level allowed is 10 parts per billion. Currently, there is no limit on arsenic in apple juice. The Dr. Oz Show tested three dozen samples from five different brands of apple juice across three different American cities, and compared the levels of arsenic to the standard for water.
Of these, 10 samples came back higher than the arsenic limit allowed in drinking water."
Note: Lab results standard deviation is +/- 20%
Minute Maid Apple Juice
Lowest Sample for Arsenic: 2 parts per billion
Highest Sample for Arsenic: 3 parts per billion
Apple and Eve Apple Juice
Lowest Sample for Arsenic: 3 parts per billion
Highest Sample for Arsenic: 11 parts per billion
Mott’s
Lowest Sample for Arsenic: 4 parts per billion
Highest Sample for Arsenic: 16 parts per billion
Juicy Juice
Lowest Sample for Arsenic: 2 parts per billion
Highest Sample for Arsenic: 22 parts per billion
Gerber
Lowest Sample for Arsenic: 3 parts per billion
Highest Sample for Arsenic: 36 parts per billion
So now considering the "total arsenic levels" ... the FDA says forget organic arsenic... I wouldn't be so quick to make that assumption without further testing on organic arsenic (which I don't really think has been fully studied). The FDA is only basing their opinion of organic arsenic on current known testing, and as we know... new studies are always being done.
For me, I will probably not be buying Gerber apple juice (sorry Gerber)... think I'll be switching to Minute Maid for now! But that's just me and my slight tendencies to freak out a little over pesticide and environmental toxins opinion.
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