Fears about lead in rice may be overblown, since researchers who originally presented a study finding high levels of the heavy metal in imported rice are realizing that their results may have been skewed by faulty equipment.
Tsanangurayi Tongesayi, PhD, of Monmouth University in New Jersey, first presented his somewhat alarming findings at the American Chemical Society's annual meeting in March 2013. His initial tests, conducted on rice imported from Taiwan, China, the Czech Republic, Bhutan, Italy, India, and Thailand, revealed that the grains could be contaminated with 6 to 12 parts per million lead, nearly 10 times the amount of lead that's considered safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
However, when he replicated those findings while attempting to get his study published in the Journal of Environmental Science and Health, the levels were significantly lower, less than 1 part per million, according to BBC News.
The news agency also reported that when Tongesayi sent the original testing equipment back to the manufacturer, the company reported that the equipment had been miscalibrated.
The study's authors are still trying to reconcile the findings and are using other methods to analyze the lead content of imported rice. Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports magazine, which has conducted its own tests on imported rice, didn't find lead to be an issue when its researchers last analyzed it in September 2012. Though they found detectable levels of the carcinogen arsenic in every one of 60 rice products tested, the levels of lead in both domestically grown and imported rice were less than half of what Tongesayi found.Arsenic remains the primary reason to limit your consumption of rice. If you love the grain...
• Switch to wild rice, which is technically a grass and has much lower levels of arsenic than regular rice.
• When you do eat regular rice, stick with varieties grown in California. The Consumer Reports investigation revealed that arsenic levels are higher in rice grown in Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas than in rice grown out west.
• Opt for other grains, such as quinoa, buckwheat, millet, and amaranth, as rice substitutes.
• Only eat gluten-free foods if you're truly gluten intolerant. Often, gluten-free foods contain brown rice, rice flours, or other ingredients derived from rice.
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