Arsenic and Apple Juice

It looks like the food industry is in for another drama: allegations of unsafe levels of arsenic in apple juice, courtesy of Dr. Oz.

While the details of the show aren’t going to be unveiled until the show airs, the Dr. Oz website gives an advance view of the controversy. Complete with pictures of innocent babes plus sipping from juice boxes, it’s sure to set off the amygdala’s fear response in parents everywhere.

Is the fear warranted? Probably not, depending on who you’re inclined to believe—including one of Dr. Oz’s experts, Dr. Russell H. Greenfield, Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine, UNC Chapel Hill School of Medicine, who says: “Should you be frightened? No. I repeat – no. It remains very unlikely that you have done any harm to yourself or to your children through the drinking of apple juice.” And he admits he’s not even a fan of giving children juice.

The FDA has send out a couple of press releases and set up several web pages explaining why arsenic in apple juice, especially at the levels found and by virtue of incorrectly interpreting the results also means there is no cause for panic.

 Questions & Answers: Apple Juice and Arsenic

 FDA: Apple Juice is Safe To Drink (Consumer Update)

 Letters from the FDA to the Dr. Oz Show Regarding Apple Juice and Arsenic

And of course, the Juice Products Association offered up an official statement, saying in part: “The results reported on the Dr. Oz program were based upon a test method intended for use with 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, to compare the trace levels of arsenic in apple juice to the regulatory guidelines for drinking water is 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. “

So there you are. Added to a growing list of things I’m not, I’m not a toxicologist, so I’ll let the experts draw their own conclusions, ones which will be much more valid than mine.  If you’re interested in learning more about arsenic, I suggest reading “Arsenic round the world: a review,” (Talanta 58 (2002) 201–235).

If I had to hazard a guess on the public response to the arsenic and apple juice controversy, I’d say somewhere between an Alar-in-apples panic and a deep sigh and accompanying eye-rolling, “There’s another thing we’re not supposed to eat. Oh well.” Actually, I can’t wait to hear comments about organic and inorganic arsenic from people that have no clue what those terms mean.

But, for the conclusion of the arsenic and apple juice saga, stay tuned, and not necessarily to Dr. Oz. Because it’s not like they’re interested in ratings or anything like that.

-Lynn A. Kuntz