Investigation reveals heavy metals, including ‘potentially harmful’ levels of lead, in baby formula

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A new investigation has revealed more than a dozen popular baby formula products have “potentially harmful” levels of heavy metals.

Consumer Reports tested 41 types of powder baby formula and found about half contained “potentially harmful levels” of at least one contaminant. In particular, the non-profit found that almost all samples contained lead, and eighteen formulas contained 50 to 100 percent of the “Maximum Allowable Dose Level” for a three-month-old.

The “Maximum Allowable Dose Level” is set by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and is considered “the most protective standard available.”

While it’s virtually impossible to get zero lead levels in baby formula, lower levels are always better, paediatrics professor Dr. Steven Abrams told Consumer Reports.

Consumer Reports found several popular baby formulas have ‘potentially harmful’ levels of contaminants, including lead and inorganic arsenic (Getty Images)

Still, there is “no safe level of lead exposure,” according to University of Miami neurology professor Dr. Hannah Gardener.

“Obviously babies need to eat,” Gardener told Consumer Reports. “So there needs to be plenty of food and formula choices at the lowest end of the range of contamination. Manufacturers need to do many things to protect consumers, including rigorous and repeated testing of their products and disclosing the contamination levels to consumers.”

Twenty-one of the formulas tested had little to no detectable heavy metals, including Enfamil Gentleease, Similac Advance, and Kirkland Signature ProCare from Costco.

A spokesperson for Perrigo, one of the companies found to have formula with lead levels approaching the daily limit, said the company “can’t corroborate Consumer Reports’s findings.”

“Perrigo-manufactured infant formulas meet all stringent FDA standards,” the spokesperson said.

Consumer Reports also tested for several other contaminants, including arsenic, lead, BPA, acrylamide, and PFAS (also known as “forever chemicals”).

For arsenic, Consumer Reports tested for the “most harmful” kind: inorganic arsenic. They found high levels of inorganic arsenic in two formulas from Abbott Nutrition: EleCare Hypoallergenic formula, which had 19.7 parts per billion, and Similac Alimentum, which had 15.1 parts per billion.

The Environmental Protection Agency limits arsenic in municipal drinking water to 10 parts per billion, according to Consumer Reports.

Abbott Nutrition disputes the test results, with a spokesperson noting the formulas “are safe” and that heavy metals “can be present in low levels in almost anything we eat or drink, including in baby food, all brands of infant formula, fruits and vegetables, and even human breast milk.”

The company spokesperson said their formulas “meet the regulations for heavy metals already set by the European Commission and Health Canada.” The spokesperson also disputed Consumer Reports’s comparison to drinking water standards.

“Consumer Reports’ use of drinking water standards as a comparison for powdered infant formula is inappropriate,” an Abbott Nutrition spokesperson said. “Powdered infant formula is diluted before it is consumed; drinking water is not. If this were an apples-to-apples comparison to prepared infant formula, dilution would decrease the results reported by Consumer Reports by as much as six-to-eightfold.”

Consumer Reports notes their testing revealed there are also several safe options on the market.

“We really want these results to be empowering for parents,” said Dr. Sana Mujahid, Consumer Reports’s manager of food safety research and testing. “If you are just at the beginning of your formula journey, there are plenty of safer choices from major brands like Enfamil and Similac and smaller brands like Bobbie.”

Parents should talk to their pediatrician if they’re concerned about the formula they use. Consumer Reports also warns that parents should “never, ever try to make your own baby formula.”

The organization also suggest parents should keep the test results “in perspective.”

“Environmental pollutants are pervasive in our food supply, and all the contaminants in our tests—arsenic, lead, BPA, acrylamide, and PFAS—have also been previously detected in breast milk, food, and water,” Consumer Reports said.

A day after Consumer Reports published their findings, the Food and Drug Administration also launched a new initiative to strengthen its oversight of the formula industry.

“It’s very encouraging to see the FDA issue this announcement immediately after Consumer Reports shared our findings about contaminants in infant formula,” Brian Ronholm, head of food policy for Consumer Reports, said in a statement. “We look forward to seeing the details of how they intend to implement the plan, and we hope the FDA is provided adequate resources and staffing to actually follow through on their promises.”

The Independent has contacted the manufacturers for comment.

View the full results below: