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A new French study warns that children are exposed to high levels of heavy metals and acrylamide through everyday foods such as cereals, pastries, bread, and fish.
Children in France are exposed to high levels of heavy metals and other chemical contaminants through their everyday diet, researchers have warned.
A new study by the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES) – known as EAT3 – found that cadmium, aluminium, and mercury pose health risks, while lead and acrylamide, a compound formed when foods are cooked at high temperatures, also raise concerns.
“These initial results form part 1 of TDS3 (Total Diet Study),” said Morgane Champion, co-coordinator of the study. “The parts on the other food contaminant groups will be published over the next few years… For each group, we will be formulating specific recommendations aimed mainly at reducing exposure to contaminants.”
The results also reflect wider European concerns about food contamination.
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How was the study carried out?
Researchers gathered more than 700 food samples from supermarkets and markets in three French regions – Hérault, Loiret, and Puy-de-Dôme – between May 2021 and August 2022.
The samples represented more than 90 percent of the typical French diet and were prepared as they would be eaten before being tested for contaminants.
Results were then combined with food consumption data to estimate population exposure and health risks.
Where contaminants are found
Cadmium was primarily detected in breakfast cereals, aluminium in pastries and sweet biscuits, lead in bread, mercury in fish, and acrylamide in fried and sauteed potatoes.
While average concentrations of several metals have fallen compared to previous surveys, certain foods such as cereals, pastries and pasta remain major contributors to dietary exposure.
“Some foods, particularly pastries and biscuits, not only contain these trace metals but also have low nutritional value,” Veronique Sirot, a co-coordinator of the study, noted.
Vegetables did show slightly higher levels of some metals, but she emphasised that this “does not call into question the indisputable nutritional benefits of eating them.”
For cadmium, the study found that between 23 percent and 27 percent of children over the age of three exceeded the tolerable daily intake. According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), cadmium can affect kidney function.
76 percent of children were exposed to aluminium at levels exceeding the toxic reference value, compared with 39 percent of adults.
Mercury levels in fish remained largely unchanged compared with previous studies.
“Predatory fish at the end of the food chain, such as tuna, have the highest concentrations of methylmercury. However, consumption of fish has undeniable nutritional benefit,” said Champion.
“We recommend eating two servings of fish a week, including one of oily fish, while varying the species and source of supply.”
Some improvements observed
Lead exposure decreased compared with earlier studies- by 27 percent in children and 49 percent in adults – which ANSES attributed to public health policies, such as the ban on leaded petrol and lead in paints and water pipes.
“While water is still a major contributor to our exposure to lead, it is not the only one: bread and vegetables also play a part, as well as alcoholic drinks for adults,” said Sirot.
Acrylamide levels also declined in key foods like coffee, though overall exposure remains high.
Wider European concerns
The findings of the ANSES report reflect wider concerns across Europe. According to the EFSA, heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury are common in food, particularly seafood.
EFSA highlights that inorganic arsenic is a particular risk due to its link to “skin lesions, cancer, developmental toxicity”, and “cardiovascular diseases, abnormal glucose metabolism, and diabetes.”
Mercury in predatory fish, lead in bivalve molluscs, and cadmium in shellfish also remain key concerns, especially for pregnant women and children, who are most vulnerable to toxic effects.
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