It may come from contaminated water used during crops development. Pesticides are also a major source of arsenic in food chain. Arsenic may release from soil when someone use phosphate fertilizer. Phosphate ions preferably replace the arsenic ions from soil and come into water phase and subsequently into crops.

Thanks

Abhijit Maiti

Irrigated wetland rice is the crop most vulnerable to arsenic in the irrigation water-soil system in Asia. This is because wetland rice is grown under anaerobic soil conditions (soil kept under 5-10 cm water), which makes arsenic mobile and bioavailable.

If the irrigated water contains arsenic (as in West Bengal), arsenic gets into the plant body through water and the accumulation pattern commonly found in food crops are in general root>stem>leaf>economic produce. If We consume these plant parts then arsenic gets entry to our food chain. Besides pesticides also contain arsenic. It is very poisonous and even fatal if consummed regularly. Toxicity of arsenic to humans depends on the concentration and the length of exposure.Early symptoms of arsenic poisoning include skin disorders, weakness, languor, anorexia, nausea and vomiting with diarrhoea or constipation. With the progress of poisoning, the symptoms attain more characteristic features, which include acute diarrhea, oedema (especially of the eyelids and ankles), skin pigmentation, arsenical melanosis and hyperkeratosis, enlargement of liver, respiratory diseases and skin cancer. In severe cases, gangrene in the limbs and malignant neoplasm are also observed.“Bell Ville Disease” (typical arsenic induced cutaneous manifestations among the people of Bell Ville) in Argentina, “Black Foot Disease” in Taiwan and “Kai Dam” disease in Thailand are well established as health disorders due to arsenic poisoning

Arsenic toxicity and biomethilation is very well described in many articles that are found in Internet. About arsenic contents in crops, the following articles are very usefull (and were found in the net).

Tarit Roychowdhury*, Hiroshi Tokunaga, Masanori Ando. Survey of arsenic and other heavy metals in food composites and drinking water and estimation of dietary intake by the villagers from an arsenic-affected area of West Bengal, India.

The Science of the Total Environment 308 (2003) 15–35

T. M. Farid, K. C. Roy, K. M. Hossain, R. Sen. A Study of Arsenic Contaminated Irrigation Water and its Carried Over Effect on Vegetable. In: Farid et al.: Effect of Arsenic Contaminated Irrigation Water on Vegetable

M.G.M. Alam , E.T. Snow, A. Tanaka. Arsenic and heavy metal contamination of vegetables grown in Samta village, Bangladesh. The Science of the Total Environment 308 (2003) 83–96

Geetha Ranmuthugala et al. Intervention trial to assess arsenic exposure from food crops in Bangladesh.

Author affiliation and current contact details:

National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health

Building 62, The Australian National University

Canberra, Australia

Tel: 61-2-6125 2378

Fax: 61-2-6125 0740

About 70% of poultry CAFO owners use roxarsone (an arsenic based feed additive) in their chickens' feed in order to make them grow larger and faster, not to mention keep them "healthy". Although roxarsone is made with organic arsenic, a relatively harmless, common element in soil, this particular method of feeding it to chickens enables it to adopt the human health hazards similar to inorganic arsenic. Chronic exposure to arsenic causes neurological diseases especially in children, cardiovascular disease,and cancer (Food and Water Watch Report 2010). I recently did a study in the southern part of the United States and found a disproportionate number of neurological diseases and cancer in people living within 2.60 miles of chicken CAFOs. Furthermore, there has been discussion lately about arsenic being found in chicken meat sold in the grocery store as well. Just another human and environmental hazard brought on by the quest for mass production of animals for food. Check out facebook.com/whatweeat

Contamination of agricultural soils by long-term irrigation with as contaminated water can lead to contamination and eventually phyto-accumulation of the food crops with arsenic (As). As poisoning from food and beverages, wine, beer and cider causing fatalities among consumers were reported from France, England, Japan and US in the early twentieth century. Soya sauce containing As concentration as high as 5600-71600 μg/l was also reported from Japan. Highest mean as was also found in the potato skin, leaves of vegetables, arum leaf, papaya, rice, wheat, cumin, turmeric powder, cereals and bakery goods, vegetables and spices A direct correlation between as concentrations in commonly consumed vegetables, rice and as concentration in irrigation water is also confirmed.

Hence, if we consume the As contaminated food grains, it will inter in our body and start its destructive function slowly and slowly and after chronic exposure (5.6 years or more) causes so many kinds of diseases in human body such as skin lesions, granules on palms, black foot disease, gangrene, squamous cell carcinoma, disfunctionoing of kidney and liver etc.

For your extensive understanding about the entry of arsenic into food materials from arsenic contaminated soil and water, please refer the article written by our colleague, Dr. Sushant Singh.

World Applied Sciences Journal. 01/2011; 13(2):385-390.

Arsenic is not an essential element like Fe, Co, Mo. it is toxic to the plant. Tolerant plants chelate this kind of heavy metal either through phytochelators or mrtallothioneins. The plants are well known for bio magnification The arsenic slowly finds its way into the storage organs (sink) and bioaccumulate to a significant level. When these seeds or storage organs are eaten, arsenic fins it's way into the bloodstream and cause cellular derangements