As -such as global temperature and carbon dioxide levels increase, arsenic in rice can increase, especially in Asia, a major public health threat.

A new study published in the Lancet Planetary Health has warned that climate change is making rice, a major food for half of the world’s population, rapidly toxic by promoting its arsenic content.

The findings are the major implications for billions of people that depend on rice as a dietary mainstay, especially in Asia.

Pausted by scientists at the University of Columbia in collaboration with researchers from China and America, study to check that carbon dioxide (cum (CO)₂) Both levels and temperatures are estimated to increase rapidly due to climate change, affecting arsenic accumulation in rice.

Results are disturbing: When both factors grow, inorganic arsenic levels in grains presents long -term health risks including cancer, heart disease and neurological damage.

According to the study, the increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the air and increasing global temperatures can cause damage to both the amount and nutrition quality of rice.

The study found that when both carbon dioxide and temperature increased, arsenic levels in rice also increased when either increased alone. This growth in arsenic appears to be due to changes in soil due to climatic conditions, making it easier to transfer more harmful forms of arsenic to rice.

Depending on the current rice consumption in many Asian countries, researchers predicted that by 2050, people in these countries can face high risks of cancer and other health problems due to more arsenic in rice.

This suggests that if the rice is grown in flood areas, especially under future climatic conditions, we can see an increase in health risks related to arsenic.

Why rice is weak

Rice is usually grown in water -rhythmic fields, or pads, which allows the plant to absorb water not only, but also involves any contaminants in the soil, including arsenic – a heavy metal.

The element is naturally, like fish and shellfish, and as a result of industrial pollution both naturally exist, but it is inorganic form (industrial waste) which is particularly harmful to humans.

“Rice has always been a meal where arsenic is an issue, and climate change is making it worse. This is another reason to control people’s risk, to control the risk of people,” the co-writer of the study and a public health expert at the University of Johns Hopkins told Inside Climate News.

The porous nature of rice and its submerged rising conditions make it prone to soaking arsenic especially with soil and water.

Rising poisoning and health effects

The study of a six -year -long region included several varieties of rice under the temperature and controlled levels of carbon dioxide that simulates future climate landscapes. Dr. Researcher of Physiologist, a plant at Columbia University, Dr. Lewis Ziska stated that the results were worrisome because in previous studies, temperature and carbon dioxide were seen in isolation, but not together.

Researchers found that a combination of high temperatures and CO₂ Importantly, the amount of both total and inorganic arsenic increased in rice grains.

He then used per capita rice consumption data to estimate future disease risks in seven of the highest rice -taking countries in Asia: India, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar and Philippines.

In all seven countries, the estimated health risk, including increased rates of bladder, lungs, and skin cancer, increased correlation with increased arsenic risk from rice.

Lancet study also suggested that arsenic diabetes, pregnancy complications, problems in brain development, weakened immunity and other diseases may be associated with.

In southern China and in South -East and South Asia, rice is already considered a major source of arsenic in the diet and it can increase the risk of cancer.

While the link between arsenic and rice is not new, the study is a clear reminder that climate change has complex and often hidden health results, the researchers said.

Despite earlier research, international food security regulators have so far implemented stringent arsenic boundaries on rice. For example, US Food and Drug Administration has not determined binding standards for arsenic levels in rice-based foods.

Researchers recommend a multi-dimensional approach: breeding rice varieties that are less prone to arsenic uptake, changing farming practices to reduce arsenic exposure, and raising public awareness about safe cooking techniques or diversifying diets with alternative grains.