What Exactly is Cadmium and Why is it in Muscle Milk — and Spinach?!
Remember the huge news story about McDonald’s recalling 12 million Shrek drinking glasses that were made in China? Here’s a link, in case you missed it. Anyway, it was discovered that the glasses contained “elevated levels of cadmium.”
“Cadmium occurs naturally in small amounts in soil and some foods but is carcinogenic to humans and can result in negative health effects such as bone softening if ingested,” wrote Elana Schor of Greenwire. Wait… did she say that it’s in “some foods”?!
Did you know, the average American eats food containing roughly 30 micrograms (ug) of cadmium each day? According to The Toxicology Profile for Cadmium (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry), “If you do not eat foods that contain enough iron or other nutrients, you are likely to take up more cadmium from your food than usual.”
In fact, according to The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, “Dietary deficiencies of calcium, iron, and zinc enhance the effects of [metals] on cognitive and behavioral development.”
Cadmium does, however, leave your body, via urine and feces, but too much can cause damage (Google “Nephrotoxicity“).
Mommy, How much is too much cadmium?
The Department of Health and Human Services concluded that there were sufficient human and animal data to conclude that cadmium is a known human carcinogen. The FDA has determined that cadmium levels in bottled water, for instance, should not exceed 0.005 mg/L. However, the EPA has determined that lifetime exposure to 0.005 mg/L cadmium in drinking water is not expected to cause any adverse effects. Why are both of these amounts the same? The FDA advised on per unit of bottled water and the EPA, over a lifetime. Frustrating.
Cadmium in Our Food
Cadmium binds to organic matter (soil) and is eventually absorbed by plants, thus entering the food supply. In the United States, people who regularly consume shellfish and organ meats will have higher exposures. Leafy vegetables such as lettuce and spinach, potatoes and grains, peanuts, soybeans, and sunflower seeds contain high levels of cadmium. According to a “public health” white paper put out by The Agency for Toxic Substances, some of these foods are: dry roasted peanuts (0.051 mg/kg); smooth peanut butter (0.056 mg/kg); shredded wheat cereal (0.057 mg/kg); boiled spinach (0.125 mg/kg) and potato chips (0.062 mg/kg). If you’re concerned, a blood test will show your recent exposure to cadmium and a urine test will show both your recent and your past exposure.
Cadmium in Muscle Milk, EAS Myoplex and Other Protein Drinks
The impetus for this story were the shocking — and disturbing — findings released by Consumer Reports (What’s in Your Protein Drink?). EAS Myoplex Original Rich Dark Chocolate contained 5.1 micrograms (based on three servings) and Muscle Milk was found to contain 5.6 micrograms. It should be noted that according to Consumer Reports, in certain samples of EAS products, traces of cadmium were “below measurable.” Incidentally, EAS did in fact, send me a recall notice late last year. But why is it present in the first place and 5.0 micrograms, seems high.
As cadmium is naturally occurring, Tod Cooperman, President of ConsumerLab.com, an independent testing facility specifically for dietary supplements including cadmium advised that according to WHO’s Quality Control Methods for Medicinal Plant Material, the “Product must contain less than 0.3 parts per million (or micrograms per gram) of cadmium or less than 0.1 parts per million for extracts.” Moreover, Mercy Hospital dietitian, Kelly O’Connor, told me simply, via email, that cadmium, “has no nutritional value and is not something that we generally promote.”
A spokesperson for Abbott Nutrition in Columbus OH (makers of Myoplex) sent me this message in June of 2011, in an email: “The results in Consumer Reports are misleading. They ignored recommended label usage for Myoplex (2 servings a day) and did not use established or approved safety standards. Thirdly, the report did not provide consumers with a baseline of everyday foods that also carry these same existing metals to put the results in context — these metals are present everywhere in the environment and in our food supply.”
So, if cadmium was undetectable in certain EAS brands, why is it detectable in Original Rich Dark Chocolate and if the suggested serving is two (and not three), does drinking three mean that you are now exposed to harmful levels? “Be assured, there is no safety risk from these trace amounts in our Myoplex shakes,” the Abbott spokesperson wrote.
Maltodextrin (the second ingredient) – a crispness enhancer and textile finishing agent. Some forms are also used as a binding agent in paper coating formulations.
Microcrystalline cellulose – a filler used as a thickener in processed foods. Some derivatives are used in wallpaper paste.
Sodium hexametaphosphate – a complex compound used to soften water and some detergents. Applications include agriculture use to break down clay and other soil types.
Cholecalciferol – similar in structure to testosterone, cortisol and cholesterol all three are also commonly known as steroids.
The majority of the ingredients in most popular, body building supplements (which is what Muscle Milk is) are synthetic.
I suppose ingesting in small quantities may be harmless, but I can assert that the brilliant name alone is responsible for many guys’ consumption in a fervent pursuit for instant muscles. Moreover, Muscle Milk contains a whopping 340 calories, 150 of which come from fat (there is approximately 185 calories in one plain donut).
As of January 1, 2012, cadmium falls under the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (California) Proposition 65 (http://oehha.ca.gov/prop65/p65faq.html)
No one from CytoSport, the makers of Muscle Milk, responded to my inquiry.
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