United States (US) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has an enforceable maximum contaminant level (MCL) for municipal water supplies of less than or equal to 10 micrograms of arsenic per kg of water (10 parts per billion, or ppb), to protect from chronic arsenic exposures, and a non-enforceable MCL goal of 0 ppb, which reflects the level at which no adverse health effects are expected.⁵ Some states have lowered the level to 5 ppb. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tested various foods for arsenic, finding, for example, elevated levels in rice⁶, and proposed a limit for inorganic arsenic of 100 ppb in infant rice cereals in 2016⁷; this action level was adopted in 2020.⁸

The risk of chronic exposure to low-level arsenic can be mitigated through a varied diet. Infants
who have a restricted diet (e.g., rice cereal as a first solid food and juice) may have arsenic
exposures that are proportionately higher than those in older children and adults. FDA conducts
routine surveillance for arsenic in apple juice and generally levels have been below 10 ppb, the
same level allowable in drinking water.⁹ Children’s toys are tested and must demonstrate compliance with Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regulations that limit arsenic in toys that may be mouthed. Until more is known, providers can advise families to:

• Encourage breast milk for the first 6 months of life, as it has little to no arsenic.¹⁰
• Test well water for arsenic, and consider bottled water if results exceed EPA recommendations, particularly if water is used to reconstitute formula.¹¹ Reverse-osmosis filters can mitigate arsenic in water but must be maintained regularly; an iron-
  impregnated biochar has been shown to perform as a low-cost arsenic sorbent.¹²
• Consult with local or state environmental health agencies to determine the potential
  for arsenic in drinking water, especially important for private well users, as these
  systems are not regulated by EPA.
• Choose rice products, including baby food, that are lower in inorganic arsenic.¹³
• As part of a varied diet, limit the serving size and frequency of foods that may have
  higher inorganic arsenic content, such as rice. Manage fruit juice consumption as part
  of a healthy diet per the recommendations for children from the American Academy of
  Pediatrics (AAP).¹⁴ 
• Avoid rice milk for younger children.
• Avoid products sweetened with brown rice syrup.
• Parboil rice (brown or white) before cooking, or wash and pre-soak rice (effective only for white) before cooking to reduce inorganic arsenic.¹⁵
• Avoid smoking, as cigarette smoke contains arsenic.
• Do not use older, arsenic-containing pesticides (now banned in the US).
• Do not allow children to play in areas or structures known to have arsenic contamination. Avoid sawing, sanding, or burning “pressure-treated” chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-containing lumber; do not grow vegetables in planters made of CCA-containing lumber