Assessment of the Risk of Contamination of Food for Infants and Toddlers

Overview

This narrative literature review surveys 83 publications on contaminants in foods for infants and toddlers aged 0.5–3 years, covering toxic elements (Pb, cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), Hg), acrylamide, bisphenol A, dioxins, furan, mycotoxins, nitrates/nitrites, pesticide residues, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 3-MCPD/glycidyl esters, and mineral oil hydrocarbons. The toxic-elements section (3.1) compiles findings from infant-formula and complementary-food studies across Norway, the USA (Miami), Poland, Brazil, Nigeria, Spain (Menorca), France, Canada, Spain, Columbia, Australia, Sweden, Korea, Tanzania, and Portugal. For HMI purposes, this page reports only the heavy-metals (toxic-elements) content; the non-metal sections are out of scope. The review reproduces values from constituent papers without re-normalizing units, so unit basis (wet versus dry weight, µg/g versus mg/kg versus µg/kg) appears as the originating studies reported it.

Key numbers

Toxic-elements review summary (Section 3.1 and review Table 2). Numbers are reproduced as the review reports them; the cited primary papers are the authoritative source for each value.

lead (Pb) and Cd in infant formulas, infant foods, and complementary foods:

Iwegbue 2010 (Nigeria, n=26 infant food/commercial food, Table 2 ref [14]): 96% of samples exceeded the FDA Pb allowable concentration (0.4 mg/kg) and 53% exceeded the maximum FDA Cd concentration (0.1 mg/kg). Note: the review’s prose paragraph attributes this finding to Igweze 2020 [9], but Table 2 attributes the n=26 / 96%-Pb / 53%-Cd row to ref [14] = Iwegbue 2010; this page follows Table 2’s attribution as the more structured representation and flags the source-internal inconsistency.
Gardener 2019 (Miami, USA, n=564 infant food, Table 2 ref [10]): Pb contamination in 37% of samples and Cd contamination in 57% of samples; RfD exceeded by 0–3%, Pb and Cd by 6–23%. Review reports no significant difference between organic and conventional cultivation; rice-based products contained significantly more Pb and Cd.
Winiarska-Mieczan 2013 (Poland, n=114 baby desserts, juices, dinners, Table 2 ref [12]): no sample exceeded the Maximum Consented Limit (MCL) for Pb and Cd.
De Castro 2010 (Brazil, n=55 infant formula and milk, Table 2 ref [13]): median Pb concentration 0.109 mg/kg, exceeding the FAO/WHO maximum standard (0.02 mg/kg); Pb in 7 infant formulas and 22 milk samples exceeded the Brazilian standard (0.2 mg/kg in infant formula; 0.05 mg/kg in milk).
Igweze 2020 (Nigeria, n=190 infant formula, Table 2 ref [9]): 1 sample exceeded the PTWI (Pb and Cd).
Skrbic 2016 (Spain, n=90 infant food, Table 2 ref [11]): Pb detected in 2 samples, As in 3 samples; RfD exceeded for Cd and Pb.

Cd specifically:

Iwegbue 2010 (Nigeria, ref [14], reported by the review as “In another study”): Cd was detected in 65% of samples; the highest amounts were found in potatoes, cookie cereal bars, vegetables, and bread; 2.5% of children aged 3 years and under exceeded the TWI for Cd. (Note: the food-category list — potatoes, cookie cereal bars, vegetables, bread — is broader than Iwegbue 2010’s commercial-infant-formula scope and may indicate a further source-internal reference error; reproduced as the review attributes it.)
Gao 2020 (snacks consumed by children 1–6 years): no exceedance of Cd intake standards; EDI did not exceed the MTDI (maximum tolerable daily intake = 46 µg/d); flour products contributed 37% of total Cd delivery from snacks.
Sweden, n=18 infant food: Cd exceeded in rice-based products.

mercury (Hg) in infant and toddler foods:

Guérin/Hulin 2018 (France, n=291 children’s products): no sample exceeded the maximum allowable concentration; Hg detected in prepared fish- and meat-based products (maximum 7.4 µg/kg), in dairy desserts, cereal products, and in one infant formula.
Junqué 2017 (Menorca, Spain, n=45 commercial food for toddlers, fish products): fish products exceeded the MRL for Hg (0.5–1.0 mg/kg) in 66% of samples.
Dabeka 2012 (Canada, n=150 infant formula): no sample exceeded the standards.
Martins 2013 (Portugal, n=87 infant food): no sample exceeded the PTWI.

Long-term exposure (children under 6 years) — Kim 2014 (Korea, n=119 commercial food for toddlers, Pb/Cd/Hg):

Pb exposure exceeded the reference value (RfT = 0.5 µg/kg bw) among 35% of children.
42% of children exceeded the TWI of Cd; Hg exposure was below the TWI.
Main sources of Pb exposure: dairy products and vegetables.
Main sources of Cd and Hg exposure: cereal products, fish, and shellfish.
Review notes (citing Dabeka 2012 and Martins 2013) that two analyzed studies suggest infant formulas are safe in terms of Pb content.

Arsenic in infant foods:

Gu 2020 (Australia, n=39 commercial food for toddlers): 75% of samples contaminated with inorganic As; exceeded EU maximum levels. Highest As concentrations in rice noodles, whole grain rice, and crackers.
Columbia, n=48 commercial food for toddlers: 91% of samples contained inorganic As; 100% exceeded total As reference level (review wording).
Rotenberg 2017 and Ljung 2011 also reported high As contamination (review reference [22] and [23]).
Melø 2008 (Norway, n=76 infant formula and milk): no sample was contaminated for Pb, Cd, As, or Hg. Oatmeal had the highest concentration of Cd (1.02 µg/g); fish had the highest concentrations of As (1.02 µg/g) and Hg (6 µg/g). None of the products contained amounts of As that would pose a health risk per the review.
Tanzania, n=43 commercial food for toddlers (Cd and Hg): no sample exceeded the PTWI.

Safe-level reference values cited by the review (Table 1, attributed to references [3,4,5,6,7,8]):

Arsenic: PTWI = 15 µg/kg/bw.
Cadmium: MTD = 4.1 µg/day; PTWI = 7 µg/kg/bw.
Lead: MTD = 0.5 µg/day; PTWI = 25 µg/kg/bw.
Mercury: PTWI = 1.6 µg/kg/bw.

(Table 1 also lists safe levels for acrylamide, bisphenol A, dioxins, furan, mycotoxins, nitrates/nitrites, and pesticide residues; those are non-metal contaminants and out of HMI scope.)

Methods (brief)

Narrative literature review. PRISMA-style flow with the authors’ own modifications. Search databases: PubMed (primary), Google Scholar, and Scopus. Search window: October 2020 – March 2021. Date range of included publications: 2004–2021. Search terms combined “contamination”, “baby food”, “infant formula”, “toxic elements”, “dioxins”, “acrylamide”, “bisphenol”, “furan”, “mycotoxins”, “nitrates”, “polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon”, “pesticides”, “3-MCPD”, “glycidyl esters”, and “mineral oil hydrocarbons” under the headings “food safety”, “food contamination”, and “environmental contaminants”. Identification: n=5,922 from databases + n=3,236 from other sources. After deduplication: 6,278 records. Screening: 4,298 titles; 4,152 excluded. Eligibility: 146 full-text articles assessed. Inclusion: 83 studies with full access. Exclusion reasons reported: focused not on the purpose (n=19), too small a sample size/study group (n=19), unsuitable age group (n=4), test material being human breast milk (n=3), animal studies (n=3), other (n=15). Studies were excluded if they involved animal measurements, prenatal exposure, adult exposure, contaminant-exposed sick children, ages under 6 months or over 3 years, insufficient sample/study size, lack of full access, were themselves literature reviews, failed to specify products for children, or used inappropriate study material (e.g., human milk). Non-English-language publications were excluded. No formal meta-analysis. No quantitative synthesis of the constituent studies. No instrument-level or analytical-method reporting (the review summarises primary-study findings without describing the methods used in each primary study).

Implications

Microbiome: Not applicable — the review does not address microbiome outcomes.

Update history

The five most recent substantive edits to this page, classified major (evidence or structure moved), correction (a published value or statement was wrong and has been fixed), or minor (narrative rewritten without changing the underlying evidence). Each description is derived from what the edit did to this page; the linked commit is the authoritative record, routine regeneration passes are excluded, and the full version history lives in git.

Commit	Date	Change	Description
b01ec52c31	2026-08-04	major	1 section added
3171d069e3	2026-08-02	major	1 section added
90a2f9a38e	2026-07-30	major	1 section added and 1 removed
eaa8eeeedf	2026-07-27	major	1 section added
af9c97a509	2026-06-23	major	1 section added