High Arsenic Levels Found in Bottled Water Brands Owned by Keurig Dr Pepper and Whole Foods

High levels of arsenic, which can increase chances of cancer and cause reproductive harm, has been found in popular bottled water brands Peñafiel and Starkey Water, according to new testing.The nonprofit Center For Environmental Health sent legal notices to Keurig Dr Pepper, which owns Peñafiel, as well as Whole Foods, owner of the Starkey Water brand, after independent testing showed unsafe levels of the toxic metal.The California-based organization asserts that the products require a health warning under California's consumer protection law. "Customers typically purchase bottled water at exorbitantly high costs with the assumption that it is safer and healthier to drink than tap water, unaware that they are ingesting an extremely toxic metal linked to birth defects and cancer," CEH chief executive Michael Green said in a statement.CEH didn't disclose the results of its testing, but said in a statement that it confirmed previous testing by Consumer Reports. In April, Consumer Reports found Peñafiel samples contained nearly double the legally permissible amount of arsenic under FDA guidelines.The FDA requires bottled water to contain fewer than 10 parts per billion of arsenic and the Peñafiel samples contained an average of 18.1. The arsenic found in Starkey Water, however, was just barely above the FDA threshold.  Continue reading...