TYLER (KYTX) - An apple juice scare: should you be concerned about the juice you're giving to your child?
Dr. Oz says levels of arsenic in apple juice are unsafe, and the government is taking issue with that.
Doctors here say it's something to be aware of, not something to be scared of right now.
Arsenic is a naturally occurring substance that can be found all around you.
But Dr. Oz is waging war against the FDA and its regulations.
"How can arsenic get into apple juice?" asked Dr. Oz on his show last week.
A question that triggered fear, even prompting schools to pull apple juice from the menu.
"Give me juice, give me juice. You want juice? He wants juice," says Katie Spencer, the mother of 2-year-old Danger.
It has parents like Spencer concerned about what she gives her son.
"We have a juicer at home and juice together sometimes. More you can do that and less buy processed, the better,"says Spencer.
"I think anytime you hear something new like that, it's a concern," says Gail Pate, a grandmother.
The concern stemming from a Dr. Oz show last week.
The doctor said tests done by a New Jersey lab found significant levels of arsenic in many juices.
"Not an immediate cause for concern to suddenly stop what ones usually been doing," says Dr. Jeffery Levin with UT Health Science Center in Tyler.
Dr. Levin says there are many factors to consider when it comes to levels of arsenic and how they could affect your or your child's health.
"What kind of arsenic, what form it's in, how the body handles it, even down to the testing laboratories," says Dr. Levin.
The FDA says there's no health risk, it's ok to pick it up and enjoy a glass.
"Arsenic is not a new issue, substance been around along time, in the soil, all around the world," says Dr. Levin.
And he says to keep in mind there are strict regulations by the FDA.
"I think they would let us know if it needed to be pulled from the shelves," says Pate.
"I don't trust the FDA to regulate things the way they should, so that's why we go as natural as possible," says Spencer.
Arsenic can be found in the food we eat everyday, naturally in the air, water and even the soil.
Dr. Levin says the test results need more research before it becomes a widespread concern for parents.
The juices tested on Dr. Oz's show are mainly imported from China, Brazil, Chile and Argentina.
The FDA has not determined a public health risk.
