Chronic exposure to low to moderate levels of inorganic arsenic is associated with increased incidence of fatal and not-fatal cardiovascular disease. Inorganic arsenic in water and food (particularly rice and grain) is a major global health problem.
Research has shown that high arsenic levels in drinking water increase the risk of peripheral artery disease, coronary heart disease, stroke, and carotid atherosclerosis. However, less is known about the cardiovascular effects of low to moderate arsenic levels, an issue that affects most populations around the world.
In the United States, people living in small rural communities in the Southwest, Midwest, and Northeast are disproportionately exposed to inorganic arsenic. Researchers analyzed urine samples for 3,575 American Indian men and women living in Arizona, Oklahoma, and North and South Dakota to evaluate the prospective association of chronic low to moderate arsenic exposure with incident cardiovascular disease over almost 20 years follow-up. They found that baseline urine arsenic concentrations were prospectively associated with cardiovascular disease mortality and incidence (1,184 developed fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular disease and 439 developed fatal cardiovascular disease).
The researchers conclude that low to moderate arsenic exposure is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease with no apparent threshold.
Association Between Exposure to Low to Moderate Arsenic Levels and Incident Cardiovascular Disease: A Prospective Cohort Study, Ann Intern Med. Published online 24 September 2013, doi:10.7326/0003-4819-159-10-201311190-00719