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Linking my increased brown rice consumption & its known arsenic content with some unprecedented stabbing heart pains I've been feeling today. Like heart attack people feel. I am NOT otherwise at any risk for heart troubles.
Why would I eat brown rice when I know it's high in arsenic? Well I've been narrowing my food intake to nutritient-dense and inexpensive options. It has a low glycemic index which means it provides energy for an extended period of time.
Found a 5lb bag for $5. Overlooked the fact that it's high in arsenic because I'd never experienced arsenic problems before and didn't even know what that could mean.
In light of its high arsenic levels, FDA-recommends no more than 1 cup per week of rice. White rice is lower in arsenic than brown, but white has a higher glycemic index. So I go for brown. The bag I found was a good price. Brown rice is nutritious, energizing. Have been consuming a bit more than the recommended max 1cup/week.
Now scary sharp chest pains today.
I don't have a doctor, not sure what I'm trying to accomplish by posting my brown rice worries here. Cuz I have no one to talk to. And Maybe this post can serve as education to any who read this and as a clue if I die.
See even a fit marathon-running yoga teacher bicyclist can OD on brown rice and get a symptom of atherosclerosis.
See how I'm just going ahead & diagnosing myself? I can do that. Free thought, free speech.
These stabbing heart pains are freaking me out!
Wikipedia'ed "arsenic poisoning":
"Arsenic exposure plays a key role in the pathogenesis of vascular endothelial dysfunction as it inactivates endothelial nitric oxide synthase, leading to reduction in the generation and bioavailability of nitric oxide. In addition, the chronic arsenic exposure induces high oxidative stress, which may affect the structure and function of cardiovascular system. Further, the arsenic exposure has been noted to induce atherosclerosis by increasing the platelet aggregation and reducing fibrinolysis. Moreover, arsenic exposure may cause arrhythmia by increasing the QT interval and accelerating the cellular calcium overload. The chronic exposure to arsenic upregulates the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule and vascular endothelial growth factor to induce cardiovascular pathogenesis.
—Pitchai Balakumar1 and Jagdeep Kaur, "Arsenic Exposure and Cardiovascular Disorders: An Overview", Cardiovascular Toxicology, December 2009"
Heart attacks don'tusually feel like 'stabbing pains'.
The feel like an elephant sitting on your chest.
True. I was writing loosely there. Used the word "heart attack" to describe the types of people who are most likely to experience chest pains.
Sharp heart pains are a symptom of atherosclerosis. Sharp heart pains are what I'm feeling. Atherosclerosis is a precursor to possible heart attacks down the road.
Arsenic does not cause chest pains; in the tiny doses you are talking about it causes very, very, very, very, very slow peripheral nerve damage. After years of eating gobs of brown rice at every turn, you might -- might -- eventually start to feel some numbness and tingling in your toes and fingers, maybe some indigestion as well.
As the arsenic in rice is absorbed from pesticides and fertilizers and runoff from sprayed fields and la de da, just avoid those brands. The arsenic content in certified-organic brown rice is going to be zilch. If you're that worried about it, just buy organic.
Arsenic does not cause chest pains; in the tiny doses you are talking about it causes very, very, very, very, very slow peripheral nerve damage. After years of eating gobs of brown rice at every turn, you might -- might -- eventually start to feel some numbness and tingling in your toes and fingers, maybe some indigestion as well.
As the arsenic in rice is absorbed from pesticides and fertilizers and runoff from sprayed fields and la de da, just avoid those brands. The arsenic content in certified-organic brown rice is going to be zilch. If you're that worried about it, just buy organic.
It won't necessarily be zilch, if the rice growers' property has run-off from another farm that had sprayed fields. But it's definitely negligible.
And, considering that many people eat brown rice and never experience symptoms of arsenic poisoning, I have to assume it's not nearly the big deal that someone apparently wants it to be.
I have chest pain at times that feels like it is right in the heart and is a very sharp pain. Looked it up (cause it was freaking me out!). Determined it had nothing to do with the heart, but is actually a spasm in the chest wall. Completely harmless. Once I figured this out, it stopped, which leads me to believe that anxiety may have been a trigger.
I have chest pain at times that feels like it is right in the heart and is a very sharp pain. Looked it up (cause it was freaking me out!). Determined it had nothing to do with the heart, but is actually a spasm in the chest wall. Completely harmless. Once I figured this out, it stopped, which leads me to believe that anxiety may have been a trigger.
I get weird pains once in awhile. The only way I can describe it, and this doesn't give it justice - is it feels like a tendon got stuck between two ribs when I lean forward and inhale at the same time. Like something is trying to tug itself free. It used to happen a couple times a month, a few years ago. It wasn't exactly pain - but it felt like if I tried to take a deep breath, it would probably BE pain, so I had to just breathe shallow and wriggle around a few seconds to "free" whatever was "stuck."
I'm not a big rice eater, so it wasn't that. It didn't happen in any particular pattern - not "usually after meals" or "usually after my morning coffee" or "usually after exercise," or anything I could pin down.
I joined a gym around the same time, became more aware of my eating habits, consume less bread than I was consuming, eliminated soda, reduced my portion sizes of everything else, started eating breakfast religiously every morning, lost around 20 pounds, did some strength training and cardio "endurance" training to get my heart rate to behave more efficiently (used to go from around 60 when standing still, to 180 after 30 seconds of jogging. Now it's 50-120 for the same effort). I think that the exercise must've been sorely needed, because I've had those "pains" maybe three times total in the last 12 months.
If others are having the same experience, and they're eating a lot of rice, I'd suggest that maybe it's not the fact that it's rice - but more the fact that the rice is starchy and they should reduce the quantity, and maybe they're also out of shape and could benefit from a regular exercise routine.
Arsenic does not cause chest pains; in the tiny doses you are talking about it causes very, very, very, very, very slow peripheral nerve damage.
According to the sources I linked above (and you're welcome to research other sources if you wish), arsenic DOES cause chest pains. Arsenic can bring on atherosclerosis. A symptom of atherosclerosis is chest pain.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cliffie
As the arsenic in rice is absorbed from pesticides and fertilizers and runoff from sprayed fields and la de da, just avoid those brands. The arsenic content in certified-organic brown rice is going to be zilch. If you're that worried about it, just buy organic.
Arsenic is a naturally-occurring element in the soil/ ground water. ALL rice and certain other crops have it. Depending on where the rice is grown, some brands have much higher arsenic levels than others. Anyway, I'm trying to eat on the cheap lately, which is how I ended up with a $5 5lb bag of brown rice. I am in no position right now to be shelling out extra $ for certified organic ANYTHING.
I backed down on my consumption and got active again. I had been sedentary for a few days when I first posted this, so being sedentary & eating loads of arsenic = probably not a good combo. So I'm active again and going easy on the rice. No chest pains simce that day. But that day the pains were coming in waves all day long. Freaked me out. And I was a bit depressed too so that's why the woe-is-me tone of the OP.
As a person with Celiac disease, I've been eating brown & black rice DAILY since 1997 (I don't like white rice because it's harder to cook and has less nutritional value). Rice is where I get most of my daily calories.
I have heard the reports about arsenic in rice, late last year or earlier this year I believe.
It was suggested to wash the rice well to remove arsenic, and ever since then I've been rinsing my rice well before cooking (except for the brown rice pasta noodles).
How well I rinse my rice: I put my rice in a small pot, fill up the pot about 3/4 with water, put the lid on, shake it over the sink a while sometimes making figure eights and circles, remove the lid, dump the top water out, put the lid on with just a crack of an opening not wider than the grains of rice, dump the water out through the crack while the rice is kept in the pot, repeat until the water looks clear.
As a person with Celiac disease, I've been eating brown & black rice DAILY since 1997 (I don't like white rice because it's harder to cook and has less nutritional value). Rice is where I get most of my daily calories.
I have heard the reports about arsenic in rice, late last year or earlier this year I believe.
It was suggested to wash the rice well to remove arsenic, and ever since then I've been rinsing my rice well before cooking (except for the brown rice pasta noodles).
How well I rinse my rice: I put my rice in a small pot, fill up the pot about 3/4 with water, put the lid on, shake it over the sink a while sometimes making figure eights and circles, remove the lid, dump the top water out, put the lid on with just a crack of an opening not wider than the grains of rice, dump the water out through the crack while the rice is kept in the pot, repeat until the water looks clear.
You should invest in a collander or strainer, if you're going to go through all that trouble. Put the strainer in a pot filled with water, dump the rice in over the strainer, stir it up good with a wooden spoon, then lift the strainer out of the pot - which takes all the rice out too. Dump the pot out, refill it with water, and repeat.
Takes half the time, no risk of losing any rice at all, and no risk of mess.
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by increasing the platelet aggregation and reducing fibrinolysis. Moreover, arsenic exposure may cause arrhythmia by increasing the QT interval and accelerating the cellular calcium overload. The chronic exposure to arsenic upregulates the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule and vascular endothelial growth factor to induce cardiovascular pathogenesis.
