Dr. Oz Under Fire From FDA Over Apple Juice Claims

The federal Food and Drug Administration and a leading doctor are disputing suggestions by television show host Dr. Mehmet Oz that trace amounts of arsenic in many apple juice products pose a health concern.

Oz said on his show Wednesday that testing by a New Jersey lab has found what he implied are troubling levels of arsenic in many juices.

However, the FDA says the lab methods were not appropriate and that its own tests show much lower arsenic levels. The agency warned "The Dr. Oz. Show" producers in advance that their testing was misleading.

Dr. Richard Besser, a pediatrician and former acting head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also scolded Oz Thursday on ABC's "Good Morning America" show for scaring consumers with what Besser called an "extremely irresponsible" report, like "yelling `Fire!' in a movie theater."

The issue: arsenic is naturally present in water, air, food, and soil in organic and inorganic forms, according to the FDA.

"Organic arsenic is essentially harmless," the agency says, and it passes through the body quickly. Inorganic arsenic is the type found in pesticides, and consuming it at high levels or over a long period can cause concern.

The testing "The Dr. Oz Show" did was for total arsenic, and the FDA even disputes those levels. The agency's own tests found lower total arsenic from one of the same juice batches the show's lab tested.

"There is no evidence of any public health risk from drinking these juices. And FDA has been testing them for years," the statement says.

Note to consumers: They are talking about organic and inorganic arsenic - not organic versus non-organic fruits and vegetables.

An independent lab agreed with the FDA's contention that the form of arsenic matters.

"A lot of things can have organically bound arsenic like kelp, but most of those flow right through you" and don't accumulate, said William Obermeyer, a former FDA chemist who cofounded ConsumerLab.com. It is a company that tests dietary supplements and publishes ratings for subscribers, much as Consumer Reports does with household goods.

Tim Sullivan, a spokesman for Oz's show, sent an email saying: "We don't think the show is irresponsible. We think the public has a right to know what's in their foods."

Sullivan said Oz does not agree that organic arsenic is as safe as authorities believe, and that the show will do further tests to distinguish organic from inorganic arsenic in juice samples.

"The position of the show is that the total arsenic needs to be lower," he said. "We did the tests. We stand by the results and we think the standards should be different."

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Comments

[NewHope360]

06:13 PM on 10/05/2011

As someone in our Twitter feed recently tweeted, "When doctors become brands, I don't trust their advice anymore."

Is that true of Dr. Oz? He surely affects industry and consumer opinion. In fact, we addressed just how much he affects the supplement and ingredient industry here: http://newhope360.com/marketing/dr-oz-recommendations-move-markets

[sj-99999]

03:15 PM on 09/20/2011

I support and believe what Dr. Oz is saying, if for no other reason than, despite my being a skeptic of most conventional US doctors, I'm even more suspicious of what the FDA is doing, how hard they're coming down on him and the degree to which their attacks have to do with saving their own 'reputation' as opposed to genuinely belieiving his testing was faulty and incorrect. If the consumption of a certain food available on the market can be linked to the toxic build-up of a chemical in one's body, I'd like to know. Call me nutty. (To quote the perhaps one thing I agree with the conservative lady from "The View" on, the FDA stated their products to be essentially safe? would you marry someone who you knew to be 'essentially faithful' or 'essentially disease free'?) This onslaught was about profit margins, not faulty science IMHO.

[Abelardo Perez]

05:31 AM on 09/20/2011

why isn't he making such a case to the amount of arsenic in cigarettes?

[hyaofcr]

06:47 AM on 09/20/2011

Because kids don't smoke them.

[Abelardo Perez]

01:44 AM on 09/21/2011

and somehow that's ok?
it's ok that cigarettes have arsenic because adults smoke them not kids?

[byteb]

01:54 AM on 09/20/2011

From watching his show, I learned how important it is to read the labels on juice drinks. I assumed that the apples used for kids' apple juice was from this country but after reading the juice boxes, I discovered that instead most of it is from China.

[knott wrench]

01:08 AM on 09/20/2011

This guy is a "Medical Doctor"?

So, he writes about his experiences of getting a Colonoscopy, in a recent issue of Men's Health
(or similiarly titled) Magazine.

The bottom line I got was;

Even though he is a MD(?) his reaction to theexam results, seemed to be Contrary to what his MD was proposing for treatment.

So, if he can't or won't follow the nearly same protocol for treatment he would tell one of his patients, Would you want him to be your MD?

Definitely, NOT ME!

[byteb]

01:51 AM on 09/20/2011

He's a heart surgeon.

[cookerman45]

10:45 PM on 09/19/2011

the sky is falling....(while im getting rich)

[retour]

09:32 PM on 09/19/2011

One exposure to that Oz charactor should be enough to make one disregard anything he has to hype. If someone is alarmed by his words....I truely feel sorry for them.

[LiberalAsTheDayIsLong]

09:15 PM on 09/19/2011

Dr. Oz....Moe, Dr. Phil....Larry, Dr. Ablow....Curly

[cookerman45]

10:44 PM on 09/19/2011

yuk ..yuk..yuk

[Reticent2]

08:18 PM on 09/19/2011

This TV MD thing is really TV Celebrity then, somewhere much further down the line, MD. If he is comfortable with sound bite advice and opinions to people about complex issues, ok. If people are comfortable listening to celebrity and product driven sound bite sized drivel, fine. When does it become dangerous? If listeners still believe he is acting as an MD and not a celeb.

[lillypad1]

08:11 PM on 09/19/2011

Fear Monger.

[NoSillyName]

07:15 PM on 09/19/2011

Apparently, the problem is that all apple juice is made from concentrate. Concentrate is made from a mixture of apples from all over the world where there are no standards for toxins.

Organic juice or juice made from apples grown here and not mixed with that concentrate should be fine.

[Bringbackmanufacturing]

07:12 PM on 09/19/2011

This made news years ago. Dr. Oz is under fire because he spoke the truth. People do not want to hear the truth.

[Silken17]

07:37 PM on 09/19/2011

The FDA is right on this one. Arsenic is present everywhere in trace amounts. Inorganic arsenic is much more toxic than organic arsenic because the arsenic ion binds to thiol groups that are contained by many of the body's enzymes while organic arsenic is much less reactive. Dr. Oz needs to prove that his testing methods take this into account. But like so many that have an interest in making big bucks in the weight loss industry, he is more interested in the sensationalist media attention than the truth.

[byteb]

01:55 AM on 09/20/2011

He's not in the weight loss industry. He's a heart surgeon.

[Bringbackmanufacturing]

11:53 PM on 09/21/2011

Yes, just like Monsanto, making big bucks while ignoring the science.

[NoSillyName]

07:03 PM on 09/19/2011

I don't drink apple juice, but I do eat apples. Nice organic Gala Apples. Gonna have one right now.

I don't trust the FDA; I've taken several prescription drugs that were pulled during the time I was using them... Vioxx, Bextra and others.

Not even forgetting to mention the DALKON SHIELD they approved which maimed and/or sterilized thousands of women.

[SLS11]

06:07 PM on 09/19/2011

I like Dr. Oz.
And I like my apple juice to be free of arsenic, tyvm. I'll wait and see what Dr. OZ's further tests show.

[saami]

04:56 PM on 09/19/2011

I am sick and tired of Dr. Oz thinking he knows everything. He has a huge ego. Also get rid of the scrubs; you aren't in the OR or ICU or CCU or ED.

[SLS11]

05:57 PM on 09/19/2011

You seem cranky....

[saami]

12:01 PM on 09/20/2011

I am a nurse and my husband is a physician and neither of us claim to be experts in every realm of health like Dr. Oz does. He is an egomaniac, in love with himself. He writes and talks about nutrition but is not a nutritionist (meaning educated in nutrition) and he loves all the psuedo science pretend health stuff and I suspect he is paid to love it.