Bottled water made by food and beverage giants Dr Pepper and Whole Foods contain dangerous levels of toxic arsenic, a new report reveals.
After questioning an internal report from Keurig Dr Pepper, a Consumer Reports investigation found the company's Peñafiel water contains 70 percent more aresenic than US standards permit.
It takes a fairly high dose of the toxic metal arsenic to be fatal to humans, but it can accumulate in the body over time and cause cancer and diabetes.
Another five brands - including Whole Foods's Starkey water, Crystal Geyser Alpine Spring Water, Volvic, Crystal Creamery and Earth H2O - also contained more arsenic than the lower figure Consumer Reports considers safe.
Whole Foods defended its water as 'completely safe,' but Consumer Reports is urging people to be wary of water products from the organic grocer and Dr Pepper.
Arsenic levels in organic grocer Whole Foods's Starkey bottled water skate dangerously close to US federal limits, says Consumer Reports - and the agency says the EPA's cap is too high
The healthy and organic grocer's own brand of water had over three parts per billion (ppg) of arsenic in each bottle.
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers anything under 10 ppb to be safe.
But in tests of 130 different brands of bottled water, the new report found that 11 had detectable amounts of the heavy metal.
Arsenic is a naturally occurring element that often contaminates ground water in many countries including the US.
In a single, high dose, the substance can be
