Recent research published in The Lancet indicates that rice, a staple for half the world's population, could become increasingly toxic as temperatures rise and carbon dioxide levels increase due to climate change. Conducted by Lewis Ziska and a team of international researchers, the study uniquely examined the combined effects of temperature and elevated CO2 on various rice species. The findings suggest that the toxicity of rice might significantly rise, posing serious health risks, particularly for vulnerable populations like babies and those reliant on rice for sustenance.
Previous work has focused on individual responses-some on CO2 and some on temperature, but not both, and not on a wide range of rice genetics.
We knew that temperature by itself could increase levels, and carbon dioxide by a little bit. But when we put both of them together, then wow, that was really something we were not expecting.
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