YSK rice commonly contains arsenic, but most of it can be removed by boiling in water (4:1 ratio) for 5 minutes, and discarding that water before starting the regular cook cycle.
Why you should know:
Arsenic is a carcinogen and has various other negative health effects; enough to warrant exposure limits in various jurisdictions. A five minute boil-and-discard step before cooking is a simple way to reduce your exposure, especially if you eat a lot of rice.
Details are in the study, linked in the title of this post. Here's a diagram from the abstract:
![](https://lemmy.sdf.org/pictrs/image/2967f12c-7299-442a-a40d-a4925e404a5f.png)