Abstract:Objective To study the effect of low arsenic-containing in drinking water on growth and development of mice. Methods Clean water (control group) or 10 μg/L arsenic water (arsenic exposure group) was fed to pregnant mice to evaluate the maternal results, growth and health of the first generation. Results There were no statistically significant difference in litter size, gestational age, and birth weight (including survival and death) between the control group and the arsenic exposure group (P > 0.05). The weight of the offspring after the 10 days and 22 days in arsenic exposure group was lower than that in the control group (P < 0.05), indicating that the growth and development of the offspring of the arsenic exposure group significantly were slowed down after birth. On the 15.5 day of gestation, the incidence of fatty liver was 55.5% (5/9) in maternal mice in arsenic exposure group, and that was 0% (0/9) in the control group. The incidence of fatty liver in the arsenic exposed group was higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusions Exposure to low arsenic content (in accordance with current drinking water standards in China) produces adverse outcomes in the critical growth and development period of the first generation mice.