Health officials have given a clean bill of health to Big Island residents living near two community gardens where elevated levels of arsenic recently were detected.

Thirty-three residents of the 8 1/2- and 9 1/2-mile camps in Kea'au were tested for arsenic after high levels of the chemical were found in the soil of adjacent gardens. The state Department of Health and the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry conducted the tests and presented the results to the residents this past weekend.

The results were "acceptable" for a majority of the adults and all of the children, the Health Department said. A few adults were within the normal range, although they were near the upper end, the department said.

Health officials have offered to re-test these people because seafood they ate may have affected their test results. Seafood that contain arsenic are not considered harmful, the department said.

Health officials yesterday said they do not believe that anyone in the camps is in danger of arsenic-related illnesses.

"In this particular population, at the levels we found, we don't expect to have any concerns for health problems," said Dr. Ketna Mistry of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, which is based in Atlanta. "You would only have health effects from it if you've been exposed for long periods of time at very high levels."

Arsenic exposure can lead to nerve problems, as well as some types of cancer, she said.

The presence of arsenic is believed to be related to the use of herbicides in sugar cane fields during the 1920s through 1940s. Health officials said arsenic has not been detected in the area's drinking water, and the levels found in the community garden soil are not high enough to pose an acute health problem.

But Mistry said Kea'au residents should take precautions to reduce the risk of exposure to arsenic. People should wash all produce, keep children from playing in the gardens and avoid tracking dirt into the home.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.