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Common Sense Steps Science is rarely certain about anything, and certainly not about most links between environmental exposures and health effects in people. Nonetheless, the evidence showing links to health grows ever stronger as research progresses and becomes ever-more sophisticated:
But establishing scientific certainty of harm to people is elusive at best and in many cases likely to be impossible before countless people would be affected adversely. After all, epidemiology can only establish harm after an epidemic has occurred. Purposefully carrying out controlled experiments on people is considered, appropriately, unethical. And thus we are left with the plethora of uncontrolled, largely unmonitored experiments currently underway because of ubiquitous exposure. Given these limitations, and given that our current regulatory system is unlikely to strengthen exposure standards absent much firmer proof, what is a person, or a parent, or a family, to do? Much good, practical advice is available on the web and in print. Some of the best places to turn for practical advice are listed below. In addition to pointing toward these resources, on this page we will highlight a few old themes ("constants") and then focus on new issues that are emerging from recent research and analysis. One general point: As you make choices about products to buy, things to do, food to eat, places to go, bear in mind that government standards for regulating environmental threats to health are at best a bare minimum and at worst completely inadequate and health threatening. So what you choose to do should always at least live up to those standards. This is because government regulations represent a compromise negotiated between advocates for public health and parties, usually companies or trade associations, with an economic interest in protecting their access to the market. The playing field in which the negotiation takes place is strongly biased in favor of the vested interests, who have succeeded over several decades of lobbying to put in place evidentiary standards for proof of harm that make it very difficult to prevent marketing of new products, or removal of old, even in the face of compelling evidence of plausible harm. Decades of experience reinforce that conclusion.
Issues highlighted by new research: 31
March 2003. Pressure mounts to reduce human exposures to bisphenol A (BPA),
the plastic compound used to make polycarbonate plastic and to make resins
that line food cans. Research published in Current Biology reveals that
this estrogenic substance causes a genetic error in mice that, in humans,
is linked to many spontaneous abortions and birth defects, including Down
Syndrome. 16 November 2002. Good news. Two new studies confirm two simple dietary changes that can significantly reduce exposures to environmental contaminants. While these changes already made common sense, these studies provide data supporting their wisdom. One documents decreases in blood levels of a potent neurotoxin, methylmercury, following reductions in the amount of large predatory fish like tuna and swordfish in the diet. The other shows that organic produce really works: children eating organic are less likely to be consuming inappropriate levels of organophosphate pesticides. 15 October 2002. Women should reduce tuna consumption prior to and during pregnancy, and reduce the frequency of tuna consumption by their children. Fish advisories have long highlighted the importance of minimizing consumption of fish containing mercury, particularly for pregnant women and young children. New information suggests that advice given to parents has left out an important mercury source, tuna. In July 2002, an independent scientific panel appointed by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concluded that current FDA recommendations, no more than 2 cans of tuna per week, were too weak because even at very low contamination levels, mercury can interfere with brain development. The panel admonished the FDA to put strong warnings on tuna because mercury contamination levels in canned and fresh tuna are high enough to pose a threat to the developing fetus and children. A report by the Environmental Working Group presented compelling evidence that representatives of the tuna industry had inappropriately lobbied the FDA to keep warning labels off tuna. Families and schools should avoid using arsenic-treated (chromated copper arsenate) wood to build play structures, decks and other items, especially where children play. This is particularly important for exposured surfaces that are regularly touched or walked across. Contrary to EPA assertions, arsenic leaches to the surface of treated wood for years after initial treatment, making even old structures a source of risk. Arsenic-treated structures already in place should be coated with a sealant at least every six months. Carpenters compelled to use pressure-treated wood should wear masks and gloves while working with the material. Arsenic-treated wood scraps should never be burned, as the arsenic enters the air. For more suggestions... Consumers should avoid purchasing children's toys and cosmetics that contain phthalates, common additives to plastics that in animal experiments cause harm to males when exposure takes place in the womb. Unfortunately, lax labeling requirements make it very difficult to consistently avoid these additives in consumer products. Some cosmetics acknowledge phthalates on the labels, but this is not required by law. Some guidance is available for consumers based on independent testing of products. Acknowledging consumer concerns, some childrens' toy manufacturers have now begun to label specific products as phthalate-free. Pregnant women and men with prostate cancer, especially, may wish to reduce their exposure to bisphenol A, a plastic monomer that leaches out of polycarbonate plastic, particularly when the plastic is heated and is old. Bisphenol A causes a variety of biological effects in animal and cell experiments, at concentrations well within ranges that can be found in some people, even in fetal blood. No confirmation of comparable effects in people are currently available. This may be because the compound is safe, but in reality, the relevant studies in people have not been done. In this case, lack of confirmation of harm may just as easily be a demonstration of ignorance as proof of safety. The animal and cell experiments raise sufficient concern so that people may wish to begin reducing exposures now rather than await completion of the relevant human studies, which at the very least will take decades. Based on experimental data, the two most vulnerable groups for bisphenol A effects are likely to be fetuses in the womb and men with prostate cancer. BPA clearly disrupts fetal development at extremely low concentrations. And in cell culture experiments it speeds the development of androgen-independence in prostate tumor cells. This effect may negate the main medical defense against prostate cancer. Suggestions for reducing bisphenol A exposure...
The Children's Health Environmental Coalition's HealtheHouse: an interactive resource for parents to learn about simple and effective steps they can take to protect their baby from environmental harm within the home. The GreenGuide's product reports. "a one-stop, reliable and easy-to-use shoppers' guide so that you can make wiser, more conscientious shopping decisions." Reports available include "flea control," "insect repellant" and "household cleaning supplies." Raising Healthy Children in A Toxic World, a book by Philip Landrigan, Herbert Needleman and Mary Landrigan. The Resource Guide on Children's Environmental Health, by the Children's Environmental Health Network. Cleaning
for Health: Products and Practices for a Safer Indoor Environment,
an excellent and thorough review of cleaning products by Inform, Inc.
The Healthy School Network: ways to reduce exposures at school. The Healthy Building Network: steps to reduce exposures via better selection of building materials and hospital equipment. A number of organizations offer solid information about ways to reduce pesticide use. Among them:
Practical steps for minimizing exposure to lead paint: The Alliance to End Childhood Lead Poisoning.
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