Before a chemical can be marketed as
a drug, it must go through extensive
testing, on animals and humans. It must
pass a series of safety tests before it
can be sold. There’s a well-established
FDA process in place if a drug
manufacturer wants to sell a hormonal
medication like a birth control pill,
or post-menopausal hormone
replacement therapy.
But if a company wants to sell an
industrial chemical that may bind
to the same cells as these hormonal
medications and acts identically or very
similarly – there is no regulatory
agency or governmental oversight to
ensure the product is safe. Unlike
chemicals sold as medicine, industrial
and commercial chemicals are
presumed safe until proven hazardous.
What We Know
Hundreds of synthetic chemicals that
affect human biology, including known
carcinogens, chemicals that cause birth
defects, and
chemicals that can disrupt
the endocrine system are being sold
and widely dispersed today. These
toxics can be found in everything from
pesticides, paints and paint thinners,
to industrial detergents and hair dyes.
You know them as PCBs and phthalates
and dioxin. Many accumulate over
time. These chemicals now permeate
our water, soil and food. You can find
them in the tissue of humans in every
area of the world. And you will likely
find them in your body and in your
children’s bodies.
Some endocrine disrupting chemicals
mimic the female sex hormone
estrogen; others block testosterone;
some interfere with the thyroid
function. In the animal world, scientists
have linked exposure to these chemicals
with reproductive abnormalities
including feminization of males,
hermaphroditism, birth defects, and
high infant death rates.
Toxic chemicals are threatening
the future effectiveness of human
breast milk. Breast milk now contains
small but biologically active amounts
of scores of industrial chemicals.
Some of these chemicals are known
to cause neurological impairment in
the very young.
Some exposure to certain chemicals
is now associated with an increase in
the incidence of some cancers among
children and of non-Hodgkin’s
lymphoma and multiple
myeloma in
adults.
What We Can Do
There is much that parents can do
to protect their children against
endocrine distrupting chemicals,
beginning with the elimination of
many pesticides both outside and in
the home. Organic foods should be
purchased wherever possible. There
are more suggestions on our website.
But more needs to be done. Like
medicines, industrial chemicals that
affect human biology must be tested
and regulated. We have good
experience when we do regulate
chemicals. Removing lead from gasoline
resulted in a 90% reduction in lead
poisoning. But most of the chemicals
being sold today have never been fully
tested for safety. We need to phase out
those that are unsafe. And we must
move to a regulatory system that fully
tests all chemicals, no matter how they
are to be used, before they are sold.
A summary of the supporting
scientific evidence, and a list of
scientific endorsers, can be found
at www.childenvironment.org.
A double standard
threatens our health.
Box 1043, One Gustave Levy
Place, New York, NY 10029 •www.childenvironment.org
