“There is good reason to suspect that increasing chemical production and use is related to the growing incidence of endocrine-associated disorders over the past 20 years, including male reproductive problems, early female puberty, cancers and neurobehavioral disorders,” said Endocrine Society member Andrea C. Gore, PhD, the guide’s lead author.
“Importantly, there is growing evidence that foetuses and children have a particular vulnerability to these chemicals. Introduction to Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals was written to help policymakers and others better understand how these chemicals work and to assist them in making informed policy decisions.”
I am not one for making a mountain out of a mole hill, but the issue of the impact of chemicals in industry has to be discussed. There was a recent report by an organisation funded by the European Union known as CONTAMED which showed that of 37 pesticides examined 23 were found to be endocrine disrupting chemicals.
What does this mean? I presume most of us are aware that chemicals are used in all manner of food cultivation and production. Some are pesticides, some are fungicides and so on. We then consume these chemicals on and in our foodstuffs. The endocrine system contains your ovaries/ testes, thyroid, adrenals, pancreas, parathyroid, hypothalamus and pineal gland. To the layman, we know that we do not want chemicals that will disrupt their function.
In fertility terms, some of these endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC’s) are known to be androgen blockers, oestrogen mimickers and all round nasty substances. There are other chemicals like BPA (Bisphenol A) that was originally designed as an artificial oestrogen supplement, according to Professor Van Saal. BPA is now commonly used in plastics. A 2010 report from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identified possible hazards to foetuses, infants and young children.
In 2006, the US Government sponsored an assessment of the scientific literature on BPA. Thirty-eight experts in fields involved with Bisphenol A were on the panel. Its findings reported;
“BPA at concentrations found in the human body is associated with organizational changes in the prostate, breast, testis, mammary glands, body size, brain structure and chemistry, and behaviour of laboratory animals.” Yet, I will still get a water bottle made of BPA. The BPA leeches into the water and thus into us. This is but one example.
Scientific studies have linked EDC exposure to rising rates of male birth defects, infertility, cancer, obesity and neurobehavioral disorders. Nearly every person has been exposed to EDCs, which are found in plastics, foods, pesticides, cosmetics, electronics and building materials.
Now, what can we do about it. As you can see, these chemicals are used widespread, we don’t know how they interact with each other (especially in the body) and are pretty hard to come away from … I have tried several times to go plastic free. It is near impossible. As with most things, limitation is the key. Our livers, through its detoxification network, is amazing in how it performs and strips these nasty guys from our blood stream. The solution is relatively simple, make sure we do not overburden the liver and avoid these types of chemicals and make sure that the liver can do its job properly! The liver, like most organs relies on nutrients to tell it what to do. These include: B vitamins, Antioxidants, Sulphurous nutrients like NAC, A.L.A., or MSM, Glutamine, Glycine, Taurine, Vitamin E and C and a few more. A good diet, which we have talked about before will provide a lot of these. Some herbs that have been shown to be effective in protecting the liver are Milk Thistle & Schizandra.
There are plenty of good websites out there about how to avoid these types of toxins and they will be worth a look. My own view, which is my own view, is that I try to limit my exposure (otherwise I drive myself mad and life becomes all about toxins) – I eat organic produce when affordable, I buy food from Ireland as I know what is used on it – I try not to drink from plastic bottles – I use filtered water at home – I use natural cosmetics for shaving, body washes etc that are limited in their toxins – I use eco based household products and so on. It can be tedious at the beginning but it is worth it, especially for those trying to.
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