Under Toxic Siege

On August 6, 2005, the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals, (1) which was based on data gathered through a process of biological monitoring (biomonitoring). This technique involves measuring the toxic load of chemicals in human bodies through testing human urine, serum, saliva, blood, fat tissue, teeth and other tissues.

Who’s at risk? Everyone, but especially people who suffer from chronic or acute “functional” symptoms or syndromes, such as fibromyalgia (FMS), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), myofascial pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBC), heavy metal toxicity and so on.

The findings are ominous in their revelation of the astounding levels of human tissue toxicity in our time, and portend potential for significantly escalating human disease related to toxicity unless we take immediate action to reverse our disastrous environmental behaviors.

Some of these toxins are fairly well understood with regard to their potential for harm, and our allowance of these into the environment is clearly problematic, but the fact that we don’t understand what some of these toxins can do to us underscores the level of ruthless abandon that we have taken with the introduction of potentially harmful substances into our fragile world.

The CDC has measured significant levels of 148 known hazardous and toxic chemicals in a broad cross-section of the American public. Here are the key findings from the report:

Mercury

About 6% of all pregnant women have unsafe levels of methylmercury. This means that about 100,000 children are born annually with mercury toxicity. Coal-fired power plants, medical and municipal incinerators produce emissions contaminated with mercury.

This waste ends up in waterways and the seas and is converted to methylmercury, contaminating the water we drink and the fish and seafood that we eat. Mercury can also leak from dental amalgams into the body, and is found in thimerosal, a common preservative used in the manufacture of vaccines.

Methylmercury is known to accumulate in the kidney, brain, liver and other body tissues including hair. Acutely mercury toxicity can cause abdominal pain, gastroenteritis, nausea, excessive salivation, poor coordination, loss of appetite and weight loss, anuria (urine production stops), and nephritis (kidney inflammation).

The symptoms of chronic toxicity include tremor, depression, memory disturbance, irritability, abnormal tendon reflexes, and fatigue. Other symptoms are muscle weakness/aching, inflammation of the gums, immune system dysfunction and kidney damage.

Phthalates

A group of chemicals found in cosmetics, pills, and soft plastics that have negative effects on hormonal and reproductive health of fetuses, and that are probably responsible for the significant increase in hormone sensitive tumors in this country (due to their xenoestrogenic actions and including breast, ovary, uterus, testicular and prostate) were found in unsafe amounts especially in women.

Cadmium

Another heavy metal (like mercury) was found in unsafe levels in over 5% of those tested. This is a carcinogenic material, causing many human cancers, including of the lung, bladder, head and neck, stomach and esophagus.

DEET

The common mosquito repellant was found in 10% of tissue samples, and especially in children aged 6 to 11. The long-term consequences of this are unknown.

Pesticides

DDE (a relative of DDT), pyrethroids, and chlorpyrifos are just a few examples of the very toxic chemicals that were found in extremely high levels in 50-76% of the population. DDE was 2.5 times higher in Hispanic Americans. Chlorpyrifos damages the nervous system and was highly concentrated in children ages 6 to 11. Over 100 pounds of pesticides per person per year are used on American agricultural lands. Recent studies have revealed that certain combinations of pesticides can cause devastating diseases such as Parkinson’s disease for which there is no cure.

Lead

Some good news here with there being a reduction in levels of lead in adults and children since removal of this heavy metal from paint and gasoline. This is a very good example of how we can improve our health risks.

CDC Report Doesn’t Go Far Enough…

The 2005 CDC report does not include information on many synthetic chemicals for which there is significant scientific evidence of toxicity and harm to humans, which includes such ubiquitous chemicals as flame retardants used in the manufacture of children’s clothing, carpets, office furniture, and other equipment; perfluorinated compounds like Teflon®; perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel which has been found as a major contaminant of drinking water in several states including California; and bisphenol A, a chemical used in manufacture of plastics (especially those used in plastic water bottles).

These substances are also known to be carcinogenic. The CDC is gathering data on these now and it is expected that they will address presence of these chemicals in the 2007 report. At this time, the federal government has very little control over the use of these and other toxic chemicals in consumer and agricultural products.

Applying “Principled” Pressure

Choosing what you will allow yourself and your family to be exposed to is a complex social and economic issue. But through economic pressure, the mere threat of eroding sales is often enough for companies to develop a social conscience. Over the past few decades, automobiles have become dramatically more fuel efficient, while at the same time, emitting far less emissions and increasing safety dramatically.

Even fast food giant McDonald’s had to bow to public pressure, eliminating styrofoam packaging and introducing healthier menu items like salads and grilled options as opposed to exclusively fried entrees.

Market driven economies must keep a close ear to consumer demand, which today is becoming more and more aligned to philosophical ideals. And as more people become “principled consumers,” more companies (often reluctantly) do as well.

For more information on how you can help go to Physicians for Social Responsibility (2)

The Situation Worsens…

Release of over 80,000 chemicals (with an increase of 2,000 new agents per year) into the environment through agricultural and nonagricultural application and other means poses serious risks to both human health and ecosystems (e.g., plant and wildlife). (3)

Action Steps:

Buy Organic Foods

Organic foods generally contain no (or far less) contamination with man made chemicals that are known to be either carcinogenic, immunotoxic, toxic to the endocrine glandular system, toxic to the liver or kidneys, or neurologically damaging.

Organic food is better -- and better for you. In addition, organic growing practices are better for the earth and the people who grow your food.

If you suspect you are going to get less chemicals and more good food on your plate with organically grown fruits and vegetables, you're absolutely right. But it goes deeper than that. Down deep in the soil, where plant roots absorb nutrients, organic soil is alive with beneficial microorganisms.

This teeming underground life is what counts nutritionally; it's what nourishes the plant and, therefore, the fruit or vegetable that ends up on your plate. These nutrients are the beneficial components of foods that keep you healthy and vibrant.

Chemically farmed ground is just dead dirt with chemicals flowing through it to the plant roots; a mechanism for growing plants using "intravenous" feeding techniques. Consequently, nourishment of the plant is superficial. In fact, the chemicals used barely keep the plants alive. Essentially, chemical fertilizers and pesticides kill the soil in the long-term.

Dead, spent topsoil erodes and runs off with the slightest downpour, often ending up in a silt dam hundreds of miles downstream from its growing field. This dead dirt does no one any good, least of all the earth and future generations. Moreover, if a farmer's field is natural, it provides a safe living environment for the farmer's family and neighbors. (4)

Use “Clean” Cosmetics

There is little oversight by the FDA on ingredients used to make cosmetics, and many companies use substances in their products that are known to be carcinogenic, neurotoxic, immunotoxic, or potentially damaging to the reproductive system or to developing fetuses.

Buying from companies that make it their business to manufacture cosmetic and personal care products that are made from organic or environmentally and human safe materials is one way to avoid toxic chemicals that can alter the health of the body.
Two examples of commonly used toxic chemicals in cosmetics and personal care products are parabens and dibutyl phthalate, or DBP. (5)

Recent studies in fact have found parabens present in breast tumor. This should raise a huge red flag since, by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s own admission, parabens are the most common preservative used in the United States, frequently found in shampoos, foundations, facial masks, hair grooming aids, nail creams, and permanent wave products. (6)

Avoid/Minimize Use of Soft Plastics

Soft plastics like plastic wrap, plastic bags, styrofoam and soft plastic bottles can release cancer causing agents (carcinogens). This is particularly enhanced with application of heat or microwave energy and by repeated washing and reuse. (7)

Pthalate, a chemical used often to soften plastics, and common in plastic toys, medical tubing and a variety of fragrances and cosmetics, is a major contributing factor to this concern. (8)

Glass and paper (cardboard) are excellent plastic substitutes for cold and warm beverages. Avoid plastics altogether when using the microwave.

Bottom line for plastic drinking bottles, for which almost all are designated as with the “PETE” code: they were designed with enough resin to be considered “safe” for one-time use only. If you use plastic bottled water, do not reuse the bottle. With each reuse, chances of exposure to carcinogens increases.

Assess Your Drinking Water

The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has produced a comprehensive report on water quality in U.S. cities, as well as a wealth of information on water filtration systems and similar devices and services.

Many of these filtration systems are viable alternatives to (plastic) bottled water. (9)

Avoid Harmful Herbicides and Pesticides

"There are over 20,000 pesticide products containing 620 active ingredients on the market. Each year, 1 billion pounds of active ingredients in conventional pesticides are applied in the United States. There are over 80,000 existing chemicals on the TSCA inventory and each year an additional 2,000 chemicals are added. Release of these chemicals into the environment through agricultural and nonagricultural application and other means poses serious risks to both human health and ecosystems (e.g., plant and wildlife).

Humans are exposed to thousands of these agents either singly or in various combinations every day through air, drinking water, food, and dust."(10)

One of the most striking illness caused by exposure to certain pesticides is the development of Parkinson's Disease. (11)

Check Clothing Labels for perfluorinated compounds
Chemicals belonging to the "non-stick" family of perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) are increasingly being used in synthetic clothing, including children's clothing. PFCs, such as Teflon, are used in many school trousers and skirts to give them durability and are frequently labelled "non-iron".

School uniforms are often compulsory for schoolchildren but, in some colors, there may be no Teflon-free option.

Scientists have found perfluorinated compounds, classified as cancer-causing chemicals by the US Environmental Protection Agency, in a wide range of wildlife species - including polar bears, dolphins, whales and in humans world-wide.

Always check the label of your clothing before buying, and when practical, stick with natural fabrics like cotton and linen, or even hemp. (12)

References:
1) Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals
http://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/

2) Physicians for Social Responsibility
http://www.psr.org/

3) United States Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.epa.gov/NHEERL/research/human_health.html

4) Organic Consumers Association
http://www.organicconsumers.org/

5) Poisoned Cosmetics, Not Too Pretty
http://www.nottoopretty.org/

6) Chemicals Common in Cosmetics Found in Breast Tumors: Finding suggests parabens may be linked to breast cancer
http://www.hon.ch/News/HSN/516893.html

7) FRONTLINE: Fooling With Nature
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/nature/interviews/vomsaal.html

8) EnviroHealthAction: a place where the health community can learn and take action.
http://www.envirohealthaction.org/toxics/phthalates/

9) National Resources Defense Council: What’s on Tap? Grading Drinking Water in U.S. Cities
http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/uscities/contents.asp

10) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Health and Environmental Effects Research

http://www.epa.gov/NHEERL/research/human_health.html
11) Science Daily (American Academy of Neurology): In-Home Pesticide Exposure Increases Parkinson’s Risk
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/05/000508082430.htm

12) WWF: Check the labels in school clothes for toxic chemicals
http://www.wwf.org.uk/core/about/cymru_0000001330.asp

About Dr. Mikles
Devin Mikles, MD, MD (H), FACP, is the Founder of Choices Integrative Healthcare and creator of the ChoiceFramework, an exciting new treatment modality that promotes “shared responsibility” as an integral part of the mind/body/spirit continuum.

For more information, go to http://www.choiceshealthcare.com and http://www.choiceshealthcare.net