Our bodies, our landfills? You are what you ate, breathed, drank and more

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Our bodies, our landfills?You are what you ate, breathed, drank and moreBy Francesca LymanMSNBC contributorTues., Nov. 4, 2003http://www.msnbc. msn.com/id/ 3076636/Two recent studies cast dramatic light on the extent to which Americansare absorbing toxic chemicals in their bodies as part of everyday life.They present a striking picture of Americans riddled with low levels ofchemicals, the vestiges of eating, drinking, breathing and touching thesynthetic products of the industrial world. Given how common thesechemicals are, can personal actions and better choices reduce one’s levelof exposure in a toxic world?Charlotte Brody used to think so. For 20 years, she ate organic produceand followed all the usual recommendations to reduce chemical exposure,from using non-toxic household cleaning

detergents to avoiding pesticidesin her home and garden.Joking that she washed her bathtub in vinegar so much that her family saidit smelled like a salad, she adds, “I’m the one hand-picking individualweeds from my garden rather than using chemical sprays, and going thatextra mile to get my organic milk in a glass bottle.”With more than 70,000 chemicals in use in the United States and 2,000 newcompounds being introduced every year, according to government figures,the average American is exposed to a cocktail of chemicals from varioussources.Brody used to think her efforts helped limit her exposure, but aftervolunteering to take part in a study measuring toxic chemicals in herbody, she was shocked to find that she still had some 85 toxic chemicalsin her blood and urine.“I’m proof that a healthy lifestyle doesn’t shield you,” says Brody.A chemical cocktailBrody and eight other volunteers were

tested for the presence of 210chemicals, commonly found in consumer products and industrial pollutants,by the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York and two non profit groups,the and Commonweal.The study claims to be “the most comprehensive” survey to date of themultitude of contaminants found in humans.Tests on blood and urine detected an average of 91 industrial compounds,pollutants and other chemicals in the volunteers, with a total of 167chemicals found across the entire group. The researchers chose subjectswho did not work with chemicals in their jobs or live in industrial areas.This small Mt. Sinai study and a much more comprehensive survey done bythe also released in January, shed new understanding on the “body burden”of toxic chemicals we all carry inside. The results illustrate a sideeffect of modern life in which everything from carpets to cosmetics arebathed in toxins.Results of CDC

studyThe CDC tests measured some 116 harmful chemicals, including lead, mercuryand other heavy metals, chlorinated solvents, insecticides and otherpesticides, PCBs, and plasticizing agents called phthalates, to name but afew.The agency noted some public health successes, such as a decline in leadlevels and in cotinine, the byproduct of tobacco smoke. But theresearchers also announced some troubling findings, including:* Children have twice the levels of certain pesticides in their bloodas adults* Children have higher levels of cotinine than adults* Children have higher levels of certain chemicals used in softplastic toys* Adolescents have high levels of phthalates from personal careproducts * Mexican-Americans have three times the levels of the bannedpesticide DDT in their systems as other AmericansCause for concern?Environmentalists interpreted the test results as greater evidence of

theneed for better regulation of industrial chemicals, while some in thechemical industry saw them as a sign that better regulations and detectionmethods are working well.“Just because chemicals are found present in the body doesn’t mean there’scause for concern, but only that an internal metabolic process hasoccurred,” said Jennifer Biancaniello, a spokesperson for the AmericanChemical Council, a trade association of chemical manufacturers. “CDChasn’t come out and said there’s cause for health concern.”While the CDC researchers did not comment on the possible healthconsequences, they did note that there are not enough studies available toadequately answer health questions regarding most of the chemicals found.The report’s immediate value, CDC officials said, was to show for thefirst time the extent of Americans’ exposure to a range of ubiquitouschemicals.With data on real-world “body burdens,”

researchers can then monitor thesame populations for health effects and begin to connect the dots betweenexposures and health outcomes, said Jim Pirkle, deputy director forScience at the CDC’s environmental health laboratory.“The important thing is to look at this as a work in progress,” said Dr.David Fleming, the deputy director of the CDC. “We’re getting informationwe never had before. Better decisions can be made about how to protectpeople from environmental hazards.”Making personal choicesAccording to the Mt. Sinai study, chemicals make their way into our bodiesthrough pollution, food additives, pesticide residues, a range of consumerproducts from paints and plastics, and a wide array of building materials.Given the ubiquitous nature of these chemicals, can individual actions toreduce one’s exposure make a difference?“People should stop smoking and stop exposing children to secondhandsmoke,” said

the CDC’s Pirkle, who also cited the need to avoid lead inpaint and other products. “But there’s no way you can get rid ofeverything,” he adds.Kris Thayer, a scientist with the Environmental Working Group and one oftheir study’s authors, points to new evidence showing that making simpledietary changes can reduce one’s exposure. She cites a recent study thatfound feeding children organic food reduced their exposures to pesticidesby 6 to 9 times and another study that found cutting consumption of fishdecreased blood levels of methyl mercury, a potent neurotoxin.But many exposures to toxic chemicals in daily life are unavoidable, shesays. She hopes body testing will spur governments and corporate leadersto reduce toxic emissions and even ban some products, as Sweden recentlydid when it found traces of fire retardant turning up in women’s breastmilk.Rather than be paralyzed by our toxic exposure, we ought to

use theresults of these studies to promote better policies and product lines,said Jeannie Rizzo, director of the Breast Cancer Fund.“I would have liked CDC to call for more policy changes and make a moreurgent call for research,” said Rizzo. “We’re walking around with thesechemicals in us but with a process (for protecting us) that doesn’t haveto be this slow.”Francesca Lyman is an environmental and travel journalist and author of“Inside the Dzanga-Sangha Rain Forest” (Workman, 1998). She recentlyfinished a report on the health effects of the Sept. 11 attacks titled“Messages in the Dust,” which will be available online at www.neha.org.© 2007 MSNBC Interactive