The Healthy Parenting Blog

What’s YOUR Body Burden?

I’m thinking its a really good thing that the media has recently been focusing on Bisphenol A, pthalates and PBDE’s.  If you’ve not had a chance to glance at the news lately, bottom line is that these chemicals are used in a variety of every day products and are proving to be a burden to our bodies, especially our little ones.  Bisphenol A is used in hard plastic, think baby bottles. Its also used in the plastic that lines food cans. PBDE’s are flame retardants and used in TV’s, sofas, mattresses.  Pthalates are used not only in cosmetics but are the main softener used in polyvinyl chloride (think soft plastic….like baby toys).

All of these chemicals are labeled “endocrine disrupters” as they can block natural hormone functions and they have been shown to cause genetic changes in the reproduction system (low sperm count, egg production disruption, changes in breast/testicular tissue).  Endocrine disrupters are the cause of the sex changes that we’ve seen in amphibians and fish.  JUST what you want to be experimenting on your bodies, heh? 

A recent collaborative of environment groups across the country tested a small group of volunteers representing a cross section of the population (ranging in age from 12 to 50).  All were found to have these three chemicals in their bodies.  This small monitering mimics the results of a recent CDC study of over 2,500, where 92% were found to have Bisphenol A in their urine.

One of the things that has always driven me bonkers about this chemical issue is that the responses we get from the powers that be are always singular.  Meaning, they respond to the outcry against each individual chemical as if it is not really the sum of our entire exposure that is important.  No one is regulating or calculating our entire body burden and no one who markets chemicals in any way (from personal care to plastics) is stepping up to take responsibility.

Anyhow, back to my point of the recent media attention.  I think its important that we don’t let this topic die.  That we continue to talk and blog about it and thereby keep it active enough for the news media to report on. 

Here’s a quiz you can take to get an idea of YOUR body burden. http://extras.insidebayarea.com/bodyburden/bodyburden.html