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Lead researchers from a University of Rochester study presented a disturbing study that found that chemicals in many common household plastics may be altering male hormones in the brains of baby boys. This represents more evidence directly linking chemicals in plastics to harmful effects in humans.

Published recently in the International Journal of Andrology, the report is a clear indication of the dangers of a plastic chemical additive, called phthalates. These additives are commonly added to vinyl flooring, PVC shower curtains and many other every-day products.

The Study

It is a well-known fact that boys have different hormonal compositions than girls. These “male hormones” drive specific types of actions in young boys associated with “rough-and-tumble,” play-fighting behavior.

When these hormonal chemicals are altered, researchers have noted that boys begin to play more like little girls. This may be related to the fact that phthalates cause male hormones to behave more like the female hormone, estrogen, and therefore may reduce the male drive to “play rough.”

Dr. Shanna Swan is a professor of obstetrics, gynecology and environmental medicine, as well as director of the Center for Reproductive Epidemiology at the University of Rochester. She was also the lead scientist looking into phthalate composition in urine samples of pregnant mothers. This study took the incidence of phthalates in mothers, and compared them to behavioral play in their children.

Continue reading: “Study: Chemicals Found in Common Plastics may be “Feminizing” to Boys”

Recent news from The Washington Post sheds light on a story that reveals yet another shocking example of how we, as a collective, continually sacrifice human health for profit gain. The Post states that 17,000 potentially toxic chemicals have been kept under wraps due to an obscure law that protects chemical companies.

The Loophole in the Toxic Substances Control Act

Currently there are over 80,000 different chemicals being used commercially in the United States alone. The Toxic Substances Control Act, passed in 1974, requires that U.S. companies state all chemicals that are used in the manufacturing process of their product. And yet, even with this supposed law for clarity, many consumers are unaware of the amount of chemicals in common household products.

Why is this? A “watered down” portion of the bill allows companies to hide up to twenty percent of all chemicals from the public eye. And this is not only from consumers. The law allows the chemicals to be hidden from state regulation committees, medical professionals, and even emergency response personnel.

It may sound like a conspiracy theory, but both the government and chemical companies are well aware of the fact that if the “secret 20 percent” of hidden chemicals were revealed to the public, consumers would be too afraid to purchase these toxic products. In essence, potentially toxic and lethal chemicals are hidden for business profits.

In fact, the law states that companies can keep any chemical secret if they feel that it will protect their profitability, or as the Washington Post reports, chemicals that “could harm their bottom line.” And it stands to reason that no company would intentionally hide a chemical from the public if it was completely harmless. It doesn’t take a massive leap of logic to assume that the chemicals the companies are hiding could be the most deadly and toxic of all.

Continue reading: “Report: U.S. Companies have kept over 17,000 toxic chemicals secret to protect their profits”

Producers are tricky, and their business sometimes involves tricking consumers. They trick us into buying very handy products for cleaning, deodorizing, softening, smoothing, and beautifying that often contain dangerous chemicals.

If the word “formaldehyde” doesn’t remind you of an embalmed body on a cold steel table, it should!

Formaldehyde has been used for decades to embalm dead bodies for open casket burials. It is a preservation fluid that replaces the blood, it is a recognized cancer causing agent (carcinogen) by the National Cancer Institute, and oh, by the way, it is in most of the products you buy and use around your home, even the materials your home was built with!

Is My Home Embalmed?

Continue reading: “The Hidden Formaldehyde In Everyday Products”

The other day, a colleague of mine sent me over the results from a recent study that shows a link between higher body mass index (BMI) in toddlers, and the mothers’ prenatal exposure to environmental pollutants, such as pesticides found on the foods we eat.

The study, conducted by the journal, Environmental Health Perspectives, concluded that there is a direct link between prenatal chemical exposure and birth weight/length.

Sadly, this is yet another example of the growing amount of scientific data supporting the knowledge that toxic chemicals in our air, food, water, vaccinations and beverages have an extremely negative effect, not only on our bodies, but also the bodies of our unborn children.

Forms of harmful chemicals such as pesticides, chemical sprays on the food we eat, DDEs and PCBs are directly related to the malfunctioning of our endocrine systems. If young children are exposed to these chemicals from an early age, it should come as no surprise that their endocrine systems will be weakened.

Continue reading: “Study Links Prenatal Exposure to Chemicals to a Higher BMI in Toddlers”