Slashdot Mirror
Putting the Next Generation of Brains In Danger
An anonymous reader sends this news from CNN:
"The number of chemicals known to be toxic to children's developing brains has doubled over the last seven years, researchers said. Dr. Philip Landrigan at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and Dr. Philippe Grandjean from Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, authors of the review published Friday in The Lancet Neurology journal say the news is so troubling they are calling for a worldwide overhaul of the regulatory process in order to protect children's brains. 'We know from clinical information on poisoned adult patients that these chemicals can enter the brain through the blood brain barrier and cause neurological symptoms,' said Grandjean. 'When this happens in children or during pregnancy, those chemicals are extremely toxic, because we now know that the developing brain is a uniquely vulnerable organ. Also, the effects are permanent.'"
The impact is not limited to loss of IQ points.
"Beyond IQ, we're talking about behavior problems -- shortening of attention span, increased risk of ADHD," Landrigan said.
Things that make it harder for people to do well in school and later on the job. And in extreme cases, contributes to being a poor and on the dole.
Remember that folks when you or you hear someone bitch about the EPA and environmental regulations. We pay for it one way or another.
Of course, industry will have their own scientists - like the cigarette industry - that will show this is "junk science" or some other critique to prevent or at the very least, slow down any sort of regulation.
Profit and money is all that seems to matter to some people in our society.
On your mark. Get set. CLUTCH YOUR PEARLS!
Glancing through the article, there don't seem to be any new dangers to children. There seem to be more things that are _known_ to be dangerous, but these things obviously were dangerous even when we didn't know they were. So no need to panic.
Studies correlate the rise of violence and aggressive behaviors with lead poisoning due to pollution.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
This has got to be the ultimate 'think of the children' post. If, indeed they could think.
Perhaps this isn't so far fetched after all. It would explain the recent observation about the depressing number of Americans who think that Astrology is a science. And the depressing number of Americans who aren't aware that the earth revolves around the sun.
It's somebody elses fault.
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
No Anchovies?
You must have the wrong man. I spell my name "Danger".
Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
That's how many times our brain has already been upgraded by evolution. I suspect this isn't the first time a generation or two has been sacrificed in the name of adaptation, so it's all good down the road.
Interesting, an this is the only place that does that?
Thread gone,point made
Ah, yes. The younger generation is so terribly lazy.
At age 25, that generation has, on the whole, just left university and has had only a few short years to pull together a career. At the same time, they're pulling together the means to start a family, while trying to start paying off student debts. In a modern world, those endeavors require cell phones, computers, and a functional car. They were luxuries back in your good ol' days, but now they're just a necessity of modern life, as essential today as a good suit was in the 1920s. Of course, someone with an established career wouldn't see that. We had to take the train or bus to work when we were their age, and we did just fine... never mind that those trains and buses have shut down now.
History has always shown a gradual move toward normalization of luxuries.Once upon a time, a filet of minced beef served with soft bread and cheese would be a feast for a king. Now McDonalds will serve it to you for a dollar. The enabling factor is the ability to pool labor and resources, on an ever-increasing scale. For the king's feast, a small team would raise the cattle, harvest the wheat, and prepare the whole meal by hand, of course. Today, the economy of scale allows workers to focus on a single minute aspect of the job, minimizing the overhead cost of production. The young generation today is doing just as much work as you did in your youth, but they're doing it faster and easier that you could imagine.
The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.
-not Socrates
You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
Like most histrionic headlines, that first line is meant to be read as "The number of chemicals known to be toxic to children's developing brains has doubled over the last seven years," (the bold are the letters you're supposed to mentally 'land on'.
I read it, and of course have the same reaction, initially.
But then I look again, and read it differently: "The number of chemicals known to be toxic to children 's developing brains has doubled over the last seven years,"
Big difference in meaning conveyed, and ultimately conclusion.
So I read TFA (I know, crazy, and almost disqualifies me from commenting on slashdot, but I'm a rebel).
Here's the money shot: "...In 2006, we did a systematic review and identified five industrial chemicals as developmental neurotoxicants: lead, methylmercury, polychlorinated biphenyls, arsenic, and toluene. Since 2006, epidemiological studies have documented six additional developmental neurotoxicantsâ"manganese, fluoride, chlorpyrifos, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, and the polybrominated diphenyl ethers. We postulate that even more neurotoxicants remain undiscovered...."
"DOUBLED IN ONLY 7 YEARS?" yeah, from 5 to 10, and most of those have entirely natural sources. Arsenic is bad for baby's brains? Really? And that "...there are more undiscovered"? More than 10 neurotoxologically dangerous substances in the world? PhD material, that. (In fact, here, I'll give them a few to start with: methane, ethane, propane and down the list. Most aqueous solvents. Iron. Chlorine....holy crap, the list took 7 years to double, and I just likely tripled it in 5 minutes!!)
Look, I *agree* with the idea that there should be a register of neurotoxicity levels for commonly-used chemicals, and that it would be useful that newly-synthesized compounds are tested to determine toxicity levels for neurological development like they are for basic toxicity. Saying this, I have no idea of how complex, slow, or expensive this testing is.
Finally, let's all remember that a lot of chemicals are intrinsic to our way of life; it's unreasonable to compare our chemical environment against a cleanroom utopia where there are somehow no external chemicals filtering into a developing child's body....that's just nonsensical. "Fear of 'dangerous' chemicals" is one of the more commonly-encountered FUD items in the news today.
Life is a tradeoff. I prefer drinking from glass bottles, but there's no way I'd give up the convenience, safety, and economy of plastic bottled for water. I understand that burning meat leaves a host of carcinogens in the carbon, but I'm simply not going to give up delightful steak. I suspect that eventually we'll find that living in cages of shifting electrical current our whole lives likewise has an impact on us, but I'm not giving up living in a home wired for electricity.
This all seems utterly obvious to me. I wish it was to others, so we could have a sensible discussion instead of freaking out all the time.
-Styopa
Previous generations have all been exposed to exactly the same crap, we just didn't know they could cause brain damage at the time. And we turned out... hmm... Ok, so maybe that does explain some stuff...
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
The structure of the corporation was developed to protect the shareholders from liability for corporate misdeeds. This, unfortunately, has led to shareholders turning a blind eye to, or even tacitly encouraging, nefarious management, just so long as it creates inflated quarterly profits. It's time to rethink this, "I know nothing," defense. When shareholders find themselves directly responsible for the activities of management, a "new world order" will finally find corporations acting responsibly.
As the following article about biologist Michael Skinner's findings describes, the effects of toxins may not be limited to a single generation of offspring. This may be the smoking gun that explains the step rise in such diverse diseases as cancer and ADHD.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/...
Putting the Next Generation of Brains In Danger
Err, no, not really. Not unless someone is planning on using this list to make sure kids are specifically exposed to more of these now-identified-as-toxic chemicals.
What this work will, in fact, do, is keep the next generation of brains safer.
A minor quibble, I know, but what I can say? I'm a pedant.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
By the way, since there's a 1 to 1 correlation between hard work and wealth,
There is no correlation of that kind.
There is a correlation between someone who works hard and makes $190,000 in a year and somebody who sloughs off and makes $43K, or even someone who just collects $24,000 in welfare.
People like Gates and Perkins are outliers and not on the correlation chart.
The basic problem is that industry gets to invent new chemicals and to use them with very little testing. Since it can easily take 10 or 20 years to discover toxicities, this means that we are all participating in a giant uncontrolled experiment to discover which chemicals are bad for us. There are about 100,000 industrial chemicals in use today and very few of these have been rigorously tested. The rest are being tested on us. Of course, it is very difficult to sort out which of the thousands of chemicals we are exposed to are causing which of our many toxic effects so lots of opportunity for psychopathic corporations to perseverate and keep their profits flowing.
A good case in point is California TB117 which required flame retardants in furniture starting in 1975. Over the years TDCPP (chlorinated Tris... listed as a carcinogen by California in 2011), PentaBDE, (pentabrominated diphenyl ether, globally banned due to toxicity and environmental persistence) and Firemaster 550, (associated with obesity and anxiety in one animal study) were used in massive quantities causing untold damage (and no real improvement in flame resistance). After years of studies and lots of resistance from chemical companies (fake studies, astroturf groups, etc.) California finally allowed furniture to be made without fire retardants (although they were not banned). BTW, since it is inconvenient for manufacturers to make California specific furniture, everyone in the country was exposed to these chemicals.
There have been federal and state attempts to pass legislation requiring more testing of chemicals but, of course, these are going nowhere since it would interfere with chemical industry profits and they can bribe legislators to get their way.
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
Present "education" and TV are very helpful in create dumb people who do not use their brains. Therefore, we can also dump all the poisons in everybody's backyard and don't care if women and subsequently babies get the chemicals in their brains. Also it helps us to de-evolve into apes.
Purity of Essence must be preserved!
Ripper: Mandrake?
Mandrake: Yes, Jack?
Ripper: Have you ever seen a Commie drink a glass of water?
Mandrake: Well, I can't say I have, Jack.
Ripper: Vodka, that's what they drink, isn't it? Never water?
Mandrake: Well, I-I believe that's what they drink, Jack, yes.
Ripper: On no account will a Commie ever drink water, and not without good reason.
Mandrake: Oh, eh, yes. I, uhm, can't quite see what you're getting at, Jack.
Ripper: Water, that's what I'm getting at, water. Mandrake, water is the source of all life. Seven-tenths of this Earth's surface is water. Why, do you realize that 70 percent of you is water?
Mandrake: Good Lord!
Ripper: And as human beings, you and I need fresh, pure water to replenish our precious bodily fluids.
Mandrake: Yes. (he begins to chuckle nervously)
Ripper: Are you beginning to understand?
Mandrake: Yes. (more laughter)
Ripper: Mandrake. Mandrake, have you never wondered why I drink only distilled water, or rainwater, and only pure-grain alcohol?
Mandrake: Well, it did occur to me, Jack, yes.
Ripper: Have you ever heard of a thing called fluoridation. Fluoridation of water?
Mandrake: Uh? Yes, I-I have heard of that, Jack, yes. Yes.
Ripper: Well, do you know what it is?
Mandrake: No, no I don't know what it is, no.
Ripper: Do you realize that fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous Communist plot we have ever had to face?
Won't someone think of the products!?
We know why some things are where they are. Most of it is either forms of fillers, addictive elements, taste stimulants or simply ways to keep government subsidies flowing and justified. (Seriously, why so damned much corn?!)
They keep pushing the envelope of what's "acceptable" and push for ever decreasing standards. You know who else had been pushing for decreased standards? THE BANKING and SECURITIES MARKETERS. We know the result of that. But that's just money. Other big players in food and pharma want to do the same things but that's our LIVES we're talking about. A crash means mass misery and death and possibly even genocide.
In the US we simply have failed to prevent major hazards to health and life. Not only do we have a huge problem with chemicals but we also roll the dice constantly with regard to bacteria and virus problems. And it still is directly related to population size and business practices. Long distance tourism is a nightmare for disease control. Any bug that develops can be transported anywhere in the world in a single day and we don't even consider the jet fuel exhausted in our air. Cruise ships frequently have bugs that cause mass illness on board and nothing pollutes like a large ship burning heavy oil. If we simply get firm control of birth rates and immigration we can eliminate most of the problems and we must design a system that punishes companies for releasing hazardous products such that investors can not sell and step away after demanding that companies release bad products or pollution. Buy it local and sell it local can also cut down on problems. The idea that a city must contain its own waste and produce its own food within its city limits should be put into play. Whether it is coal ash or nuclear waste it should be secured and dealt with at the point of use or within the same community.
This is not really news. I was aware of this back when I was a child in the 1970's. People are screaming in the media about global warming but they're missing the real issue which is toxic pollution. Climate change is merely a distraction.
The solution is to take control over the inputs as much as possible. I pasture raise my children far out in the country raising much of our own food so I know it is good. I make sure we have good water and I limit our exposure to unnecessary chemical toxins. Very little is actually necessary.
In addition to the chemical toxins there are also social toxins. Turn off the TV and get a grip on the other media you expose yourself and your children to on a daily basis. Teach them to question these things and understand the devious psychology behind advertising. Don't be a sheep.
So two doctors did a report in 2006 which found five out of the thousands of chemicals that exist in the world can cause brain issues in children. Five is a pretty low number. There are probably more.
Take a look at their "new" list.
Manganese is a known toxin with exposure limits.
Floride a known toxin. I would like to see the report they are citing. Maybe at high levels beyound what is allowed in most places there is an issue. Floride has been a target of many scare studies.
Tetrachloroethylene not a nice chemical to begin with.
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers have been studied for years and some types banned before 2006.
chlorpyrifos should have been included in the 2006 study.
DDT , a chemical with more problems than infant development.
So even the chemicals they found to have issues has many more issues before 2006.
This study uses one of the most obvious tactic to sensationalize their report; percentage growth in small numbers. They could have said "the number of chemicals increased by 5" nut that would be seen by most people as insignificant considering the number of chemicals in the world. The word "doubling" has much more impact. They hope people won't see that even doubled, the number is insif=gnificant.
We know there are many more chemicals in the world that cause brain development issues that are not on that list. An obvious example is alcohol which causes Fetal alcohol syndrome. How many did they miss? How many more years can they get funding to find issues that have already been found?
... also contribute to the burden by making it harder to excrete heavy metals and things like bromine and fluoride. So, with people in the USA spending more time indoors and eating bread with brominated dough conditioners instead of iodine ones (a change from the 1970s).
From: http://www.environmentalhealth...
"Vitamin D performs a number of biological functions that are important for neurodevelopment, including promoting cell division and protecting against neurotoxins."
And: http://articles.mercola.com/si... ... You probably are not aware of this, but nearly every time you eat bread in a restaurant or consume a hamburger or hotdog bun you are consuming bromide, as it is commonly used in flours. The use of potassium bromate as an additive to commercial breads and baked goods has been a huge contributor to bromide overload in Western cultures. ... The Japanese consume 89 times more iodine than Americans due to their daily consumption of sea vegetables, and they have reduced rates of many chronic diseases, including the lowest rates of cancer in the world. The RDA for iodine in the U.S. is a meager 150 mcg/day, which pales in comparison with the average daily intake of 13800 mcg/day for the Japanese. ..."
"When you ingest or absorb bromine, it displaces iodine, and this iodine deficiency leads to an increased risk for cancer of the breast, thyroid gland, ovary and prostate -- cancers that we see at alarmingly high rates today. This phenomenon is significant enough to have been given its own name -- the Bromide Dominance Theory. Aside from its effects on your endocrine glands, bromine is toxic in and of itself. Bromide builds up in your central nervous system and results in many problems. It is a central nervous system depressant and can trigger a number of psychological symptoms such as acute paranoia and other psychotic symptoms.
See also: http://drsircus.com/medicine/i...
So combine higher levels of toxins with a reduction in what the body needs to defend against them and you have a recipe for a health disaster.
A 21st century issue: the irony of technologies of abundance in the hands of those still thinking in terms of scarcity.
OK I can understand Knowledge doubling but
what is most important to me is the change in
substances that cause damage and yes new
substances adding insult to injury.
As I scanned the article I did not see new substances as problems
but the same list of bad actors (mercury, dioxin... ).
One article is clearly self serving as they advise the establishment
of a clearing house and income source for themselves.
Missing in this is the growing body of knowledge that
grapefruit has massive social impact and now that it
is available year round it can cause much more social
impact. Note well that grapefruit interacts with neuro transmitter
chemicals both therapeutic and natural also antibiotics.
One might say skip the grapefruit except that the white rind
often gets processed into vit-C tablets. Makes for a chewable
"natural" vit-C supplement but the side effect are ill managed
and ill understood. Heck if I was a radical I would point to
this as the single most evil fraud hoisted on Americans and
perhaps one of the major root causes of teen suicide and
mass murder.
As much as this article is not news this topic needs attention ... if it is not a slow news day.
so hey
Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't. Mark Twain.
Is there any evidence of widespread brain damage? No. In fact, kids have been getting smarter and healthier for decades. This is another one of those "think of the children" scares by which people are trying to make a name for themselves and others latch onto them because it aligns with their political ideologies.
Landrigan and Grandjean looked at an analysis of 27 studies of children, mostly in China, who were exposed to fluoride in drinking water at high concentrations.
It's all true then! Fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous communist plot we have ever had to face! And do you realize that in addition to fluoridating water, why, there are studies underway to fluoridate salt, flour, fruit juices, soup, sugar, milk... ice cream. Ice cream, children's ice cream.
If you want to read a good rebuttal on the fluoride study, see here.
They mention that the high-fluoride areas in these countries reached levels as high as 11.5 mg/L, more than 10 times higher than the optimal level used in the U.S. The authors also added that "reports of lead concentrations in the study villages in China were not available", which could be a major confounding factor.
If you are really worried about your kid's IQâ¦
â¦only mate with someone with a high IQ. That will go a lot farther to raising their IQ than taking away your kid's BPA bottle.
Heritability of IQ is about 50%-80% depending on which study you read.
This iteration is as highly inconvenient as the first, as once again the perpetrators ignore the fundamental principles of responsibility and other people's rights.
Oh, and
Since 2006, epidemiological studies have documented six additional developmental neurotoxicantsâ"manganese, fluoride, chlorpyrifos, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, and the polybrominated diphenyl ethers.
RTFA.
They feared that it could be used to suppress protest or support unpopular rule.
Did you click the link?
They feared that it could be used to suppress protest or support unpopular rule.
The first step would be to change the public school system and stop teaching to the lowest denominator. Avoid any history books newer than 1960. IE: Revisionist History, Put emphasis on the 3 Rs. Give the kids a challenge that will make them want to learn instead of endure until they can get out.
Okay, you could just be wrong.
Asshole.
They feared that it could be used to suppress protest or support unpopular rule.
very interesting; arguing as devils advocate I wonder if it's because we're discovering more substances that effect neuro development or the other way round. Oh well, I guess we'll find out soon enough lets hope it isn't when half of us can't spell their own names .......