PESTICIDES

Pesticides by nature are killers. They are compounds designed to destroy living , organic substances. Alarmingly, 90 percent of the pesticides in use today are used in the production of food. However, pesticides are also found in a surprising variety of products, including shampoos, disposable diapers, carpets, paint, mattresses, contact lenses, and so on. Most pesticides work by destroying the central nervous system of insects and rodents. Pesticides enter the human body in a number of ways:

Consumption of food treated with pesticides Polluted drinking water and water used to grow crops Contaminated fish and sea food consumption

Women are particularly susceptible to the toxins, many of which act as Xenoestrogens - chemical tox- ins that act like estrogen and disrupt hormonal activity in the body. The EPA estimates that there are 60 million pounds of endocrine (hormone) disrupters released into the environment each year. The endocrine system regulates hormone synthesis, release and activity throughout the body. Hor- mones control metabolism and reproductive function. The thyroid gland, the pancreas, the ovaries, the testes, the pituitary gland, and the adrenal glands are all endocrine glands. Today we are seeing nat- ural hormones often in extremely low concentrations while hormone disrupters are found in relatively high concentrations in the body.

Endocrine disrupters can interfere with hormones in three ways:

Hormone Mimicry - the chemical mimics the hormone. This tricks the body into thinking it has sufficient levels of certain hormones and therefore stops hormone production of certain hor- mones.

Hormone Masking - the chemical blocks the hormone’s activity. The body is continuously stim- ulated to produce more and more of its hormones.

Hormone Binding - the chemical binds with the hormone itself rendering it unable to carry out its hormonal function

Hence, these hormone disrupters can halt or stimulate hormone production, disrupt metabo- lism, interfere with immune function and can also alter reproduction and development.

Organochloride pesticides, known to cause hormone disruption in birds, fish, and mammals have been found in high levels in breast tissue of women diagnosed with breast cancer.

Cases of Lupus have risen fourteen-fold in women over the last 50 years and has been linked to in- creased solvent and xenoestrogen exposure.

Apples Apricots Bell Peppers Cantaloupe (from Mexico) Celery Cherries (from the US Cucumbers Grapes (from Chile) Green Beans Peaches Spinach Strawberries

ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDES

They are fat-soluble compounds that are well absorbed orally and topically. In humans, fat-soluble substances mix easily with the fat-soluble-containing tissue such as nerve tissue including the brain, cell membranes, and the fat cells themselves. These are the tissues most likely affected by these chemicals. They enter the system of humans easily, but are difficult to excrete. In fatty tissue, or- ganochlorines accumulate to unsafe levels potentially causing neurotoxicity (toxic to the ner- vous system) and cancer.

ORGANOPHOSPHATE PESTICIDES (OPs)

Chlorpyrifos: DURSPAN Methyl Parathion

OPs have mostly replaced organochlorines in US food production. They account for about half of all the insecticides in the US. They destroy insects by interfering with the transmission of nerve impulses between nerve cells and between nerve and muscle cells - muscle weakness and paralysis are the result. Acute OP toxicity in humans has the same result. Chronic exposure can lead to neurologi- cal, immune, and endocrine damage in humans. Subjects were found to have a high rate of allergies, antibiotic sensitivity, and autoimmune disorders.

Durspan is the most widely used insecticide in the US. It is used in commercial and residential appli- cation to treat insect problems in schools, daycare centers, hotels, restaurant, hospitals and food- manufacturing facilities. 82% of adults and 92 % of children have measurable concentrations in their urine.

Research has shown that home flea treatments (aerosol/foggers) elevate air pesticide levels in ex- cess of legal limits for hours and even days after application. Hand spreading of Durspan granules exposes an individual to 10,000% of the safe dose. Application with a hand sprayer indoors exposes one to 811% and outdoor hand spraying to 435% of the maxi- mum safety margin.

Methyl Parathion are considered toxic to children in small amounts and is pervasive in foods com- monly eaten by children. The foods that put children at the highest risk of exposure are peaches and grapes. Grapes appear to be especially contaminated. It is considered a Category 1 Acute Toxin (the most dangerous). It is a known neurotoxic agent and has been associated with retinal (eye) and sciat- ic nerve degeneration. Methyl parathion is currently illegal in 27 countries.