The Jacket Journal

We’re exposed to thousnads of man-made chemicals, some seep deep into our bodies and remain there for decades. What does that mean for our health and why do we not fully understand anything about these chemicals?

Lets start with the bad news first: At this very moment each and everyone of us is saturated with many different man-made chemicals. You probably started the days exposure of chemicals with shampoo or shavingcream, those compounds could seep into our very skin cells and damage them. How about your cup of morning coffee? Or that bowl of hot oats for somthing to eat? The chemicals in the plastic of the bowl and/or coffeemaker are only released when hot water (or milk if you use it) comes in contact with any part of the plastic. At this very moment your skin is touching some sort of clothing, furniture that was probably doused with hundreds of chemicals to make it resistant to microbes, fungus, and/or water. Chances are that tonight your going to curl up under your favorite bed sheet, which was probly doused with a flame retardent chemical.

Studies on these various chemicals that are found in our bodies have been linked to almost everything, like from early purberty to cancer. Of the eighty-five– plus man-made chemicals that are nowregistered with our Federal Government, most are still completly unstudies. Not all of them are going to kill us and yet we’re still using these chemical fill products every day.

Brian Buckley, director of Enviromental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI) at Rutgers Unversity, stated in the British Medical Journal in 2004 stated,  ”[M]any synthetic chemical have intrinsic hormonal activity. It is clear that enviromental and lifestyle factors are key determinants of human disease– accounting for perhaps seventy-five percent of most cancers.” Hormonal disruptions carry a high liklihood of causing disease.

Where are the toxins are comming from, and what are they called? Paint and varnish are known as “Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)” this toxinis known to cause eye, throat, and nose irritations, and if been exposed to the VOCs for long periods of time may damage the central nervous system, kidneys and liver. Lotions have a chemical called “Phthalates” which would be labled as “parfume” or “fragrance” on the bottle. This chemical could cause reproductive disorders. Coffeemakers have a chemical in the plastic known as, “DECABDE”. DECABDE is also known as a flame retardent. Cosmetics of any type have a chemicals known as, “parabens, phthalates, and/or lead.” These chemicals have been linked to maladies ranging from hormonal disruptions and infertility to heart disease and various types of cancer.

All of those things are the kinds of stuff we use in our life, even if we dont use them that much, the same ammount of chemicals may still harm us in other ways. So think about what your going to buy on your next make-up trip or when you buy a new coffeemaker and try a fresher idea and go with out one of the other or even both or better yet, try something organic.

(This article contains information first reported by Arianne Cohen in the November 2009 issue of Popular Science. For more, see her article here.)