Online videos offer latest science on toxic chemicals

If you want to get up to speed on the latest science about the link between toxic chemicals and human health, two short videos available online provide excellent tutorials on the issues.

The first is an 8-minute interview with John Peterson Myers, a scientist, co-author of Our Stolen Future, and founder of Environmental Health Sciences, about environmental chemicals and public health.

The second, Contaminated Without Consent, discusses the link between many chemicals prevalent in our environment and common illnesses.

Dr. Myers spoke to the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in Minnesota, after testifying before the Minnesota legislature, which is considering a ban on bisphenol A (BPA) in children’s products.

“Science has galloped forward tremendously," Myers says. "We’re living now in a period of intense scientific revolution in our understanding of the links between the environment and public health.  The policy world has lagged far behind.  Today’s health standards … are in the scientific Jurassic.  They are so far out of date that we know we can’t depend upon them to protect public health.”

Dr. Myers discussed the growing scientific understanding of the links between endocrine or hormone-disrupting chemicals and human health.

Dr. Myers gave a brief overview of some of recent research of BPA, a chemical found in some hard plastics and the lining food cans, including one study that shows exposure to BPA may lead to resistance to chemotherapy. 

“Results show three of the standard chemotherapies used to treat breast cancer are rendered useless by BPA, at least in experiments with human breast cancer cells… If you look at how those cells behave… their ability to respond to chemotherapy is reduced dramatically with BPA levels within the range that people are exposed to.”

According to Dr. Myers, bringing public policy up to speed with the deluge of science showing harm from BPA and other hormone-disrupting chemicals, will require the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to “deal honestly with science.” In his view, the FDA should send a signal to states and Congress that action is needed to reduce harm from exposure to BPA by developing standards and regulations to protect public health.

Contaminated Without Consent is a 16-minute video that features scientists, physicians and regular people who are spreading the word about the links between chemicals in our bodies to many of today’s fastest growing illnesses, including obesity, diabetes, infertility, cancer, learning disabilities and other health impacts.  The chemicals – BPA, phthalates, and flame retardants – are found in products all over the typical home, from shower curtains to mattresses, cosmetics to baby bottles. The levels of some of the chemicals found in people are near or even above the amounts linked to health effects in laboratory animals. 

The Contaminated Without Consent Web site provides a list of resources and ideas for how to share the information on the video.  Perhaps most importantly, Contaminated Without Consent empowers viewers to take action both in their own lives and by supporting advocacy efforts for government reform that will protect our families and the environment.