Children

Children Need Special Protection

Why are children's cancer rates rising when adult cancer rates declined an average of .07% from 1990 to 1995?

"'Half a lifetime's consumption of carcinogens from food is eaten by age 5,'" says Harvey Karp MD, a pediatrician in Los Angeles. Children are also less likely to metabolize and excrete most toxic substances, and their rapidly developing organ systems, especially the central nervous system and the brain, are highly susceptible to chemical interference."
Green Guide, June 1998,
Environmental Factors in the Rise of Children's Cancer.

There probably isn't a parent who hasn't said, "If I had it to do over again..." Inviting Russell Blaylock MD to be our Optimal Health Seminar speaker in July 2002 has reminded us that we wish we had not fed our children so much prepared baby food. MSG was very common in baby foods when our children were small.

According to Dr Blaylock's book, Excitotoxins: the Taste that Kills, when adult humans are fed 100-150 mg per kilogram of body weight of MSG, their blood levels rise 20 times higher than normal, compared with a 4-fold rise seen in mice fed a comparable dose. Humans develop higher blood levels of MSG than any animal species we know. Additionally, the human child's brain is four times more sensitive to glutamate than adult brains.

This is just one of many reasons that health seekers will want to be especially protective of their children where toxins are concerned. The Sept/Oct 2000 Green Guide's cover story, The Environment and Your Child: How to Keep Toxins Away, lists the following reasons that children need special protection:

Children are more sensitive to smaller amounts of toxic substances than adults are;

Children's bodies are immature and rapidly growing. Many toxic substances interfere with their normal development;

Children are more exposed to toxins, because, pound for pound, they breathe more air, drink more water, and eat more food than adults do;

Young children put objects in their mouths and play on floors where toxic chemicals settle.

For that reason, if you have a choice, replace your carpeting with hardwood floors, and use non-toxic varnishes, stains, and sealers, according to Fifty Ways to Detoxify Your Life, Let's Live, Nov 1996. The January 2000 issue of Let's Live reported that researchers from the University of Missouri-Columbia found that early exposure to bisphenal A, a synthetic estrogen used to make plastics, causes earlier onset of puberty and increased risk of obesity in female mice. These study results raise questions about risks to human health, since the compound is found in many household plastic products, like toys, baby bottles, and food storage containers.

Do you ever wonder if the increase in childhood cancer is because it's home-brewed? The EPA has reported nearly 30 cancer-causing substances detectable in the fat tissues of literally every American, according to the Fifty Ways... article cited above. 250 billion pounds of synthetic chemicals are produced every year. According to the US National Research Council, no information on the toxic effects is available for 79% of the more than 48,500 synthetic chemicals listed by the EPA. A report by the Consumer Product Safety Commission on chemicals in homes found 150 that had been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer, and psychological abnormalities. Other behavior and health disorders caused by chemicals in our homes include coughing, wheezing, nasal congestion, burning eyes, headache, muscle aches, burning/tingling/flushing of the skin, in-coordination and hyperactivity, according to William Rea MD, past president of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine. It takes vigilance to avoid toxic ingredients in personal care and household products. For starters, I'd encourage you to attempt to rid your home of the following: propylene glycol, [it's even in flaked coconut], sodium lauryl sulfate [most soaps and toothpaste], fluoride, talc, triclosan [antibacterial soaps] and FD&C color pigments, [potentially carcinogenic synthetic colors made from coal tar, causing skin sensitivity and irritation.] Let me know if you want more information on why you should avoid them, especially if you have small children.

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