De nieuwe lichting milieufreaks

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

En zouden die kwallen bij Japan en China ook merendeels vrouwtjes zijn?
Japanse vissers geven er al de brui aan, zoveel zijn het er.

http://www.projectkaisei.org/ probeert er iets aan te doen.
PCBs, DDT and other toxic chemicals cannot dissolve in water, but the
plastic absorbs them like a sponge. Fish that feed on plankton ingest
the tiny plastic particles. Scientists from the Algalita Marine Research
Foundation say that fish tissues contain some of the same chemicals as
the plastic. The scientists speculate that toxic chemicals are leaching
into fish tissue from the plastic they eat.
The researchers say that when a predator — a larger fish or a person —
eats the fish that eats the plastic, that predator may be transferring
toxins to its own tissues, and in greater concentrations since toxins
from multiple food sources can accumulate in the body.

Groet / Cees

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8361863.stm
 Plastic chemicals 'feminise boys'

Chemicals in plastics alter the brains of baby boys making them "more
feminine", say US researchers.

Males exposed to high doses in the womb went on to be less likely to
play with boys' toys like cars or to join in rough and tumble games,
they found.

The University of Rochester team's latest work adds to concerns about
the safety of phthalates, found in vinyl flooring and PVC shower
curtains.

The findings are reported in the International Journal of Andrology.

Plastic furniture

Phthalates have the ability to disrupt hormones, and have been banned in
toys in the EU for some years.

However, they are still widely used in many different household items,
including plastic furniture and packaging.

There are many different types and some mimic the female hormone
oestrogen.
“ This feminising capacity of phthalates makes them true 'gender
benders' ”
Elizabeth Salter-Green, director of CHEM Trust

The same researchers have already shown that this can mean boys are born
with genital abnormalities.

Now they say certain phthalates also impact on the developing brain, by
knocking out the action of the male hormone testosterone.

Dr Shanna Swan and her team tested urine samples from mothers over
midway through pregnancy for traces of phthalates.

The women, who gave birth to 74 boys and 71 girls, were followed up when
their children were aged four to seven and asked about the toys the
youngsters played with and the games they enjoyed.

Girls' play

They found that two phthalates DEHP and DBP can affect play behaviour.

Boys exposed to high levels of these in the womb were less likely than
other boys to play with cars, trains and guns or engage in "rougher"
games like playfighting.
PHTHALATES
# There are many different types and the most commonly used are deemed
entirely safe by regulators
# DEHP - used to make PVC soft and pliable and used in products like
flooring
# DBP - used as a plasticiser in glues, dyes and textiles

Elizabeth Salter-Green, director of the chemicals campaign group CHEM
Trust, said the results were worrying.

"We now know that phthalates, to which we are all constantly exposed,
are extremely worrying from a health perspective, leading to disruption
of male reproduction health and, it appears, male behaviour too.

"This feminising capacity of phthalates makes them true 'gender
benders'."

She acknowledged that the boys who have been studied were still young,
but she said reduced masculine play at this age might lead to other
feminised developments in later life.

But Tim Edgar, of the European Council for Plasticisers and
Intermediates, said: "We need to get some scientific experts to look at
this study in more detail before we can make a proper judgement."

He said there were many different phthalates in use and the study
concerned two of the less commonly used types that were on the EU
candidate list as potentially hazardous and needing authorisation for
use.

DBP has been banned from use in cosmetics, such as nail varnish, since
2005 in the EU.

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