Detox your Body: Bisphenol, Phthalates and Reproductive Health

This afternoon I watched the CBC Documentary "The Disappearing Male".

I was deeply disturbed and troubled as it reinforced the amount of chemicals we are bombarded with on a daily basis. Among these thousands of chemicals (85% of which are untested on humans) are bisphenol-A and Phthalates. Although many products containing bisphenol-A have been pulled from from the shelves (baby bottles, water bottles) there are many more products that we use every days that contains this endocrine disrupting chemical including the lining in canned food and canned soft drinks. Health Canada Reports that Phthalates “are hazardous to reproduction and development". Phthalates are in soft plastics and cosmetics in everything from bugs sprays, children's glow sticks, dentures, clothing, automobiles (part of the odour of new cars) and polyvinyl chloride products, the plastic often used in building materials such as pipes.

Health Canada is proposing regulations to prevent the use of six phthalates (DEHP, DINP, DBP, BBP, DNOP and DIDP) in soft vinyl children's toys and child-care articles. Which will bring Canada's regulation closer to that of the European Union. This past week however, the Globe and Mail reported that:

Health Canada's proposed regulation doesn't go far enough because exposures to chemicals that disrupt hormones are most dangerous during fetal development. Pregnant women were not covered by Health Canada's proposed measurers. The federal agency was not immediately able to respond to questions on why it didn't include restrictions on products used by adults.

What can you do?

The Environmental Defense has a campaign to ban bisphenol A in drink cans please go to their site to send an email to your MP and to learn more!

From the Documentary:

Factsheet: Male Infertility

• There are more than 20 heavily industrialized nations where the birth of baby boys has declined every year for the past 30 years - amounting to 3 million fewer baby boys.
• The number of boys born with penis abnormalities and genital defects has increased by 200% in the past two decades.
• Boys have a higher incidence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities, Tourett's syndrome, cerebral palsy and dyslexia.
• Boys are four times as likely to be autistic.
• The average sperm count of a North American college student today is less than half of what it was 50 years ago.
• The quality of sperm is declining. Eighty-five per cent of the sperm produced by a healthy male is DNA-damaged.
• Damaged sperm have been linked to a 300% increase in testicular cancer - a form of cancer that affects young men in their 20s and 30s.
• The chemical industry has developed more than 90,000 man-made chemicals in the last sixty years. Eighty-five percent of them have never undergone testing for their impact on the human body.

Detox your Body: Babies are born pre-polluted. Let’s change that.

The Earth is more toxic now than any other time in human history. We are a part of the Earth and anything that happens to the air, water, plants and animals also happens to us. I believe that achieving optimal health begins with clean air, clean water and clean food. What happens to one body of water happens to all, we are inseparable from our environment.

I became intimately aware of this connection as I embarked on my own environmental testing in the Fall of 2009. I expected to find some heavy metals, as I have been exposed to mercury through amalgam dental fillings, and through the consumption of mercury containing fish. However, I was not prepared for what everything I was about to discover:

My testing for Heavy Metals revealed (Doctors Data urine toxic metals) high levels of six metals: Thallium, Arsenic, Nickel, Cadmium,  Lead and Mercury. These are all highly toxic metals that are detrimental to health. There are no safe levels of mercury in the body - it is always neurotoxic.

My testing for Cholrinated Pesticides in my blood (Metametrix Accuchem pannel) found levels of:

• DDE (breakdown product of the pesticide DDT, banned from use in Canada in early 1970's)
• Trans-Nonachlor (used widely as an agricultural pesticide from 1953 to 1974, and as a termiticide until 1988)

My testing for Volatile solvents in my blood (Metametrix Accuchem pannel) revealed a number of highly neurotoxic compounds:

• Ethylbenzene (found in gasoline paints and inks)
• m,p-Xylene found in gasoline)
• Hexane, 2-Methylpentane and 3-Methylpentane (solvent used in glues, adhesives and paints, also found in gasoline exhaust)

For me uncovering these toxins has started a year long environmental detox, I'll write more about that in an upcoming post. I was expecting to find some toxins and am going to do the work to decrease my exposure, and decrease my body burden. But what about in my nieces and nephews, what about your children? The younger you are shouldn't your body burden of these toxic chemical be zero to none? NO! Alarming work done by the EWG in testing 10 Americans has shown otherwise. These chemical are bio-accumulative, this means that they accumulate up the food chain. As Adult humans we are near the top of the food chain, and babies are on the very top, and get the most concentrated toxin exposure.

With increased awareness, comes increased power for change. We can make a positive impact on the environment and our health. Please follow this link and watch the video below "10 Americans" from From EWG:

Babies are born pre-polluted. Let’s change that. The human race is now polluted with hundreds of industrial chemicals – with little or no understanding of the consequences. Babies are born pre-polluted with as many as 300 industrial chemicals in their bodies when they enter the world.

"Ten Americans": We all know pollution and toxins are bad for you. But the Environmental Working Group has conducted perhaps the deepest analysis of this issue on the most vulnerable demographic on the planet.

Updated: Kid-Safe Chemicals Act: 10 Americans @ Yahoo! Video

Detox your Diet: Pesticides in Produce (Part 2)

Most contaminated Vegetables:
1. Spinach
2. Bell peppers
3. Celery
4. Potatoes
5. Hot peppers
6. Green beans
7. Lettuce
8. Cucumbers
9. Carrots

Thus, it would be most beneficial to purchase these vegetables organic.

Least contaminated vegetables:
1. Cauliflower
2. Brussels Sprout
3. Asparagus
4. Radishes
5. Broccoli
6. Onions
7. Okra
8. Cabbage
9. Eggplant

If you cannot afford going organic, then use the Fruit & Veggie wash that was posted previously on this blog.

Detox your Diet: Pesticides in Produce (Part 1)

Most Contaminated Fruits:
1. Peaches
2. Apples
3. Strawberries
4. Nectarines
5. Pears
6. Cherries
7. Raspberries
8. Grapes
9. Blueberries

Thus, it would be most beneficial to purchase these fruits organic.

Least Contaminated Fruits:
1. Avocado
2. Pineapple
3. Plantains
4. Mangoes
5. Watermelons
6. Plums
7. Kiwi
8. Papaya
9. Grapefruit

If you cannot afford going organic, then use the Fruit & Veggie wash that was posted previously on this blog.

Detox your Diet: Cilantro 'Chelation' Pesto

Fresh cilantro, or Chinese parsley, draws mercury, lead and aluminum from the body. This delicious pesto can be eaten daily after the removal of dental fillings, during a metal detoxification or at any time!

Ingredients:
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/3 cup Brazil nuts (for selenium)
- 1/3 cup sunflower seeds (for cysteine)
- 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds (for zinc and magnesium)
- 2 cups packed fresh cilantro
- 2/3 cup extra virgin oil olive
- 4 tbsp lemon juice (for vitamin C)
- 2 tsp dulse powder (for minerals)
- Bragg' liquid amino acids (to taste)

Process the cilantro and oil in a blender until the cilantro is chopped. Add the garlic, nuts and seeds, dulse and lemon juice and mix until the mixture is finely blended into a paste. Add a squirt of Bragg' to taste and blend again. Store in dark glass jars if possible. It freezes well, so purchase cilantro in season and fill enough jars to last through the year. Use daily for at least 3 weeks as an annual detox for mercury, lead and aluminum. It is great on baked potatoes, pasta, toast, with rice or a vegetable dip. Make it part of your fall cleansing routine.