Biomonitoring of Industrial Pollutants 

A study out of the Earth Institute and Department of Biological Sciences at Columbia University, discussed biomonitoring of industrial pollutants and the health and policy implications of the chemical body burden. There is a chemical burden that every individual carries living in an industrial world regardless of where they work or live.

“An immense chemical industry that grew rapidly after World War II provides materials now used in virtually every sector of commerce and in every home in the United States. More than 70,000 individual industrial chemicals are registered with the Environmental Protection Agency for commercial use; of these, some 15,000 are nonpolymeric chemicals produced in quantities greater than 10,000 pounds per year, and 3,000 to 4,000 have production volumes over one million pounds annually.”

Many chemicals haven’t been studied for toxicity, and there are more and more chemicals being introduced into the market each year. You can’t escape the reach of the industrial revolution. According to the study, residues of industrial chemicals can now be found in air, soil, water, and food webs in the remote reaches of the planet. All humans are now exposed to synthetic pollutants in drinking water, air, and the food supply, as well as in consumer products and home pesticides.

There are detrimental effects of these pesticides. Researchers use biomarkers to measure the toxicity to individuals. An individual’s body burden of a pollutant is estimated individuals. An individual’s body burden of a pollutant is estimated by measuring the concentration of that substance in one or more tissues. Public health scientists and practitioners can use bio-monitoring information for tracking, control, and treatment.

For more information, read the full study.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1497458/

Razi Berry, Founder and Publisher of Naturopathic Doctor News & Review (ndnr.com) and NaturalPath (thenatpath.com), has spent the last decade as a natural medicine advocate and marketing whiz. She has galvanized and supported the naturopathic community, bringing a higher quality of healthcare to millions of North Americans through her publications. A self-proclaimed health-food junkie and mother of two; she loves all things nature, is obsessed with organic gardening, growing fruit trees (not easy in Phoenix), laughing until she snorts, and homeschooling. She is a little bit crunchy and yes, that is her real name.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1497458/pdf/12477912.pdf