9
login
Water is essential for life. So it's a wonder that we often treat this important ingredient of health and sustainability so casually.
Water is essential for life. So it's a wonder that we often treat this important ingredient of health and sustainability so casually.
Many of us are only faintly aware that toxic chemicals from everyday products - shower curtains, water bottles, baby bottles, toys, shampoo, cosmetics - contaminate our bodies. Now, a small study sponsored by a coalition of environmental health groups confirms that we are walking chemical laboratories. The study, "Is It In Us", tested volunteers across the U.S. who were found to have toxic chemicals in their blood and urine.
People exposed to high levels of pesticides appear to have a greater risk of developing brain tumours, suggests a study to be published in the Occupational and Environmental Medicine Journal.
The study concludes show that both agriculture workers exposed to pesticides and those using pesticides indoors for house plants have a higher risk of developing a brain tumour.
The study authors acknowledged that their conclusions warrants further research because as it didn't isolate the types of agents, such as fertilizers, pesticides or other chemicals, had been used in enclosed home environments.
The population-based case-control study is one of the largest to specifically examine the linkage between exposure to pesticides and the development of brain tumours.
It involved 221 cases of brain tumours and 442 individually matched controls enrolled between May 1999 and April 2001. Histories of occupational and environmental exposure, medical and lifestyle information were collected and a cumulative index of occupational exposure to pesticides created.
The authors say: 'The study supports the role of pesticides in brain tumours but only for high levels of occupational exposure'.
They add that gliomas are more common in men than women and speculate that 'the differences in occupational exposure between men and women could contribute to the difference in rates between them'.
However, they are unable to determine which types of pesticide are particularly associated with development of brain tumour because information on the use of specific pesticides in a given area is not available in France.
