Children today are sicker than they were a generation ago. From childhood cancers to autism, birth defects and asthma, a wide range of childhood diseases and disorders are on the rise. Our assessment of the latest science leaves little room for doubt: pesticides are one key driver of this sobering trend.
As the recent President’s Cancer Panel reports, we have been “grossly underestimating” the contribution of environmental contamination to disease, and the policies meant to protect us have fallen far short. Nearly 20 years ago, scientists at the National Research Council called for swift action to protect young and growing bodies from pesticides. Yet today, U.S. children continue to be exposed to pesticides that are known to be harmful in places they live, learn and play.
Report Overview
1. Brainpower at Risk
Studies find pesticides can compromise intelligence
• ADHD rates continue to rise
• Autism rates jump 250% in one decade
• Derailed brain development means falling IQs
2. Cancer, Birth Defects & Early Puberty
Latest science links many health harms to pesticides
• Some childhood cancers linked to pesticides
• Birth defects rise with seasonal or occupational exposures
• Changes in puberty timing linked to low-level exposures
3. Emerging Science
Obesity, diabetes & asthma
• Childhood obesity, diabetes & disrupted metabolism
• Asthma epidemicaffects more than 7 million children
4. Critical Junctures
Prenatal & early childhood exposures most harmful
• Fetal exposure can have life long effects
• Pesticide exposures common at home,daycare & school
• Pesticide residues, from breastmilk to the school lunch tray
• Children’s developing minds & bodies particularly vulnerable
5. Case Studies
Communities win protections for children
• Pesticideuse now 1.1 billion poundsyearly
• Saferpest control in daycare & at school
• Pesticide-freeschool lunches
• Parks & playgrounds without pesticides
6. Investing in Healthy Futures
A solid start for children must be a national priority
• Pesticide industry well servedbycurrentpolicies
• Prioritizing children’s health requires real change
• Effective policies urgently needed: Our recommendations
Appendix A: More Science: Key study descriptions
Appendix B: Top Pesticides Used in Agriculture & at Home
Appendix C: Online Resources & Tools
Read and download the full report, A Generation in Jeopardy, How pesticides are undermining our children’s health & intelligence, October 2012 Pesticide Action Network North America.
This is an incomplete report reflecting a rejection of other science. We cannot lay all of this at the feet of toxins, though it is a major player. There now thousands of studies documenting that as the American Diet goes around the world, so do our physical issues. Some of the studies show the animals we eat are also filled with the toxins (critters from the oceans being the worst) and as the top of the food chain, we eat the built-up toxin levels in all the animals we eat. There are now many gold standard studies that prove that by filling up with vegetables and fruit along with plenty of unrefined grains and starchy vegetables, we can see significant reversals of many of the very diseases the President’s Cancer Panel mentions. The food (and drug) industry has put large sums of money into the pockets of every politician to buy their silence on our diets and they think nothing of deceit and manipulation in order to keep their pockets lined with gold. I will continue to tell my friends that if we would just return to the diet our forefathers ate with animal products as a condiment, we would find ourselves healthier. Just for the record, several studies have shown that while organic produce is best, plants have components that help minimize the toxins effects on our bodies. No, I cannot any longer name the studies, but I have read a good number for myself – not just the abstracts.
Thanks for sharing your opinion Pat