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Does the US protect kids from chemicals?

04/26/2011 12:37:00 admin
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by Aimee Keenan-Greene

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says the US fails to protect kids from toxic chemicals and is calling for an overhaul of the nation’s chemical management policy.

The AAP says over the past few decades tens of thousands of new chemicals have been introduced into the environment, often in extremely large quantities, and children and pregnant women are at the greatest risk.

In a new policy statement published in the May 2011 issue of Pediatrics, the Chemical-Management Policy: Prioritizing Children’s Health, recommends  the chemical-management policy be “substantially revised.” 

The AAP recommends the regulation of chemicals must be based on evidence, but decisions to ban chemicals should be based on reasonable levels of concern rather than demonstrated harm. The AAP would also like to see any testing of chemicals  include the impact on women and children, including potential effects on reproduction and development.  They believe chemicals should meet safety standards similar to those met by pharmaceuticals or pesticide residues on food. There should be post-marketing surveillance of chemicals, and the EPA must have the authority to remove a chemical if needed says the AAP.

The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) currently in place has not undergone any meaningful revision since it was first passed in 1976, according to the AAP.

In that time the TSCA has been used to regulate only five chemicals or chemical classes. 

The American Medical Association, the American Public Health Association and the American Nurses Association all support updating the TSCA. 

Just last week a  new study in the Environmental Health Perspectives said prenatal exposure to pesticides affects a child's IQ years later.

Researchers from the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at the Mailman School of Public Health say this is the first study to evaluate the neurotoxicity of prenatal chlorpyrifos exposure on cognitive development at the time of school entry.

Scientists found evidence indicating increases in the amount of chlorpyrifos in the babies' umbilical cord blood were associated with decreases in performance on a measure of cognitive functioning at age 7.
 
Another chemical concern is BPA  found in cigarettes, secondhand smoke, vinyl products used in food packaging, soda cans, and now cash register receipts, and canned vegetables - all are on the list of things manufactured using phthalate chemicals that contaminate us with bisphenol A (BPA).

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