foodconsumer.org: Infants exposed to unsafe levels of thyroid toxin

Infants exposed to unsafe levels of thyroid toxin
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admin on 04/02/2009 19:45:00
 
Released April 2, 2009
Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have found
that 15 brands of powdered infant formula are contaminated with perchlorate, a
rocket fuel component detected in drinking water in 28 states and territories.
The two most contaminated brands, made from cow’s milk, accounted for 87
percent of the U.S. powdered formula market in 2000, the scientists said.
The CDC scientists did not identify the formula brands they tested.
The CDC findings, published in the March 2009 edition of the Journal of Exposure
Science and Environmental Epidemiology, raise new concerns about perchlorate
pollution, a legacy of Cold War rocket and missile tests. Studies have
established that the chemical is a potent thyroid toxin that may interfere with
fetal and infant brain development.
The CDC study said that reconstituting cow’s milk/lactose formula with water
contaminated with perchlorate at just 4 parts per billion (ppb) would cause 54
percent of the infants consuming the mix to exceed the so-called “safe” dose
set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Many scientists contend that
the EPA “safe” level is too high to protect public health.
“Perchlorate contamination of drinking water is a very serious concern,
particularly for infants,” said Anila Jacob, M.D., M.P.H., a senior scientist
with Environmental Working Group (EWG). “As this unprecedented study
demonstrates, infants fed cow’s milk- based powdered formula could be exposed
to perchlorate from two sources –tap water and formula. That suggests that
millions of American babies are potentially at risk.”
While these findings are of concern, the CDC scientists also noted that FDA
requires infant formula to be supplemented with iodine, a nutrient that can
counteract the negative effects of perchlorate on the thyroid gland. The range
of required iodine concentrations in formula is between 5 and 75 micrograms per
100kcal of energy.
Iodine supplements at higher levels may offer some protection from the toxic
effects of perchlorate.
But the CDC scientists estimated that those brands that contain only the minimum
iodine concentration of 5 micrograms would leave infants iodine-deficient and
thus more vulnerable to the toxic effects of perchlorate. A scenario in which
formula contained 40 micrograms of iodine (per 100kcal of energy) would offer
more protection for infants, but the scientists stressed that even adequate
iodine intake among formula-fed infants is not guaranteed to prevent
“perchlorate-induced thyroid dysfunction.”
These findings underscore the need for the EPA to scrap Bush era perchlorate
policies that shielded defense contractors and other big polluters from the
costs of cleaning up perchlorate-contaminated water by setting a legally
enforceable safe drinking water level that protects pregnant women, infants and
others who are most vulnerable to the effects of this harmful chemical.
Last fall, EPA officials declared that perchlorate in drinking water posed no
threat to most Americans and did not need to be regulated as a water pollutant.
EPA’s decision was widely viewed as a major victory for the Pentagon and the
defense and aerospace industries unwilling to mount a nationwide perchlorate
cleanup estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
In response to criticisms from scientists, health professionals and consumer
advocates, in January 8, EPA issued a non-binding “health advisory” on
perchlorate and asked the National Academy of Sciences to review the issue.
EWG dismissed EPA’s action as “nothing more than an effort to dodge the
issue and buy time for the defense, aerospace and chemical industries.”
Years of federal inaction have prompted some states to set their own mandatory
limits for perchlorate in drinking water: California, at 6 ppb and Massachusetts
at 2 ppb. While recent scientific research has shown these standards to be too
weak to protect public health adequately, they are far more stringent than
EPA’s action in January.
At her confirmation hearing, EPA administrator Lisa Jackson pledged that she
would act “immediately” to reduce perchlorate contamination in drinking
water.
Since then, EWG has called on Jackson to fulfill that promise, but so far the
agency has not made public a plan of action.
The new CDC study provides some of the strongest evidence yet that a legally
enforceable safe drinking water level for perchlorate should be a priority for
the Obama administration.
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EWG is a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC that uses the
power of information to protect human health and the environment.
EPA News Release
EPA Seeks Advice on Perchlorate in Drinking Water - Agency Issues Interim Health
Advisory (01/08/2009)
(Washington, D.C. – Jan. 8, 2009) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is
seeking advice from the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) before making a final
determination on whether to issue a national regulation for perchlorate in
drinking water.
The agency also is issuing an interim health advisory of 15 parts per billion
(ppb) to assist state and local officials in addressing local contamination of
perchlorate in drinking water and making a corresponding change to the factors
it considers in cleaning up Superfund sites. States have the right to establish
and enforce drinking water standards, and EPA encourages state-specific
situations to be addressed at the local level. EPA expects to issue a final
health advisory concurrent with the final regulatory determination for
perchlorate.
"This is a sensible step for protecting public health and preserving regulatory
options as the science of perchlorate is reviewed," said Benjamin H. Grumbles,
EPA’s assistant administrator for water.
On Oct. 10, 2008, the agency issued a preliminary regulatory determination for
public comment in the Federal Register. The notice described the agency’s
decision that there is not a "meaningful opportunity for health risk reduction"
through a national drinking water regulation for perchlorate. The agency
received more than 32,000 comments on the notice.
After considering public comments, as well as recommendations from EPA advisory
groups and offices, EPA is asking the NAS to provide additional insight on
various issues. Specifically, EPA is asking the NAS to evaluate its derivation
of the Health Reference Level of 15 ppb, the use of modeling to evaluate impacts
on infants and young children, and the implication of recent biomonitoring
studies. The agency is also asking the NAS how it should consider the role of
perchlorate relative to other iodide uptake inhibiting compounds and if there
are other public health strategies to address this aspect of thyroid health.
EPA is replacing the existing preliminary remediation goal of 24.5 ppb with the
interim health advisory value of 15 ppb. This goal will be used as a
consideration when establishing cleanup levels for perchlorate at Superfund
sites.
A regulatory determination is a formal decision by EPA as to whether it should
initiate development of a national primary drinking water regulation for a
specific contaminant under the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA has drinking water
regulations for more than 90 contaminants. Every five years, EPA develops a
Contaminant Candidate List to consider for regulation and then makes regulatory
determinations on some of the contaminants based on scientific information on
health effects, occurrence in drinking water and the opportunity for risk
reduction.
A health advisory provides technical guidance to federal, state, and other
public health officials on health effects, analytical methods and treatment
technologies associated with drinking water contamination. Health advisories
also contain guidance values that are concentrations of a contaminant in
drinking water that are likely to be without adverse health effects.
More information on the perchlorate health advisory:
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/contaminants/unregulated/perchlorate.html
Contact Info: Enesta Jones, (202) 564-4355/7873/ jones.enesta@epa.gov