article: DIstrusting the Disruptors

[Guest guest]

Distrusting the Disruptors

(From Poynter Online)

From baby bottles to shampoo to the carpet in your house, you are

surrounded by products every day that contain chemicals known as

endocrine disruptors. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel investigated

whether these chemicals are as safe as their manufacturers say they

are. Link http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=689731

There is a body of evidence that these " disruptors " cause cancer in

lab animals, and the paper says a growing number of scientists are

convinced the chemicals interfere with human reproduction and

behavior.

Still, the Journal Sentinel investigation found that the government

has failed to regulate these chemicals, despite repeated promises to

do so:

The newspaper reviewed more than 250 scientific studies written over

the past 20 years; examined thousands of pages of regulatory

documents and industry correspondence; and interviewed more than 100

scientists, physicians, and industry and government officials.

Among the findings:

• U.S. regulators promised a decade ago to screen more than 15,000

chemicals for their effects on the endocrine system. They've spent

tens of millions of dollars on the testing program. As yet, not a

single screen has been done.

• Dozens of chemicals the government wants to screen first have

already been tested over and over, even while thousands of untested

chemicals are waiting to be screened.

• By the time the government gets around to doing the testing,

chances are the results will be outdated and inconclusive. The

government's proposed tests lack new, more sensitive measures that

would identify dangerous chemicals that older screens could miss.

• As the U.S. testing process remains grounded, hundreds of products

have been banned in countries around the world. Children's products -

- including some baby toys and teething rings -- outlawed as

dangerous by the European Union, Japan and Canada are available here

without warning.

• Lacking any regulation in the U.S., it's impossible for consumers

to know which products are made with the dangerous compounds. Many

companies don't list chemicals known to disrupt the endocrine system

on product labels.

The government's efforts have been " an abject failure, a disaster, "

said Philip Landrigan, a pediatrician and chairman of the department

of community and preventive medicine at Mount Sinai School of

Medicine in New York.

Landrigan was at the White House ceremony in 1996 when President

Clinton signed laws requiring the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency to screen chemicals for their effects on the endocrine

system.

Because the effects of endocrine disruptors may take years to reveal

themselves, it is almost impossible to say that a particular

chemical caused a certain disease. There also is a lot of

uncertainty about how these chemicals work inside your body. So,

scientists extrapolate. They can't test their theories on humans.

Instead, they have to rely on animal studies and try to figure out

the implications for people.

I interviewed Mark Katches, assistant managing editor for projects

and investigations, to learn more about the Journal Sentinel

investigation:

Q. The debate about disruptors has been around for a long time. Why

did you get interested in it now?

Mark Katches

A. More and more scientific studies are finding dangerous effects of

endocrine disruptors in laboratory animals. At the same time, cancer

rates and other serious problems are spiking in people. We didn't

set out to show a cause and effect, but we thought it would be a

really good time to assess the government's role when it comes to

regulating endocrine disruptors. A decade ago, Congress passed laws

calling for tests, and the EPA followed up with a promise to test

15,000 chemicals for their effects on the endocrine system. To date

they've tested zero. It seemed like a good time to ask the question,

why?

Our science reporter ne Rust has been writing about endocrine

disruptors for some time, and she wanted to look deeper. We teamed

her up with two investigative reporters, Meg Kissinger and Cary

Spivak. They deserve all the credit for this work.

Q. What should consumers know about these chemicals? What can the

average guy/gal do with this information?

A. Chemicals that disrupt the endocrine system are virtually

everywhere. They're in plastic baby bottles, children's toys,

plastic containers, the lining of tin cans, plastic shower curtains,

even things like CDs and DVDs. Some scientists will say you should

avoid all of these things. The chemical industry counters that their

own studies show their products to be safe. So it gets back to the

failure again of the U.S. government to take any steps forward to

regulate the chemicals.

You won't find any warning labels on products sold in the United

States that are banned in other countries because of the risks.

Consumers can't even easily make a choice about what to safely buy

because companies -- absent any regulation -- don't have to tell you

whether they include the chemicals in their products.

Many of the scientists who have studied the effects of these

compounds have stopped using any products that contain the chemicals

in their own homes.

In our story Sunday, a family in Wisconsin volunteered to have their

home " audited " by a leading scientist in the field. He spent a few

hours going through their house finding hundreds of products and

items that could pose a risk. In presenting that information, we

wanted to make sure that we also gave readers solutions of what they

can do to protect themselves. For instance, don't microwave in

plastic containers. Look at the bottom of plastic containers and

bottles you buy at the store. If they have the recycling numbers 1,

2 or 5, they are not made with the type of plastic that contains

these chemicals. Some scientists will say that if you're looking to

limit your exposure, focus on the things you put in your mouth or

that your children put in their mouths that come in contact with

these chemicals.

Q. Is there really a threat to my health here or is it just

something else to lose sleep over?

A. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) just

recently reported that a suspected endocrine disruptor, the chemical

bisphenol A, was detected in the urine of 93 percent of the people

it tested. A growing body of research is finding harm to animals --

linking to these chemicals everything from breast cancer and

diabetes to hypertension and lowered sperm counts. No studies have

been conducted directly on people that show effects. But there are a

lot of scientists who are concerned.

This is a nerve-wracking time -- especially if you're a parent. Most

of the toys our kids play with and put in their mouths are made in

China. Some of them have lead and some don't, so how do you know

what's safe? The same could be said for these chemicals. What's

safe? What isn't? What products have it? What don't? There are so

many questions any of us would have, and there are few ways to know

the answers until the government follows through with its testing.

There are a couple of Web sites out there that list products that

contain suspected endocrine disruptors and will also list products

that are banned in other countries. One of those sites is put

together by the Environmental Working Group. Another is called The

Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Q. If the government promised to look into this, what happened?

A. There are a lot of theories on this. Some blame the chemical

industry for slowing down the process. It's an influential lobbying

group with a $75 million budget. Some say there has been a lack of

political will to follow through with the testing. Budgets have been

cut for the testing program about 30 percent. EPA officials counter

that this is complicated science and that the work can't be rushed.

Whatever the answer, our story found that the government doesn't

have much to show for 10 years worth of time and money.