Fwd: toxins - DNA mutations in 65% of the blood samples taken

[Guest guest]

Recently, a big hullabaloo arose because of a finding about mutations

in

autism. The articles I read about that finding were politically

correct

in that pollutants that can damage DNA were not mentioned. The

article

herein describes toxic water and mentions that " The study found

varying

degrees of DNA mutation in 65% of the blood samples taken. It also

detected genetic damage in some cases. "

- - - -

Water turns poison in Punjab villages

18 Dec 2007, 0234 hrs IST,Avijit Ghosh & Priya Yadav,TNN

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Water_turns_poison_in_Punjab_villag

es/articleshow/2629963.cms

MAHAL (AMRITSAR DISTRICT): Bordering a grey putrid open drain filled

with untreated industrial waste, Mahal looks like any other Punjab

village --- yellow mustard fields, eagle-shaped water storage tanks

and

homes displaying photographs of young men who have migrated abroad.

But appearances can be deceptive. The village, about 4 km from

Amritsar

town, isn't really in the pink of health. In the government

elementary

school, an unusually high number of children complain of rashes and

boils, housewives talk about a sharp rise in the number of

miscarriages,

and old men insist their hands and fingers are turning numb.

A major two-year study by PGIMER, Chandigarh, to probe the effects of

industrial waste and pesticides on human health in 25 Punjab villages

located near five open drains has come up with some startling

findings.

The study found varying degrees of DNA mutation in 65% of the blood

samples taken. It also detected genetic damage in some cases.

http://pgimer.nic.in/

That's not all. The drinking water in these villages has turned toxic

due to a high concentration of heavy metals such as mercury, copper,

cadmium, chromium and lead. In Mahal, these chemicals have seeped

into

the village's groundwater from the polluted drain water causing these

unlikely ailments. No surprise, there's also evidence of these metals

entering the food chain. According to the study, pesticides have also

been detected in vegetables, even in human milk and blood samples.

For the residents of Mahal, the numbness, the miscarriages and the

rashes are the price of living in a toxic hotspot.

There could be worse in store. The Principal investigator, Dr J S

Thakur, outlines the possible scenario caused by genotoxicity, a

condition in which lethal chemicals gather in the body leading to DNA

damage. In future, more children will be born with congenital

malformations --- cleft lip, half or no skull, growth retardation.

Pregnant women will have more sudden, " spontaneous " abortions.

Instances

of bone deformities, along with gastrointestinal, skin, dental and

eye

problems will rise. And so will cases of cancer. " There is clear

evidence that irrigation of fields with highly contaminated drain

water

and exposure to pesticides is leading to neuro, reproductive and

genotoxicity. The genetic damage may not be visible right now. But it

will manifest itself in future, " says Dr Thakur.

It wasn't always like this. Oldtimers in Mahal recall that before

Partition, the drain was a cheery monsoon rivulet full of birds and

fishes, where village boys often went for a swim. That's long

changed. A

recent study by the zoology department of Amritsar's Guru Nanak Dev

University showed that the drain is now completely devoid of aquatic

life.

The Tung Dhab drain, a subsidiary of Huddiara nala, runs parallel to

Mahal's agricultural fields. Dr Thakur points out that the drinking

water in these areas has turned highly toxic. People in parts of

rural

West Bengal have been drinking arsenic-laced ground water for decades

and suffering the consequences. Arsenic can cause cancer. But the

ground

water in these parts of rural Punjab has many more deadly chemicals.

Residents point out that water drawn from handpumps turns yellow in

no time.

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