Hidden Dangers, #3: Endocrine Disruptors
Did you know that we have sent enough plastic trash into the ocean to create a floating plastic trash pile twice as big as Texas? It’s between San Francisco and Hawaii. Cleanup is starting, and it will take decades, but that’s not the only problem with all the plastics we use. Plastics and chemicals used with plastic products are part of a large group of environmental chemical dangers called endocrine disruptors . Why should we be concerned? How can we avoid them as much a possible? What are some simple steps you can take to reduce your risk? While you can learn more about these from resources such as the NRDC, the NIH and the WHO, today let’s simply focus on the one that seems most ubiquitous in our environment, plastic. A brief intro from the NIH will help: “Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that may interfere with the body’s endocrine system and produce adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune effects in both ...