CHEMICAL POLLUTION

Unknowingly, we are jeopardizing the health of our children, grandchildren, future generations. Almost all of the dioxin in the environment is from man-made origins. Dioxin is emitted into the atmosphere during the manufacture of PVC-containing products such as: food wrap, pipe, garden hoses, credit cards, toys, appliances, plastic bottles, etc. As these products and other products (i.e hospital waste) are not recyclable, much are incinerated, releasing yet more dioxin. Also as reported in a July 1, 2003 press release by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies dioxin and dioxin-like compounds, or DLCs, are found throughout the environment, in soil, water, and air. People are exposed to these contaminants primarily through the food supply, although at low levels, particularly by consuming the fats in meat, poultry, fatty fish, whole milk, and full-fat dairy.
DLCs have been cited as causing skin damage, cancer, non-insulin-dependent diabetes in adults, neurological and immune system impairments in infants, and endocrine system disruption. Many of these effects were identified in individuals who had high levels of exposure. However, information is limited on how low-level DLC exposure through foods, defined as occurring in everyday life, influences the development of cancer and other diseases.
Dioxin levels in the environment have declined dramatically since the 1970s, by as much as 76 percent, according to some measurements. Dioxin levels in foods have decreased greatly as well.

Notwithstanding the decrease in the environment of dioxin, care must be taken to reduce the body's intake of this dangerous chemical. As the above National Academies press release states: Minimizing girls' and young women's intake of dioxins during the years before pregnancy is the only practical way to reduce dioxin exposure in fetuses and breast-feeding infants. Given the health and social benefits of breast-feeding, the committee recommended strategies to reduce accumulated body levels of dioxin, rather than to discourage breast-feeding.
To reduce dioxin exposures in all children -- especially girls -- government-sponsored food programs, such as the National School Lunch Program, should increase the availability of foods low in animal fat. For example, low-fat milk should be made more widely available in the school lunch program. Also, the U.S. Department of Agriculture should analyze the impact of setting limits on the amount of saturated fat that can be present in meals served in the school breakfast and lunch programs. Except for children under age 2, participants in the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children should be encouraged to choose low-fat milk and foods.
Promoting compliance with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans on consumption of saturated fats and fats in general would minimize people's dioxin exposure without compromising their intake of nutrients. Because of the health benefits associated with omega-3 fatty acids in fish and the difficulty of trimming fat from fish, the committee did not recommend that people reduce their consumption of fatty fish below the currently recommended two servings per week.