From the mail bag….
Hi Mark,
I feel like you are over stating the risk of plastic.
I use it all the time and don’t worry about it too much.
If it was really THAT dangerous the government would
protect us from it.
So what gives?
Tyler
Hello Tyler,
A scientist at NYU recently took 766 kids aged 12 to 19…
And tested their urine for phthalates – the chemical that
makes plastic soft and flexible…
Then he drew some blood. Ran a bunch of tests…
Then compiled some statistics.
And in last months issue of Pediatrics he handed out the
bad news….
…and added to the PILE of evidence that proves that plastics
do really bad things to human beings.
Like causing insulin resistance…
That short step latter to obesity, heart disease and type 2
diabetes….
3 very common diseases that kill a lot of people waaaaay
ahead of schedule.
There’s one good reason to drop your plastic habit.
And if we had the time I easily could give you a thousand
more….
Like the study from 2009 that proved that more phthalate in
the urine leads to less testosterone in the blood.
Or the paper published way back in 1980 titled:
Testicular Atrophy Produced by Phthalate Esters
This title speaks for itself, don’t you think?
But let’s get back to paper published in Pediatrics last month.
This particular study noted that children with the highest
phthalate levels were more likely to be insulin resistant.
The culprit in this case were plastics printed with recycling
label number 3…
…because this plastic contains the nastiest phthalate of
them all….
Di-2-ethylhexylphthalate.
An endocrine disrupting chemical you do NOT want to mess with.
And since you brought it up Tyler…
Here’s how well your government is protecting you from this..
The teething rings that you’ll find on the shelf at your local
department store..
Are made with plastic number 3.
Here you go sweetie. Chew on this Di-2-ethylhexylphthalate
for a while.
Don’t worry about the insulin resistance. The heart disease.
The obesity. The type 2 diabetes…
The government will protect you.
Really?
Question for you Tyler: Got any babies around your house?
If you do…
Will you be giving her a plastic teething ring to chew on
tonight?
I didn’t think so.
REFERENCES:
Urinary Phthalates and Increased Insulin Resistance in Adolescents
