Lab Results
My first feeling upon receiving the news that these chemicals are found in my blood and urine samples is mistrust. Mistrust of the broken system that is not putting the well-being of the population at the forefront. But, what else can you expect from a capitalistic society that predominantly focuses on the flow of money above community health. It is highly likely that my exposure to these chemicals are a result of a combination of factors, from where I love to where I work, from what I eat to what I wear, and most importantly, what I was exposed to in the womb.
It baffles me that many of these products have been banned in commercial use for decades, yet they still somehow found their way into my system due to the exposure I had as a fetus in my mother's womb. My mother immigrated from Mexico, which I also feel plays a large factor in exposures. With very little knowledge about her new environment, many times she was unaware of what she was exposing herself to via her dietary choices and her built environment. I'm positive that at some point in her life, she lived in a home that had lead-based paint and most likely used beauty products containing phthalates. This saddens me and angers me at the same time, because I know that the community I grew up in was targeted for it's low-income Latino consumers, putting us at higher risk of exposures.
In addition, we know of each chemical's potential health effects individually, but not in combination. By having a combination of these chemicals within my body I may be at risk of more health effects than just those known for each individual chemical. This is terrifying to say the least.
It is a scary thought that we are exposed to many chemicals that we are not aware of. I would agree with you Nalleli that its so shocking to see that so many of these products are banned from commercial use. I think you brought an important idea up about how we know the chemical's potential health effects individually, but not in combination. I think we should have studies on causation of these chemicals when in combination.
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way Nalleli, I want to think that the products in our markets are "safe" and that my exposure to harmful chemical's is limited because the government is protecting my health. You bring up a great point, we know the individual toxic effect of these chemicals but we don't know about them in combination,for me that's an even scarier thought to think about. But these are the questions we should be asking and we need immediate policy changes to address this issue.
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