Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals

By Bonnie Jenkins, Advanced Natural Medicine

Recently, our local news ran a story that sent lettuce sales plummeting. It seems that lettuce grown in California had been contaminated with perchlorate, an chemical used in rocket fuel that inhibits the uptake of iodine by the thyroid gland. Now, perchlorate isn’t news to anyone living in areas that depend on water from the Colorado River. Thanks to defense contractors, Lockheed-Martin and Kerr McGee (who have admitted dumping the chemical into our waterways more than 40 years ago – long before it was illegal to do so), we Southwesterners are exposed to perchlorate every time we turn on the tap.

Hormones Go Haywire

Perchlorate is just one of a newly recognized group of environmental toxins called endocrine disrupters. Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that interfere with the body’s natural hormones and can damage our neurological, reproductive and immune systems. Endocrine disruptors work in two ways. They can bind to a receptor within a cell, blocking the body’s own natural hormones. When this happens, the signal that would normally be sent by a natural hormone fails to occur and, since the body never receives the message, it can’t respond properly. Or they can act like hormone imposters. When this happens, the endocrine disruptor locks into a receptor and mimics the natural hormone, giving off a stronger signal or triggering a signal at the wrong time.

Unfortunately, these chemicals are so widespread they’re practically impossible to avoid. Studies have shown that at least 50 man-made industrial chemicals can interfere with human hormones. And they’re not hard to find. Many hormone-disrupting chemicals are commonly included in detergents, plastics and pesticides. Other common sources include air pollution (heavy metals and volatile organic compounds), furniture (formaldehyde) and paper products (dioxin).

The chemical industry insists that the levels we are exposed to are too low to impact human health. But, while that theory may be reassuring, it has three strikes against it. First, a study by the National Center for Environmental Health found that endocrine disruptors accumulate in the body’s fatty tissue, where they become concentrated and can linger for decades. A growing number of studies are also discovering that even very low levels of hormone-disrupting chemicals can cause adverse health effects. Case in point: researchers at Dartmouth Medical School recently confirmed a link between chronic exposure to low levels of arsenic in drinking water and an increased risk of cancer in humans. Animal studies by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have also found low-dose effects on the prostate by bisphenol-A and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Finally, the chemical industry only tests one chemical at a time, virtually ignoring the interactive effects of exposure to multiple chemicals. But a study that appeared several years ago showed that the combination of two or three common pesticides, at low or residual levels normally found in the environment, are up to 1,600 times more powerful than the individual pesticides alone.

Countering Our Daily Dose

In a study led by Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, researchers at two major laboratories found an average of 91 industrial compounds, pollutants and other chemicals in the blood and urine of nine volunteers, with a total of 167 chemicals found in the group. Of the 167 chemicals found, 76 cause cancer in humans or animals, 94 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 79 cause birth defects or abnormal development. Scientists refer to this contamination as a person’s body burden.

In 1935, DuPont launched its famous “Better Living Through Chemistry” ad campaign. It was the beginning of an aggressive drive on the part of industry to make chemicals a ubiquitous part of our lives. As a result, we all carry a body burden of environmental toxins, particularly endocrine disrupting chemicals.

Since environmental toxins seem like such an insurmountable problem, I checked with Bruce Fife, N.D., author of The Detox Book (HealthWise 1997). He said that, given the chance, the body will eliminate these harmful toxins. But when we take in environmental contaminants faster than our bodies can purge them, our natural detoxification systems become overwhelmed. So the key, it seems, is to reduce the amount of toxins you’re exposed to. And the easiest area to begin is with your diet. Since many of the foods offered in conventional supermarkets are a rich source of hormone-disrupting chemicals – pesticide-sprayed produce, and milk and meat laced with artificial growth hormones – build your diet around organic, hormone-free foods. You can also lessen your exposure to water-borne contaminants by drinking water that has been purified either through steam-distillation or by reverse-osmosis.

Herbs can also help your body eliminate toxins. Pectin binds heavy metals in the colon and excretes them from the body. In one study, workers exposed to lead on the job experienced a significant reduction in lead levels after taking 3,000 to 4,000 mg. of pectin every day for a month. And, according to Fife, mullein (Verbascum thapsus) is an excellent herb for the release and expulsion of toxins lodged in the respiratory tract.

Your body’s major weapon against environmental toxins is the liver, often called the body’s filter. The liver breaks down air and water pollutants, as well as hazardous chemicals which find their way into the bloodstream, and turns them into less harmful compounds that are eventually flushed out of the body before they can settle in your fatty tissue. But, as noted above, a constant barrage of toxins can overwhelm and even damage the liver. One herb that can boost the liver’s performance and prevent this damage is milk thistle (Silybum marianum). Milk thistle gets its well-earned reputation as a liver tonic thanks to a bioflavonoid complex known as silymarin. A potent antioxidant and intermediate in cell metabolism, silymarin specifically targets the liver, preventing the depletion of oxidation-reducing glutathione. Several studies conducted by the Center for Cancer Causation and Prevention at the AMC Cancer Research Center in Denver found that milk thistle provides effective protection against environmental toxins. Tests of milk thistle’s impact on hormone-related prostate, breast and cervical cancer cells showed a significant inhibition of these cells. Better yet, studies demonstrate that milk thistle helps the liver replace dead or damaged cells with healthy new cells, helping the organ repair itself.

Even though we can’t eliminate our exposure to endocrine disruptors, we don’t have to be victims of the chemical industry. By making a conscious effort to minimize the impact of these toxins on our health, we can reassert power over our own health.

One Last Thing ...

In the May 5th issue of Advanced Natural Medicine Bulletin you learned about several ways to protect your prostate. Now there’s even more good news. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have found that 3,3’-diindolylmethane (DIN), a chemical produced when you eat greens like broccoli and kale, can stifle the growth of human prostate cancer cells. Vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale and cauliflower are rich sources of indole-3-carbinol (I-3-C), which the body converts into DIM during digestion. While the researchers are looking at the role I-3-C might play in developing future cancer drugs, you don’t need to wait for FDA approval to benefit from this natural form of prostate protection. Beat science to the punch by including these healing veggie in your diet several times a week.

***

References:

Arnold SF, et al. “Synergistic activation of estrogen receptor with combinations of environmental chemicals.” Science. 1996; 282:1489-1492.

Bhatia N, et al. “Inhibition of human carcinoma cell growth and DNA synthesis by silibinin, an active constituent of milk thistle: comparison with silymarin.” Cancer Letters. 1999; 147:77-84.

Greer MA, et al. “Health effects assessment for environmental perchlorate contamination: the dose response for inhibition of thyroidal radioiodine uptake in humans.” Environmental Health Perspectives. 2002; 110:927-937.

Karagas MR, et al. “Markers of low level arsenic exposure for evaluating human cancer risks in a US population.” International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health. 2001;14:171-175.

Sheehan DM. “Activity of Environmentally Relevant Low Doses of Endocrine Disruptors and the Bisphenol A Controversy: Initial Results Confirmed.” FDA 7 Oct 00.

Trakhtenberg IM, et al. “The prophylactic use of pectin in chronic lead exposure in industry.” Likars'ka sprava. 1995; 132-136.