The majority of Americans are exposed to toxic pesticides that have been linked in animal studies to:
Inhibition of fetal growth, Damage to the reproductive systemdelayed puberty, and decreased fertilityaccording to a new peer-reviewed paper published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
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study, carried out by the Environmental Working Group. The Environmental Working Group is a chemical watchdog and activist group. accused Amid recent concerns and exaggerations, the study investigated chlormequat chloride concentrations in oat-based foods and suggested that current exposure levels “justify broader toxicity rest, food monitoring, and epidemiological studies.” are doing.
Chlormequat was first registered in the United States in 1962 as a plant growth regulator that inhibits cell elongation and produces strong stems that resist bending. This is especially beneficial for grains.
Chemical substances designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Apparently It is recognized as “toxic to wildlife” but has been found to cause damage to mammals.
A new study highlights how Danish pig farmers noticed “decreased fertility in pigs fed chlormequat-treated grain” in the 1980s. Their observations were replicated in a controlled laboratory setting and showed that sows fed chlormequat-treated grain had “disrupted estrous cycles and difficulty mating compared to animals fed a control diet without chlormequat.” It has been reported that
Male mice similarly exposed to the chemical via food or water “exhibited a decreased ability of their sperm to fertilize in vitro.”
In April 2023, when proposing to register a new use of plant growth regulators as pesticides, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
claimed “There were no dietary, housing, or collective (i.e., combined dietary and housing exposure) risks of concern associated with human exposure to chlormequat.
However, the study concluded that “recent reproductive toxicity studies with chlormequat showed delayed onset of puberty and reduced sperm motility in rats exposed during sensitive periods of development, including pregnancy and early childhood. “The male reproductive organs lost weight, indicating lower testosterone levels.” . ”
EWG researchers acknowledged that other studies have not found such animal test subjects to be similarly affected, but such discrepancies simply require further investigation. he hinted.
Chlormequat is naturally formed from:
Colin Reports indicate that precursors found in high-temperature wheat products and egg flour may be banned in U.S. food products after the EPA announced food acceptable levels of pesticides in imported oats, wheat, barley, and other products in 2018. It is said that they have entered the supply business.
These tolerance levels were reportedly increased for oats in 2020. Although the EPA allows imported products containing trace amounts of chlormequat, it reportedly only allows the chemical to be used on ornamental plants grown in the United States.
EWG researchers tested 96 urine samples collected from U.S. residents in three geographic regions between 2017 and 2023. The study notes that pesticides were detected in 80% of all urine samples.
“Compared to samples from 2017 and 2018 to 2022, detection frequency was higher in samples from 2023: 16 of 23 (69%), 17 of 23 (74%), and 50 of 50, respectively. It was detected in 45 (90% of the samples).” study.
EWG researchers found “detectable levels of chlormequat in all but two of 25 conventional oat-based products” in food samples purchased in 2022 and 2023. The grains received reportedly included Quaker oats and Cheerios.”
While the urinary pesticide concentrations covered in this study were “several orders of magnitude lower than the Reference Dosage (RfD) published by the U.S. EPA,” EWG found that much lower doses were used to reproduce the reproductive health of mice and pigs. It was shown that it was observed that the performance decreased.
“Given the toxicity concerns associated with chlormequat exposure in animal studies and widespread exposure to the general population in European countries and now also in the United States, monitoring chlormequat in food and humans in conjunction with epidemiological and animal studies. “There is an urgent need to understand the potential health hazards of this pesticide, especially at environmentally relevant exposure levels during pregnancy,” the researchers concluded.
E.W.G.
was suggested A report corresponding to that study states: “Until governments fully protect consumers, choosing products made with organic oats grown without the use of synthetic pesticides such as chlormequat will reduce the risk of chlormequat. “It can reduce exposure to.”
new york post
shown Neither General Mills, which makes Cheerios, nor PepsiCo, which makes Quaker Oats, immediately responded to requests for comment.
“The federal government plays an important role in ensuring that pesticides are properly monitored, researched, and regulated,” said Alexis Temkin, a toxicologist at EWG and lead author of the study. It is stated as follows.
Said Daily Mail. “Yet the EPA continues to abdicate its responsibility to protect children from the potential health risks of toxic chemicals like chlormequat in food.”
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