France's national public health agency released a statement outlining 21 health issues linked to endocrine-disrupting chemicals that the public should know of.
The effects of supposed global change and exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals are currently considered two of the most serious anthropogenic threats to biodiversity and ecosystems. Because different endocrine systems are important in allowing animals to respond appropriately to environmental stress, EDCs may interfere with adaptations to higher stress situations. Such interactive effects are likely related to adaptive responses regulated by the thyroid, sex steroid, and glucocorticosteroid systems. Consumption and production patterns around the world have pushed the planetary limit of environmental contaminants beyond sustainability, while at least 5,000 new chemicals produced since 1950 are recognized as having near-universal human exposure.
Pollution contributes approximately 17 to 25% of the environmental burden of disease, or about 9 million deaths per year. This is a fraction of the amount of its sublethal damage that leads to a wide spectrum of diseases, many of which are unrecognized. Persistent synthetic chemicals are a major threat to the environment. When chemicals do not break down but continue to be released, their concentration in the environment increases.
If a persistent chemical is also harmful to wildlife and humans, this is a major concern. Infamous examples of persistent and dangerous chemicals that caused large-scale environmental damage are DDT and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Bioaccumulative chemicals can accumulate in the human body and wildlife because they are absorbed by the body and not excreted quickly. If such an organism is eaten by something higher up the food chain, the concentration of the chemical in living tissues increases. This is called biomagnification
Some of the most notorious chemicals, such as the pesticide DDT, PCBs, PFAS, and some flame retardants, are extremely persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative—a triple problem for humans and wildlife. EDCs, and suspected EDCs, are frequently found as contaminants in fresh and marine waters in Europe. In fact, more than three-quarters of Europe's seas are polluted by a cocktail of harmful synthetic chemicals, according to a 2019 report by the European Environment Agency. This same report also states that in European freshwaters, on average, 20% of aquatic species are lost due to exposure to a mixture of chemical pollution.
In England, only 14% of rivers are currently classified as having “good ecological status”. Research has shown that some of the UK's rivers are polluted by historical pollution from banned toxic chemicals such as PCBs and emerging pollutants such as PFAS; and by hormone-disrupting chemicals used in medications. More than 240 different synthetic chemicals have been detected in drinking water across Europe. Conventional water purification systems in treatment plants are not 100% efficient in removing all contaminants from drinking water.
The effects of supposed global change and exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals are currently considered two of the most serious anthropogenic threats to biodiversity and ecosystems. Because different endocrine systems are important in allowing animals to respond appropriately to environmental stress, EDCs may interfere with adaptations to higher stress situations. Such interactive effects are likely related to adaptive responses regulated by the thyroid, sex steroid, and glucocorticosteroid systems. Consumption and production patterns around the world have pushed the planetary limit of environmental contaminants beyond sustainability, while at least 5,000 new chemicals produced since 1950 are recognized as having near-universal human exposure.
Pollution contributes approximately 17 to 25% of the environmental burden of disease, or about 9 million deaths per year. This is a fraction of the amount of its sublethal damage that leads to a wide spectrum of diseases, many of which are unrecognized. Persistent synthetic chemicals are a major threat to the environment. When chemicals do not break down but continue to be released, their concentration in the environment increases.
If a persistent chemical is also harmful to wildlife and humans, this is a major concern. Infamous examples of persistent and dangerous chemicals that caused large-scale environmental damage are DDT and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Bioaccumulative chemicals can accumulate in the human body and wildlife because they are absorbed by the body and not excreted quickly. If such an organism is eaten by something higher up the food chain, the concentration of the chemical in living tissues increases. This is called biomagnification
Some of the most notorious chemicals, such as the pesticide DDT, PCBs, PFAS, and some flame retardants, are extremely persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative—a triple problem for humans and wildlife. EDCs, and suspected EDCs, are frequently found as contaminants in fresh and marine waters in Europe. In fact, more than three-quarters of Europe's seas are polluted by a cocktail of harmful synthetic chemicals, according to a 2019 report by the European Environment Agency. This same report also states that in European freshwaters, on average, 20% of aquatic species are lost due to exposure to a mixture of chemical pollution.
In England, only 14% of rivers are currently classified as having “good ecological status”. Research has shown that some of the UK's rivers are polluted by historical pollution from banned toxic chemicals such as PCBs and emerging pollutants such as PFAS; and by hormone-disrupting chemicals used in medications. More than 240 different synthetic chemicals have been detected in drinking water across Europe. Conventional water purification systems in treatment plants are not 100% efficient in removing all contaminants from drinking water.
For many synthetic chemicals, treatment will remove a maximum of 40%. Synthetic chemicals found in drinking water include pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and many industrial chemicals, such as the well-known endocrine disruptors phthalates and bisphenols, and chemicals from the PFAS family. https://chemtrust.org/edcs-wildlife/ (2023).---- https://sdg.iisd.org/commentary/policy-briefs/integrating-policy-water-endocrine-disruptors-and-pharmaceuticals/ (2023) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/6967171_Endocrine-Disrupting_Chemicals_and_Climate_Change_A_Worst-Case_Combination_for_Arctic_Marine_Mammals_and_Seabirds (2023).----