A recent study found that potentially toxic chemicals present in commonplace items like food packaging, cosmetics, and carpets are altering the hormonal and metabolic processes required for human development.
Researchers looked at blood samples from children, teenagers, and the elderly for the study. Fluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAs), also known as “forever chemicals,” were discovered in the blood samples of all of these people. Chemicals like PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS, PFNA, PFHpS, and PFDA were discovered.
Recent regulations from the US Environmental Protection Agency are intended to strictly regulate the amount of these chemicals in US drinking water.
The study’s lead author, Jesse Goodrich, is an assistant professor of population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California. He says that exposing children to PFA compounds affects their thyroid function as well as their metabolism of lipids and amino acids. Likewise, hormonal activity shifts.
The thyroid produces two crucial hormones for children’s normal growth that aid in the body’s production and utilization of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates as well as blood pressure regulation.
Every cell in the body is impacted by these messenger chemicals. Lipids aid in the storage of vitamins, facilitate the production of hormones, and help the body use or store fat while amino acids are required to create enzymes, hormones, proteins, and other essential molecules.
David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group who was not involved in the study, claims that this is not the only investigation into how exposure to PFEs in humans affects hormone levels. States of metabolism are also impacted. Changes in these metabolic indices, according to them, may be a sign of a number of future health issues in children, including elevated risks for obesity, insulin resistance, fatty liver disease, and possibly cancer.
Maryam's Blog 