[Dioxin-l] Doctors agree dioxins bad

Tue, 4 Jan 2000 12:59:33 -0500

"endocrine disruptors" below is also spelled "dioxins" as from
incinerators.  =

Joe Parrish
St. John's Church
61 Broad Street
Elizabeth, NJ 007201
and
300 East 56th Street
Elizabeth, NJ 07201
January 4, 2000
- - - - -
From:   INTERNET:JPMyers@wajones.org, INTERNET:JPMyers@wajones.org
TO:     Joe Parrish, JoeParrish
DATE:   01/04/00 9:21 AM

RE:     CNN coverage of endocrine disruption

http://cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/men/01/03/men.estrogen.wmd/index.html
Is the environment hurting men?
January 3, 2000
Web posted at: 1:58 PM EST (1858 GMT)

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In this story:

Experts agree: Male reproductive health at risk

Exposure in utero could be cause

A long road ahead

By Rochelle Jones

(WebMD) -- Rapidly falling sperm counts in the United States. Rising rate=
s
of genital defects in male infants. Unprecedented numbers of cases of
testicular cancer among young American males. Scientists are increasingly=

worried that these problems are being caused by environmental estrogens,
man-made chemicals capable of interfering with the hormones that regulate=

the male reproductive system.

Exposure to these chemicals -- also known as endocrine disruptors -- may
have such potentially serious consequences that the federal government ha=
s
begun studying their effects even before scientific confirmation that the=
y
may cause health problems in men.

The Environmental Protection Agency began a screening and testing program=

in 1999 to identify how some 87,000 chemicals now in commercial use affec=
t
the endocrine system. The Centers for Disease Control and the National
Institutes of Health have launched a study of blood and urine samples to
determine to what extent Americans have been exposed to about 50
environmental estrogens.

<snipped to preserve copyright>

Experts agree: Male reproductive health at risk

Still, while scientists may differ on causes, many agree that men are
experiencing a disturbing increase in health problems of the reproductive=

system.

A review of data from 61 studies, published in BioEssays in 1999, found
that the dramatic decline of average sperm density in the United States a=
nd
Western Europe may be even greater than previously estimated. An earlier
review, conducted by researchers at the University of Copenhagen in 1992,=

found that sperm density had fallen by 50 percent between 1938 and 1990. =
In
the 1999 reanalysis of the controversial studies, Shanna Swan, Ph.D., a
professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia, confirmed the findings
and concluded that the decline may be more than 50 percent.

"I was very surprised by the results," she says. "This really raises a re=
d
flag."

<snipped to preserve copyright>

A long road ahead

The problem is that damage from environmental contaminants may not become=

evident for years, even decades. In perhaps the best-known case, pregnant=

women who were prescribed DES -- an extremely potent estrogen -- to preve=
nt
miscarriages gave birth to daughters who developed vaginal cancer some 20=

years later as a result.

While much research has been concentrated on the impact of environmental
estrogens on men, scientists are also concerned that they may be
contributing to the earlier onset of puberty in girls.

Ted Schettler, M.D., author of "Generations at Risk," admonishes, "People=

should be concerned about any chemicals, even at low levels, that have a
biological activity. Very small amounts can matter a lot."