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Concern over chemicals brain risk

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Concern over chemicals brain risk

Industrial chemicals may be causing a pandemic of brain disorders because of inadequate regulation, researchers have warned. An online report in the Lancet identifies 202 chemicals, including metals, solvents and pesticides, which have potential to damage the brain. Studies have shown low-level exposure to some can lead to neurobehavioural defects in children, the researchers said. The team, from Harvard School of Public Health and the New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine, said pinning down the effects of industrial chemical pollution was extremely difficult because symptoms may not develop for several years. They added that developing brains - defined as from fetus to adolescence - were much more susceptible to toxic chemicals than those of adults. They said the 202 brain-damaging industrial chemicals they identified were likely to be the 'tip of a very large iceberg.' The authors examined the published literature on the only five substances on the list - lead, methylmercury, arsenic, PCBs and toluene - that had sufficient documentation of toxicity to the developing human brain. They found a similar pattern in how the risks of each substance were documented: first, a recognition of adult toxicity and episodes of poisoning among children, followed by a growing body of epidemiological evidence that exposure to lower levels of the substances caused neurobehavioral deficits in children. 'Even if substantial documentation on their toxicity is available, most chemicals are not regulated to protect the developing brain,' says lead researcher Dr Philippe Grandjean. 'Only a few substances, such as lead and mercury, are controlled with the purpose of protecting children. The 200 other chemicals that are known to be toxic to the human brain are not regulated to prevent adverse effects on the fetus or a small child.'

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