Low Levels of BPA Exposure Can Affect Prenatal Brain Development

AHA Publisher — Wed, 02 Jun 2021 07:00:11 +0000

University of Calgary via News-Medical – Humans are exposed to a bath of chemicals every day. They are in the beds where we sleep, the cars that we drive and the kitchens we use to feed our families. With thousands of chemicals floating around in our environment, exposure to any number is practically unavoidable. Through the work of researchers like Dr. Deborah Kurrasch, PhD, the implications of many of these chemicals are being thoroughly explored. “Manufacturers follow standards set by regulatory bodies, it’s not up to the manufacturers to prove the chemicals in consumer products are safe,” says Kurrasch, a researcher in the University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) and Alberta Children’s Research Institute at the Cumming School of Medicine. “Scientists play a critical role and do the meticulous work of determining where the risks lie.” Kurrasch’s research over the past decade has focused on a chemical that is broadly recognizable: Bisphenol A, also known as BPA. This chemical is commonly found in plastics, canned food linings, and even thermal receipts. Studies from Kurrasch’s lab contribute to the collective research that shows the harms of exposure to this industrial compound. The latest study out of Kurrasch’s lab, published in Science Advances, suggests that continued vigilance is needed. A postdoctoral researcher in her lab, Dr. Dinu Nesan, PhD, examined the impact of low levels of BPA exposure to pregnant mice and the brain development of their offspring. “Our goal was to model BPA levels equivalent to what pregnant women and developing babies are typically exposed to. We purposefully did not use a high dose. In fact, our doses were 11-times and nearly 25-times lower than those deemed safe by Health Canada and the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration), respectively. Even at these low levels, we saw effects on prenatal brain development in the mice.” Dr. Deborah Kurrasch, PhD, Researcher, University of Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) Using this BPA exposure model, Nesan found striking changes to the brain region responsible for driving circadian rhythms, the suprachiasmatic nucleus, located in the hypothalamus. When prenatally exposed to these low levels of BPA, the suprachiasmatic nucleus failed to develop properly. This change can have implications for sleep, activity levels, and other behaviours. “Previously we showed embryonic exposure to low-dose BPA can affect the timing of when neurons develop in zebrafish, but it was unclear whether a similar effect would be observed in a mammalian model with more similarities to humans,” says Nesan, first author on the study. When neurons develop, they rely on proper signals to guide them. If neurons develop too early, the cues they experience are different, which can lead to developmental errors such as migrating to the wrong location, becoming the wrong type of neuron, or forming inappropriate connections. These errors can lead to altered behaviors later in life. “Our study shows that in pregnant mice, prenatal exposure to BPA affects the timing of neuron development in the fetal brain, which has lasting effects on behaviours. Offspring that are exposed to BPA during gestation are awake longer and exhibit hyperactivity. The prenatal BPA exposure seems to change the brain’s circadian cues, causing the animals to have elevated energy levels and spend less time resting,” says Nesan. The researchers are hopeful their findings will add continued pressure on regulatory bodies to keep revisiting their determinations around safe levels of BPA. “We think there’s an incredible abundance of data showing BPA exposure guidelines are not yet at the appropriate level, which includes even the EU (European Union) who is leading on this front, but their ‘safe’ levels are still twice the dose we used in our study” says Kurrasch, “We hope our research serves as a reminder that low dose BPA is still capable of causing changes that are measurable and significant.” Her message of how to interpret this research is simple: Limit your exposure to BPA the best you can. Maintain smart practices with plastics in your kitchen, for example not heating them, and using glass or stainless steel when possible. This research was conducted in collaboration with Dr. Michael Antle, PhD, professor of psychology and member of the HBI. To read the original article click here.

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WARNING: Artificial Colors Trigger Unwanted Human Behavior

AHA Publisher — Thu, 08 Apr 2021 07:00:15 +0000

Sima Ash via NaturalHealth365 – In the 1970s, Dr. Ben F. Feingold, a physician out of Kaiser Permanente, noticed the link between behavior and artificial colors. Some physicians embraced his studies and began recommending special diets, however, many physicians found there was not enough evidence and did not recommend abstaining from these chemicals. Many years ago, a friend of mine published an article about artificial colors and the unknown fact that nearly all of them contain lead, mercury, and arsenic – along with a wide array of other chemicals. Since that time, more research has been published affirming that artificial colors do impact behavior, particularly for those children who are consuming foods laden with these chemicals on a daily basis. How Can the Food and Drug Administration Allow This to Happen? The February 2014 issue of Clinical Pediatrics stated the number of artificial food colors certified by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had increased more than five-fold from 1950 – 2012. They further state that double-blind challenges with artificial colors have noted behavior reactions such as hyperactivity. Nutritional Review found that when kids consumed artificial colors, those with ADHD actually had less attention, were more impulsive, and had increased hyperactivity. Both these studies and an article published in Neurotherapeuticsfound that artificial colors actually impact more children than just those diagnosed with ADHD, and both believe it is a ‘public health problem.’ Don’t Waste Your Money on Poisonous Products Artificial colors are pervasive. They are in candy, supplements, medications, cereal, yogurt, breakfast bars, cheese, bread, marshmallows, soaps, and shampoos (to name a few examples). On a daily basis, children come into contact with all of these, which can have a synergistic effect on them. For instance, a child wakes up, eats cereal with artificial colors, takes their chewable vitamin, brushes their teeth with toothpaste, all of which contain these insidious chemicals, and then heads off to school. While there, they eat their fruit roll-up or their sandwich that contains these chemicals and are hyper when they return to their class. They then come home and have some grape juice and have macaroni and cheese, both of which have artificial colors. They later take a bath using soap with similar dangerous ingredients as well. Day after day, this can be a great burden to a little body. The Best Way to Avoid Artificial Colors Buying organic products, fruits, vegetables, and meats is one way. If you want to buy snacks for your children, buy those organic as well. There are many brands of organic snack products that are free of artificial colors. If your child is addicted to soda, you can begin to wean them off soda by introducing Zevia, Blue Sky Zero, or adding Stevia to sparkling water. These options not only have no sugar, but they are free of artificial colors as well. Be sure to choose a good quality nutritional supplement – free of artificial colors and aspartame plus, if your child needs medication for any reason, find a compounding pharmacy that can make it for you without any dyes. These Are Some of the Powerful Benefits of Using Natural Colors in the Diet Sometimes your child really wants color added – such as if you are making homemade play dough or coloring Easter eggs. There are natural colors out there that can be used, and you can purchase them at your local health food store, online, or even make them yourself. Turmeric, for instance, is used as a natural yellow food color. Using plants from your garden to get other colors is also a possibility. Since we know that kids are impacted by artificial colors and know that these chemicals contain lead, mercury, and arsenic, it’s essential to reduce and eventually eliminate them from your child’s diet. You may be pleasantly surprised by their positive change in behavior and the fewer instances of illness they will have. Using CEASE to help children detox from artificial colors has been quite effective, and adding supplements such as omega-3’s can further help children who are experiencing behavior issues. About the author: Sima Ash of Healing 4 Soul is a clinical and classical homeopath and certified clinical nutritionist who utilizes a unique approach pioneered by Tinus Smits, M.D. called CEASE therapy. CEASE treatment aims to systematically detoxify the causes of illness, leading to step-by-step improvement and restoration of health in the individual. For additional information, please visit Healing4Soul.com. Sources for this article: TownsendLetter.com NIH.gov NIH.gov NIH.gov To read the original article click here. For more articles from NaturalHealth365 click here.

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Low Levels of BPA Exposure Can Affect Prenatal Brain Development

WARNING: Artificial Colors Trigger Unwanted Human Behavior