Child Development
"Now
that I've got kids, it's become really important for me on the health front to
try to buy as much organic produce as possible.
It seems to me that more people are getting ill and suffering from
allergies, which no one can properly explain. So good, fresh, preferably organic,
flavoursome food is my first choice."
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver An Australian study shows that
Australian mothers are transferring invisible pesticides and organochlorines to their babies via their breast milk. These chemicals come from
the fruit and vegetables they consume as part of their so-called healthy diet.
"Persistence of Organochlorines in Breast Milk of Women in Victoria, Australia"
Ed Chem Toxic Vol.33. No 1 pp.49 - 56, 1995, PM Quinsey, DC Donohue & JT
Ahokas
287 chemicals were
found in the umbilical cords of 10
randomly chosen newborns, including mercury, pesticides, flame retardants, and
incineration pollutants
US Study, 2005
5-14 out of 35 common chemicals
were found in the umbilical cords of 30 newborn babies and their mothers
University
of Groningen,
Netherlands
The maturation process of bodily organs and systems make children more
susceptible to pesticide toxicity as they move from infancy to adulthood
Wargo
J: Our children's toxic legacy. New Haven: Yale University
Press, 1998
Some of our most toxic
but most widely used pesticides target the central nervous system, with chronic
exposure causing changes in normal development
Wiles R, et al. Overexposed,
oganophosphate insecticides in
children's food. Washington:
Environmental Working Group, 1998
Some of fruit and vegetabl&V that are most commonly consumed by
children have the highest levels of pesticide residue, eg: apples, peaches,
pears, strawberries, green beans
Hettenbach T, Wiles R: A few bad apples...
pesticides in your produce. Washington:
Environmental Working Group, 2000
Children under 2 might be
10 times more susceptible than adults to
certain chemicals, and children between 2-16 might be 3 times more vulnerable
US Environmental Protection Authority, March 2005
Findings suggest
significant changes in children's hyperactive behaviour could be produced by
the removal of artificial colourings and sodium benzoate from their diet.
Archives of Child Health study, led by Professor John Warner, Southampton
University The proportion of children with high
levels of hyperactivity was halved when additives were removed from their diet.
Professor John Warner of the development of child health at Southampton University,
who led the study published in Archives
of Child Health, said: 'The findings suggest that significant changes in
children's hyperactive behaviour could be produced by the removal of artificial
coloursings and sodium benzoate from their diet.' Professor Warner said the
doses of additives used in the study were 'on the low side of normal,' and the
effects were felt across all the children, regardless of their sensitivity to
allergy-causing substances.
Shane Heaton, Food Additives Are Bad News in Clean
Food Organic: Your Complete Australian Organic Lifestyle and Shopping Guide,
McGuire Guide, Coogee NSW Australia, 2006 page 14
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