Children whose mothers were exposed to flame retardants during pregnancy may have a lower IQ than their peers who did not experience prenatal exposure, a new study reports.
A hazardous class of flame retardant chemicals commonly found in furniture and household products damages children’s intelligence, resulting in loss of IQ points, according to a new study (August 2017) by UC San Francisco researchers.They found that every 10 fold increase of maternal flame retardant levels was associated with a drop of 3.7 IQ points in her child
We are exposed to a variety of chemicals each day. It’s nearly impossible to avoid them. If they accumulate in our body then we experience symptoms and eventually diagnosed with some disease. They find their way into the food chain, in particularly high concentration with products that are rich in fats such as fish, meat and milk. They also enter our systems as we breathe particles that have off-gassed from household furnishings.
In fact, today’s child at 6 years old already has chemical levels that it used to take us until our 40’s to accumulate.There are also strong links between fire retardants and the following conditions:
Liver disease
Hormonal system and thyroid gland disorders
Attention deficit disorder
Delayed nervous system development in infants
Slower brain development, learning delays and lower IQ
Increased difficulty of concentration
Neurobehavioral disorders
Reduction of spermatogenesis
Cancer
Accumulation of a lifetime of these toxins combined with others such as heavy metals can result in exhaustion, depression, weight gain, poor motivation, hair loss, and high cholesterol. It doesn’t end there….They can also cause problems; adrenal stress glands, low testosterone, reduced estrogen production, polycystic ovarian syndrome (POS), endometriosis, and cancer. Calcium channels can also blocked leading to high blood pressure, heart failure, and others.
The author Woodruff of the UC San Francisco study stated: “Many people are exposed to high levels of flame retardants (PBDEs) and the more PBDEs a pregnant woman is exposed to, the lower her child’s IQ,” And when the effects of PBDEs are combined with those of other toxic chemicals such as from building products or pesticides, the result is a serious chemical cocktail that our current environmental regulations simply don’t account for.”
The researchers also found some evidence of a link between PDBE exposures and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but concluded that more studies are necessary to better characterize the relationship.
Solution?
If you are planning a pregnancy, reduce the toxic load of your body including heavy metals and other toxins that have accumulated to reduce your baby’s exposure.
Review your current detoxification pathways and check if they are working properly through blood and urine testing.
Sweating is one proven mechanism for dumping stored environmental toxins Purchase an infrared sauna that uses “poplar wood” only. Call our office for a recommendation. I highly recommend using a sauna after your labs have been completed.
Eliminate trans fatty acids out of the diet, and restore missing essential fats, correct mineral deficiencies, like selenium, manganese, zinc and magnesium to facilitate safe detoxification.
Use cotton mattress covers and room air purifiers to help lower the toxins and avoid the memory foam pillows and beds due to out-gassing.
For more information on our pre-pregnancy programs call us at 310.734.0951