Six Neurotoxins Found, Children at Risk

Six new chemicals have been shown to negatively affect brain development in children according to a new study. Researchers from the study are calling upon regulators to better contain these neurotoxins in a coordinated effort.

The study, published today in The Lancelot Neurology is a follow up of a study published by the same team back in 2006. Back then, the team linked five commonly found neurotoxins to cognitive disabilities in children. With today's release, that list has now grown to 11 toxins in total.

The list includes some commonly known toxins such as lead, methymercury, and arsenic. Interestingly the new list now also includes lesser-known neurotoxins, such as polychlorinated biphenyls, a family of chemicals often present in foods, especially fish. This neurotoxin, while harmless to adolescents and adults, can be passed along in breast milk, and has been associated with reduced cognitive function in infants.

More alarming still, fluoride has made its way onto the list this year. Fluoride is commonly found in toothpastes, and is recommended for use by the American Dental Association (ADA). The ADA had recommended that parents avoid using fluoride toothpaste with their children until they were two or three years old. According to the Journal of the American Dental Association, this precaution was so that children didn't develop fluorosis, a discoloration of the teeth associated with ingestion of fluoride early in life. However, as of this month, the ADA has redacted that reccomendation, now urging parents to brush the teeth of their infants with fluoride toothpaste as soon as the pearly-whites emerge. Ironically, the ADA is recommending fluoride use for young children around the same time  new studies are linking it to an average seven point decrease in IQ. It remains unclear if the miniscule amounts of toothpaste the ADA is recommending for use on children's teeth contains enough fluoride to trigger the adverse effect.

According to the study, the human brain is more vulnerable during the rapid stages of development while in the womb and early childhood. This, authors of the study claim, is something many organisations, such as the ADA, seem to overlook.

They concluded their research calling for increased coordinated efforts among regulators.

"To control the pandemic of developmental neurotoxicity, we propose a global prevention strategy. Untested chemicals should not be presumed to be safe to brain development, and chemicals in existing use and all new chemicals must therefore be tested for developmental neurotoxicity. To coordinate these efforts ... we propose the urgent formation of a new international clearinghouse," they wrote in the study's accompanying summary.

The study was published in The Lancelot Neurology's March issue.

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