Fooling with nature

Date

1998

Authors

Frontline cooproduction with the Center for Investigative Reporting, Inc.

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

PBS Video

Abstract

An endocrine study is an on-going study that is being done to try and link man-made chemicals to endocrine disruptions. Studies have shown that the effects of these chemicals are not observed in the adult but they are seen in their offspring. If this hypothesis of endocrine disruptions linked to man-made chemicals is correct, then exposure to these chemicals is scary at the social and biological level. This endocrine disruption is scary because you can't change the effects of these chemicals. Seventy chemicals are believed to be endocrine reducers and yet the EPA is not removing them from the market and they are still being produced. People have lobbied for money from the department of defense to be used for breast cancer research and won. Chemicals found in plastics and CD's have been found to contain potent estrogen that mimics estrogen activity in women. This is still a hypothesis but continued research is being done to try and prove this. Studies have been done on animals as well as humans. The problem is there are too many variables in human activities to prove this hypothesis.

Description

1 videocassette (60 min.)

Keywords

public health, protection, chemical pollutants, hazardous materials, pollution legislation, environmental pollutants, adverse effects, abnormalities, drug-induced, chemical industry, endocrine glands, drug effects, environmental pollution, legislation, jurisprudence, hormone antagonists, environmental aspects, physiological effect, chemicals, law

Citation