Gender Bending Chemicals
Essay Preview: Gender Bending Chemicals
Report this essay
Gender Bending Chemicals
A large portion of the population in the United States store food in plastic baggies, buy baby toys, has a shower Curtain, and everyone has or had a rubber ducky. Theses are all typical items for the normal household, but do you know what those items are made of and what kind of harm they can cause to the human body and especially pregnant mothers. There is a chemical in each of those products and many more items called phthalates, other wise known as the “gender bending” chemical. This chemical harms the human sex organs. This chemical has been found to harm especially males, and unborn baby boys. It has the power to make a male more feminine, and could change the sex of an unborn male, or result in the babies genitalia to be closer to the anus than normal.
Over the past 30 years the center for disease control has been running tests and has results that prove that this is a gender bending chemical. So why this chemical still legal, why is it still being used and harming innocent people. There could be no stopping this problem and if so what would the result be. How would we have what we have now without plastic? Is there a way around phthalates? Can this chemical be imitated in a safer and healthier way? Is the public really aware of what they are using, or buying and supplying for there family?
This is a problem that needs to be solved and should not be put on the back burner. Why would companies use such and chemical and why they not aware would the public of what they could encounter? Shouldnt there be some kind of warning on the package or even anything that says what it is made of, have you ever looked on a box of plastic bags, it dose not say what they are made of and that is exactly may point.
The technology of this country has increased dramatically. In result many problems have been fixed, but of course there is always a problem that will result with the new invention. With the technology these days why hasnt there been a solution to the problem with phthalates? I am sure there can be a second form of chemical that can be used to make plastics pliable. This problem needs to be solved and eliminated, due to the fact that a large portion of the United States and possibly the rest of the world could be in danger.
This is a huge health concern to many people, and the scary thing is that a lot of people do not know about it. This is a problem that has its own kind of risks and is hard to avoid. It is not like smoking, it has been made clear that smoking is bad for you and yet people do it. With phthalates the point has not been made that it is dangerous and harmful to you. How do you avoid such a strong chemical, it is released into the air and through consumption, from the products that are made with phthalates. I think that phthalates should be made illegal and should be banned across the nation. I also think that it should be banned worldwide so we do not have any imported items that are made with phthalates. This chemical is only hurting people and there is no way to prevent it besides eliminating the problem. Their has to be another safer chemical that will make plastics pliable, because the one we are using now is not only do what it is made for but it is also harming people on the side.
Could you imagine living your life with no plastic or completely avoiding plastic? It would be nearly impossible. There are many products today that save peoples lives on a daily basis. If there is no solution to getting rid of phthalates then what is there to do? Is there a vaccine that can protect us from its harmful effects? Why hasnt there been a public out cry due to this problem. Although the effects of this chemical are not deadly and are in some case hard to tell that a change has even effected someone. There should still be a procedure that will help prevent phthalates from changing someones life.
It is hard to find any good for this product due to the fact that it harms people without any notice. The only good it has would be the products that it makes for us. Although the products made are the products that harm us. I believe that this is lose, lose situation.
Phthalates is found in PVC plastics and has been for decades. There has been scientific evidence linking to phthalates harming young children and also the human reproductive system.
Consumer Product Safety Commission, which asked for a ban on PVC products intended for children under five, to include a ban on all PVC products used in the home (Franz 2001).
It can be passed through skin and mouth or by inhalation. Children are at particular risk since many toys (such as chewable items) are made from PVC (Podhajny 2003).
Researchers have long known that high levels of substances called phthalates have gender-bending effects on male animals, making them more feminine and leading to poor sperm quality and infertility (Herald 2004).
The new study suggests that even normal levels of phthalates, which are ubiquitous, can disrupt the development of male babies reproductive organs (Herald 2004).
A chemical commonly found in plastics, household products, and cosmetics is being linked to abnormal genital development in baby boys exposure prior to birth (Boyles 2005).
PVC contains phthalates, which accumulate in body tissue, and can damage liver, lungs, and have been shown in lover mammals to damage reproductive organs (PVC Toys 1999).
Several phthalates, particularly DEHP, are testicular toxicants. Part of this toxicity is believed to be involved depletion of testicular zinc, and may include the death and disintegration of the testicular germ cells (Phthalates 1999).
Many teethers and soft toys contain phthalates plasticizers, and research has shown that these plasticizers and leach out of the toys into the mouths of the children chewing them (Phthalates 1999)
Several types of phthalates, which are used to make plastics more pliable, and have been around for more than 50 years, have been banned, but many are still produced in vast quantities (Herald 2004).
In PVC products plasticizers account