Chemicals

There are more than 1,000 chemicals in a cup of coffee; of these, only 26 have been tested, and half caused cancer in rats.

Since the 1940s, society has seen increasing rates of many diseases and health problems, including various cancers, autoimmune disorders, behavioural and attention deficit disorders, male infertility, premature puberty, and an explosion in rates of obesity and cases of diabetes.

Obviously, lifestyles have changed a great deal in the last 70 years, but so has the presence of chemicals in the environment, food and consumer goods. More than ever before, people are exposed to complex mixtures of man-made chemicals in food packaging materials, air pollution, furniture dust, electronic waste, toys and so on. Measurable levels of hundreds of man-made chemicals are routinely found in people, regardless of age or where they live.

Determining the health effects of these complex, low exposures is highly challenging to environmental health researchers: the technology to detect chemicals in people is in some cases barely a decade old, and the science for determining the effects of chemicals on health is still very much under development.

Nonetheless, as research gathers pace, evidence is mounting that everyday exposure to chemicals could be playing a significant role in the onset of health problems. Although the precise nature of these effects is not yet clear, the overall implications for health mean it is very important that exposure to potentially harmful substances is limited as much as possible.

According to the UNEP report ”Global Chemicals Outlook” from September 2012 poisonings from industrial and agricultural chemicals contribute to more than a million deaths every year worldwide. This figure is among the top five leading causes of death globally, after HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, road traffic accidents and malaria.