Foods of animal origin (especially fish) appear to be the most important source of human exposure to industrial pollutants such as alkylphenol xenoestrogens.
Dietary Sources of Alkylphenol Endocrine Disruptors
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
There are many classes of endocrine-disrupting industrial pollutants. Concern about the alkylphenols first surfaced decades ago, when a group at Tufts observed an excessive proliferation of human breast cancer cells in certain types of plastic containers—something you’d normally only see if the cells were exposed to some type of estrogen. They identified an alkylphenol as the culprit “leaching from the plastic,” causing “the estrogenlike properties when tested in the human breast tumor” cells.
That’s not good. So, countries in Europe started banning and restricting uses of these chemicals, but the U.S. EPA has been slow to respond. A half-million tons of these chemicals continue to be spewed out into the environment every year—so much so now that they come down in the rain, and then accumulate up the food chain.
I talked about the seasonal allergy epidemic in Japan. Where in the Japanese food supply can you find these potentially allergy-exacerbating endocrine disrupters? Predominantly chicken, and especially fish. “Water animals and birds concentrate these compounds to levels several thousands [of] times greater than those in the environment,” because these are fat-soluble chemicals. “Therefore, they can easily contaminate foods of animal origin…, which are thought to represent the most important source of human exposure to many organic pollutants,” not just the alkylphenols. This group also found fish was the worst.
Which type of fish? Anchovies and mackerel were the worst in this study, and salmon and cod in this study. In fact, salmon was the only food found contaminated with nonylphenol diethoxylate, which is even more potent than regular nonylphenol.
And, levels of contamination in fish were just the kind of concentrations that start to make breast cancer cells go crazy in vitro.
These findings are consistent with the fact that seafood consumption has been associated with “severe asthma, current and severe rhinoconjunctivitis [which is like seasonal pollen allergies] and current and severe eczema,” an allergic-type disease of the skin, in adolescent populations around the globe.
If these synthetic xenoestrogens are playing a role, what about natural phytoestrogens, like in soy foods? Turns out that “[i]n patients with asthma, consumption of a diet with moderate to high amounts of soy [phytoestrogens] is associated with better lung function and better asthma control.” So, if anything, it’s more these chemical pollutants, which come down in the rain, contaminate the plants, the soil, but then concentrate up the food chain in the fat of animals. And we’re now like the ecosystem’s peak predator, like the polar bear or bald eagle.
Thankfully, there aren’t many cannibals around anymore, though there is one group that continues to feed off human tissues. Alkylphenols have been found to concentrate in human breast milk, particularly in women who eat fish. The highest levels of these endocrine-disrupting pollutants were recorded in milk samples from mothers who said they ate fish “at least twice a week,” consistent with the fact that “seafood consumption represents an important source of [alkylphenol] intake.”
And, even these “[s]lightly elevated [levels] of endocrine disrupters in [the] milk of mothers with a seafood-rich diet [may be] associated with adverse effects on neurological development, foetal and postnatal growth, and memory functions [in] breastfed infants,” because “these contaminants may interfere with the endocrine [or hormonal] system.”
Or, even worse, straight animal fat, such as chicken fat, lard, and tallow, which were considered cooking oils here, or fish oil. “Consumption of fish oil capsules and processed fish products was associated with [alkylphenol] concentration in [mother’s] milk”—again, thanks to bioaccumulation up the food chain.
And then, of course, we recycle the leftover remains of farm animals into farm animal feed, and so the levels can get higher and higher in animal food products.
As one commentator responded, yes, these pollutants contaminate human milk, but they contaminate cow’s milk as well—we live in the same polluted world. In fact, infant formula was found to be over five times more contaminated. So, breast is still best—absolutely. But, these kinds of studies are important in order to provide good suggestions for food choices to nursing mothers, to prevent excess exposure to these pollutants in their infants.
We can kind of cut out the middlefish and move lower down the food chain in hopes of decreasing our exposure to industrial toxins.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- A. Bergman, J. J. Heindel, T. Kasten, K. A. Kidd, S. Jobling, M. Neira, R. T. Zoeller, G. Becher, P. Bjerregaard, R. Bornman, I. Brandt, A. Kortenkamp, D. Muir, M.-N. B. Drisse, R. Ochieng, N. E. Skakkebaek, A. S. Byléhn, T. Iguchi, J. Toppari, T. J. Woodruff. The impact of endocrine disruption: A consensus statement on the state of the science. Environ. Health Perspect. 2013 121(4):A104 - 6.
- L. S. Birnbaum. State of the science of endocrine disruptors. Environ. Health Perspect. 2013 121(4):A107.
- A. M. Soto, H. Justicia, J. W. Wray, C. Sonnenschein. P-Nonyl-phenol: An estrogenic xenobiotic released from
- R. J. B. Peters, H. Beeltje, R. J. van Delft. Xeno-estrogenic compounds in precipitation. J. Environ. Monit. 2008 10(6):760 - 769.
- B. Shao, H. Han, D. Li, Y. Ma, X. Tu, Y. Wu. Analysis of alkylphenol and bisphenol A in meat by accelerated solvent extraction and liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. Food Chem. 2007 105(3):1236 - 1241.
- F. Ferrara, F. Fabietti, M. Delise, E. Funari. Alkylphenols and alkylphenol ethoxylates contamination of crustaceans and fishes from the Adriatic Sea (Italy). Chemosphere 2005 59(8):1145 - 1150.
- H. R. Andersen, A. M. Andersson, S. F. Arnold, H. Autrup, M. Barfoed, N. A. Beresford, P. Bjerregaard, L. B. Christiansen, B. Gissel, R. Hummel, E. B. Jorgensen, B. Korsgaard, R. Le Guevel, H. Leffers, J. McLachlan, A. Moller, J. B. Nielsen, N. Olea, A. Oles-Karasko, F. Pakdel, K. L. Pedersen, P. Perez, N. E. Skakkeboek, C. Sonnenschein, A. M. Soto. Comparison of short-term estrogenicity tests for identification of hormone-disrupting chemicals. Environ. Health Perspect. 1999 107 - Suppl - 1:89 - 108.
- P. Ellwood, M. I. Asher, L. García-Marcos, H. Williams, U. Keil, C. Robertson, G. Nagel. Do fast foods cause asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema? Global findings from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) phase three. Thorax 2013 68(4):351 - 360.
- C. Bime, C. Y. Wei, J. Holbrook, L. J. Smith, R. A. Wise. Association of dietary soy genistein intake with lung function and asthma control: A post-hoc analysis of patients enrolled in a prospective multicentre clinical trial. Prim Care Respir J 2012 21(4):398 - 404.
- N. Ademollo, F. Ferrara, M. Delise, F. Fabietti, E. Funari. Nonylphenol and octylphenol in human breast milk. Environ Int 2008 34(7):984 - 987.
- G.-W. Chen, W.-H. Ding, H.-Y. Ku, H.-R. Chao, H.-Y. Chen, M.-C. Huang, S.-L. Wang. Alkylphenols in human milk and their relations to dietary habits in central Taiwan. Food Chem. Toxicol. 2010 48(7):1939 - 1944.
- J. G. Dórea. Alkylphenols and other pollutants contaminate human milk as well as cow's milk: Formula feeding cannot abate exposure in nursing infants. Environ Int 2009 35(2):451.
- K. Guenther, V. Heinke, B. Thiele, E. Kleist, H. Prast, T. Raecker. Endocrine disrupting nonylphenols are ubiquitous in food. Environmental science & technology 2002 36(8):1676 - 1680.
- B. Björkstén. Effects of intestinal microflora and the environment on the development of asthma and allergy. Springer Semin. Immunopathol. 2004 25(3 - 4):257 - 270.
- K. Saito, T. Yokoyama, Y. Miyake, S. Sasaki, K. Tanaka, Y. Ohya, Y. Hirota. Maternal meat and fat consumption during pregnancy and suspected atopic eczema in Japanese infants aged 3-4 months: The Osaka Maternal and Child Health Study. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010 21(1 - Pt - 1):38 - 46.
- Y. Miyake, K. Tanaka, H. Okubo, S. Sasaki, M. Arakawa, others. Dietary meat and fat intake and prevalence of rhinoconjunctivitis in pregnant Japanese women: Baseline data from the Kyushu Okinawa Maternal and Child Health Study. Nutrition Journal 2012 11(1):19.
- Y. Kaneko, Y. Motohashi, H. Nakamura, T. Endo, A. Eboshida. Increasing prevalence of Japanese cedar pollinosis: A meta-regression analysis. Int. Arch. Allergy Immunol. 2005 136(4):365 - 371.
- J.-L. Suen, C.-H. Hung, H.-S. Yu, S.-K. Huang. Alkylphenols--potential modulators of the allergic response. Kaohsiung J. Med. Sci. 2012 28(7 - Suppl):S43 - 8.
- S. De Coster, N. van Larebeke. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Associated disorders and mechanisms of action. J Environ Public Health 2012 2012:713696.
- K Sasaki. Determination of Alkylphenols and 2, 4-Dichlorophenol in Foods. 1999 40(6):460 - 472.
- A. Blom, E. Ekman, A. Johannisson, L. Norrgren, M. Pesonen. Effects of xenoestrogenic environmental pollutants on the proliferation of a human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 1998 34(3):306 - 310.
- I Mao,Y Lu,M Chen. A simplified method for simultaneous quantitation of alkylphenols and alkylphenol ethoxylates in meat and fish using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Int. J. Environ. Anal. Chem. 2007 86(10):713-722.
- H. Adachi, A. Hino. Trends in nutritional intake and serum cholesterol levels over 40 years in Tanushimaru, Japanese men. J Epidemiol 2005 15(3):85 - 89.
- B. M. Thomson, P. J. Cressey, I. C. Shaw. Dietary exposure to xenoestrogens in New Zealand. J. Environ. Monit. 2003 5(2):229 - 235.
- R. Renner. European bans on surfactant trigger transatlantic debate. Environ. Sci. Technol. 1997 31(7):316A - 20A.
- N. Olea, P. Pazos, J. Exposito. Inadvertent exposure to xenoestrogens. Eur. J. Cancer Prev. 1998 7 - Suppl - 1(NA):S17 - 23.
- L. J. Guillette Jr, D. B. Pickford, D. A. Crain, A. A. Rooney, H. F. Percival. Reduction in penis size and plasma testosterone concentrations in juvenile alligators living in a contaminated environment. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 1996 101(1):32 - 42.
- V. Bencko. Human exposure to endocrine disrupters: Carcinogenic risk assessment. Folia Histochem. Cytobiol. 2001 39 - Suppl - 2:24 - 25.
Images thanks to nordique, mineobskuriteter and chesbayprogram via flickr, Dezidor via Wikimedia, and Marion County, Oregon
- allergies
- animal fat
- asthma
- breast cancer
- breast health
- breast milk
- breastfeeding
- cancer
- chicken
- cod liver oil
- eczema
- endocrine disruptors
- estrogen
- Europe
- fat
- fish
- fish oil
- hormones
- industrial pollutants
- infants
- Japan
- lard
- lung health
- memory
- milk
- persistent organic pollutants
- phytoestrogens
- plastic
- poultry
- pregnancy
- salmon
- seafood
- soy
- turkey
- women's health
- xenoestrogens
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
There are many classes of endocrine-disrupting industrial pollutants. Concern about the alkylphenols first surfaced decades ago, when a group at Tufts observed an excessive proliferation of human breast cancer cells in certain types of plastic containers—something you’d normally only see if the cells were exposed to some type of estrogen. They identified an alkylphenol as the culprit “leaching from the plastic,” causing “the estrogenlike properties when tested in the human breast tumor” cells.
That’s not good. So, countries in Europe started banning and restricting uses of these chemicals, but the U.S. EPA has been slow to respond. A half-million tons of these chemicals continue to be spewed out into the environment every year—so much so now that they come down in the rain, and then accumulate up the food chain.
I talked about the seasonal allergy epidemic in Japan. Where in the Japanese food supply can you find these potentially allergy-exacerbating endocrine disrupters? Predominantly chicken, and especially fish. “Water animals and birds concentrate these compounds to levels several thousands [of] times greater than those in the environment,” because these are fat-soluble chemicals. “Therefore, they can easily contaminate foods of animal origin…, which are thought to represent the most important source of human exposure to many organic pollutants,” not just the alkylphenols. This group also found fish was the worst.
Which type of fish? Anchovies and mackerel were the worst in this study, and salmon and cod in this study. In fact, salmon was the only food found contaminated with nonylphenol diethoxylate, which is even more potent than regular nonylphenol.
And, levels of contamination in fish were just the kind of concentrations that start to make breast cancer cells go crazy in vitro.
These findings are consistent with the fact that seafood consumption has been associated with “severe asthma, current and severe rhinoconjunctivitis [which is like seasonal pollen allergies] and current and severe eczema,” an allergic-type disease of the skin, in adolescent populations around the globe.
If these synthetic xenoestrogens are playing a role, what about natural phytoestrogens, like in soy foods? Turns out that “[i]n patients with asthma, consumption of a diet with moderate to high amounts of soy [phytoestrogens] is associated with better lung function and better asthma control.” So, if anything, it’s more these chemical pollutants, which come down in the rain, contaminate the plants, the soil, but then concentrate up the food chain in the fat of animals. And we’re now like the ecosystem’s peak predator, like the polar bear or bald eagle.
Thankfully, there aren’t many cannibals around anymore, though there is one group that continues to feed off human tissues. Alkylphenols have been found to concentrate in human breast milk, particularly in women who eat fish. The highest levels of these endocrine-disrupting pollutants were recorded in milk samples from mothers who said they ate fish “at least twice a week,” consistent with the fact that “seafood consumption represents an important source of [alkylphenol] intake.”
And, even these “[s]lightly elevated [levels] of endocrine disrupters in [the] milk of mothers with a seafood-rich diet [may be] associated with adverse effects on neurological development, foetal and postnatal growth, and memory functions [in] breastfed infants,” because “these contaminants may interfere with the endocrine [or hormonal] system.”
Or, even worse, straight animal fat, such as chicken fat, lard, and tallow, which were considered cooking oils here, or fish oil. “Consumption of fish oil capsules and processed fish products was associated with [alkylphenol] concentration in [mother’s] milk”—again, thanks to bioaccumulation up the food chain.
And then, of course, we recycle the leftover remains of farm animals into farm animal feed, and so the levels can get higher and higher in animal food products.
As one commentator responded, yes, these pollutants contaminate human milk, but they contaminate cow’s milk as well—we live in the same polluted world. In fact, infant formula was found to be over five times more contaminated. So, breast is still best—absolutely. But, these kinds of studies are important in order to provide good suggestions for food choices to nursing mothers, to prevent excess exposure to these pollutants in their infants.
We can kind of cut out the middlefish and move lower down the food chain in hopes of decreasing our exposure to industrial toxins.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- A. Bergman, J. J. Heindel, T. Kasten, K. A. Kidd, S. Jobling, M. Neira, R. T. Zoeller, G. Becher, P. Bjerregaard, R. Bornman, I. Brandt, A. Kortenkamp, D. Muir, M.-N. B. Drisse, R. Ochieng, N. E. Skakkebaek, A. S. Byléhn, T. Iguchi, J. Toppari, T. J. Woodruff. The impact of endocrine disruption: A consensus statement on the state of the science. Environ. Health Perspect. 2013 121(4):A104 - 6.
- L. S. Birnbaum. State of the science of endocrine disruptors. Environ. Health Perspect. 2013 121(4):A107.
- A. M. Soto, H. Justicia, J. W. Wray, C. Sonnenschein. P-Nonyl-phenol: An estrogenic xenobiotic released from
- R. J. B. Peters, H. Beeltje, R. J. van Delft. Xeno-estrogenic compounds in precipitation. J. Environ. Monit. 2008 10(6):760 - 769.
- B. Shao, H. Han, D. Li, Y. Ma, X. Tu, Y. Wu. Analysis of alkylphenol and bisphenol A in meat by accelerated solvent extraction and liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. Food Chem. 2007 105(3):1236 - 1241.
- F. Ferrara, F. Fabietti, M. Delise, E. Funari. Alkylphenols and alkylphenol ethoxylates contamination of crustaceans and fishes from the Adriatic Sea (Italy). Chemosphere 2005 59(8):1145 - 1150.
- H. R. Andersen, A. M. Andersson, S. F. Arnold, H. Autrup, M. Barfoed, N. A. Beresford, P. Bjerregaard, L. B. Christiansen, B. Gissel, R. Hummel, E. B. Jorgensen, B. Korsgaard, R. Le Guevel, H. Leffers, J. McLachlan, A. Moller, J. B. Nielsen, N. Olea, A. Oles-Karasko, F. Pakdel, K. L. Pedersen, P. Perez, N. E. Skakkeboek, C. Sonnenschein, A. M. Soto. Comparison of short-term estrogenicity tests for identification of hormone-disrupting chemicals. Environ. Health Perspect. 1999 107 - Suppl - 1:89 - 108.
- P. Ellwood, M. I. Asher, L. García-Marcos, H. Williams, U. Keil, C. Robertson, G. Nagel. Do fast foods cause asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema? Global findings from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) phase three. Thorax 2013 68(4):351 - 360.
- C. Bime, C. Y. Wei, J. Holbrook, L. J. Smith, R. A. Wise. Association of dietary soy genistein intake with lung function and asthma control: A post-hoc analysis of patients enrolled in a prospective multicentre clinical trial. Prim Care Respir J 2012 21(4):398 - 404.
- N. Ademollo, F. Ferrara, M. Delise, F. Fabietti, E. Funari. Nonylphenol and octylphenol in human breast milk. Environ Int 2008 34(7):984 - 987.
- G.-W. Chen, W.-H. Ding, H.-Y. Ku, H.-R. Chao, H.-Y. Chen, M.-C. Huang, S.-L. Wang. Alkylphenols in human milk and their relations to dietary habits in central Taiwan. Food Chem. Toxicol. 2010 48(7):1939 - 1944.
- J. G. Dórea. Alkylphenols and other pollutants contaminate human milk as well as cow's milk: Formula feeding cannot abate exposure in nursing infants. Environ Int 2009 35(2):451.
- K. Guenther, V. Heinke, B. Thiele, E. Kleist, H. Prast, T. Raecker. Endocrine disrupting nonylphenols are ubiquitous in food. Environmental science & technology 2002 36(8):1676 - 1680.
- B. Björkstén. Effects of intestinal microflora and the environment on the development of asthma and allergy. Springer Semin. Immunopathol. 2004 25(3 - 4):257 - 270.
- K. Saito, T. Yokoyama, Y. Miyake, S. Sasaki, K. Tanaka, Y. Ohya, Y. Hirota. Maternal meat and fat consumption during pregnancy and suspected atopic eczema in Japanese infants aged 3-4 months: The Osaka Maternal and Child Health Study. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010 21(1 - Pt - 1):38 - 46.
- Y. Miyake, K. Tanaka, H. Okubo, S. Sasaki, M. Arakawa, others. Dietary meat and fat intake and prevalence of rhinoconjunctivitis in pregnant Japanese women: Baseline data from the Kyushu Okinawa Maternal and Child Health Study. Nutrition Journal 2012 11(1):19.
- Y. Kaneko, Y. Motohashi, H. Nakamura, T. Endo, A. Eboshida. Increasing prevalence of Japanese cedar pollinosis: A meta-regression analysis. Int. Arch. Allergy Immunol. 2005 136(4):365 - 371.
- J.-L. Suen, C.-H. Hung, H.-S. Yu, S.-K. Huang. Alkylphenols--potential modulators of the allergic response. Kaohsiung J. Med. Sci. 2012 28(7 - Suppl):S43 - 8.
- S. De Coster, N. van Larebeke. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Associated disorders and mechanisms of action. J Environ Public Health 2012 2012:713696.
- K Sasaki. Determination of Alkylphenols and 2, 4-Dichlorophenol in Foods. 1999 40(6):460 - 472.
- A. Blom, E. Ekman, A. Johannisson, L. Norrgren, M. Pesonen. Effects of xenoestrogenic environmental pollutants on the proliferation of a human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 1998 34(3):306 - 310.
- I Mao,Y Lu,M Chen. A simplified method for simultaneous quantitation of alkylphenols and alkylphenol ethoxylates in meat and fish using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. Int. J. Environ. Anal. Chem. 2007 86(10):713-722.
- H. Adachi, A. Hino. Trends in nutritional intake and serum cholesterol levels over 40 years in Tanushimaru, Japanese men. J Epidemiol 2005 15(3):85 - 89.
- B. M. Thomson, P. J. Cressey, I. C. Shaw. Dietary exposure to xenoestrogens in New Zealand. J. Environ. Monit. 2003 5(2):229 - 235.
- R. Renner. European bans on surfactant trigger transatlantic debate. Environ. Sci. Technol. 1997 31(7):316A - 20A.
- N. Olea, P. Pazos, J. Exposito. Inadvertent exposure to xenoestrogens. Eur. J. Cancer Prev. 1998 7 - Suppl - 1(NA):S17 - 23.
- L. J. Guillette Jr, D. B. Pickford, D. A. Crain, A. A. Rooney, H. F. Percival. Reduction in penis size and plasma testosterone concentrations in juvenile alligators living in a contaminated environment. Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 1996 101(1):32 - 42.
- V. Bencko. Human exposure to endocrine disrupters: Carcinogenic risk assessment. Folia Histochem. Cytobiol. 2001 39 - Suppl - 2:24 - 25.
Images thanks to nordique, mineobskuriteter and chesbayprogram via flickr, Dezidor via Wikimedia, and Marion County, Oregon
- allergies
- animal fat
- asthma
- breast cancer
- breast health
- breast milk
- breastfeeding
- cancer
- chicken
- cod liver oil
- eczema
- endocrine disruptors
- estrogen
- Europe
- fat
- fish
- fish oil
- hormones
- industrial pollutants
- infants
- Japan
- lard
- lung health
- memory
- milk
- persistent organic pollutants
- phytoestrogens
- plastic
- poultry
- pregnancy
- salmon
- seafood
- soy
- turkey
- women's health
- xenoestrogens
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Dietary Sources of Alkylphenol Endocrine Disruptors
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Content URLDoctor's Note
See my previous video, Alkylphenol Endocrine Disruptors & Allergies for background on this class of xenoestrogens.
Endocrine disruptors have also been linked to conditions such as male infertility (see Male Fertility and Diet) and the early onset of puberty (Protein, Puberty, & Pollutants).
What other industrial pollutants build up in the aquatic fish chain? See, for example:
- Fukushima & Radioactivity in Seafood
- Fish Intake Associated with Brain Shrinkage
- Mercury vs. Omega 3s for Brain Development
- Food Sources of PCB Chemical Pollutants
- Food Sources of Perfluorochemicals
- The Problem with Organic Salmon
- Food Sources of Flame-Retardant Chemicals
Farmed Fish vs. Wild-Caught; which is worse?
Breastfeeding is one way to offload toxins, but it is The Wrong Way to Detox.
How Long to Detox from Fish Before Pregnancy? If it’s too late, How Fast Can Children Detoxify from PCBs?
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