The reason birth order is a predictor of pollutant levels in the bodies of children is that women can pass along as much as half of their PCB burden to their fetus during pregnancy.
The Wrong Way to Detox
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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 is one proven way to accelerate the removal of these toxins—transfer them to your baby. Changes in blood concentrations of PCBs during pregnancy. Some women cut their levels in half! They just deposited the pollution into their child.
So much so that a significant predictor of pollutant levels in young people is their birth order. The first born gets first dibs on mom’s toxic waste, leaving less for their baby brothers and sisters down the line.
Same thing with breast milk concentrations. This is how much you have in your breast milk after your first pregnancy, but by the next few, you’ve already passed about 20% along to your first born. And, even the mothers who were breast fed as infants tend to have higher levels in their breast milk when they grow up—suggesting a multigenerational passing down of toxic pollutants.
So, what women eat now may affect the levels of toxins in their grandchildren. This, of course, raises the question whether one should breastfeed at all, given the levels of PBCs in human breast milk. “Researchers have long debated the adverse effects of exposure to…PCBs on children versus the benefits of breastfeeding.”
And, the conclusion is, breast is still best: “Breastfeeding should…continue to be encouraged….” So, the best thing we can do for ourselves and our families, and their families is to lower our dietary exposure as much as possible.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Ulaszewska MM, Zuccato E, Davoli E. PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs in human milk and estimation of infants' daily intake: a review. Chemosphere. 2011 Apr;83(6):774-82.
- Aliyu MH, Alio AP, Salihu HM. To breastfeed or not to breastfeed: a review of the impact of lactational exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on infants. J Environ Health. 2010 Oct;73(3):8-14; quiz 32.
- Gallo MV, Schell LM, DeCaprio AP, Jacobs A. Levels of persistent organic pollutant and their predictors among young adults. Chemosphere. 2011 May;83(10):1374-82.
- Glynn A, Larsdotter M, Aune M, Darnerud PO, Bjerselius R, Bergman A. Changes in serum concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hydroxylated PCB metabolites and pentachlorophenol during pregnancy. Chemosphere. 2011 Mar;83(2):144-51.
Images thanks to Marion County, Oregon
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 is one proven way to accelerate the removal of these toxins—transfer them to your baby. Changes in blood concentrations of PCBs during pregnancy. Some women cut their levels in half! They just deposited the pollution into their child.
So much so that a significant predictor of pollutant levels in young people is their birth order. The first born gets first dibs on mom’s toxic waste, leaving less for their baby brothers and sisters down the line.
Same thing with breast milk concentrations. This is how much you have in your breast milk after your first pregnancy, but by the next few, you’ve already passed about 20% along to your first born. And, even the mothers who were breast fed as infants tend to have higher levels in their breast milk when they grow up—suggesting a multigenerational passing down of toxic pollutants.
So, what women eat now may affect the levels of toxins in their grandchildren. This, of course, raises the question whether one should breastfeed at all, given the levels of PBCs in human breast milk. “Researchers have long debated the adverse effects of exposure to…PCBs on children versus the benefits of breastfeeding.”
And, the conclusion is, breast is still best: “Breastfeeding should…continue to be encouraged….” So, the best thing we can do for ourselves and our families, and their families is to lower our dietary exposure as much as possible.
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- Ulaszewska MM, Zuccato E, Davoli E. PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs in human milk and estimation of infants' daily intake: a review. Chemosphere. 2011 Apr;83(6):774-82.
- Aliyu MH, Alio AP, Salihu HM. To breastfeed or not to breastfeed: a review of the impact of lactational exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on infants. J Environ Health. 2010 Oct;73(3):8-14; quiz 32.
- Gallo MV, Schell LM, DeCaprio AP, Jacobs A. Levels of persistent organic pollutant and their predictors among young adults. Chemosphere. 2011 May;83(10):1374-82.
- Glynn A, Larsdotter M, Aune M, Darnerud PO, Bjerselius R, Bergman A. Changes in serum concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hydroxylated PCB metabolites and pentachlorophenol during pregnancy. Chemosphere. 2011 Mar;83(2):144-51.
Images thanks to Marion County, Oregon
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Title
The Wrong Way to Detox
LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Content URLDoctor's Note
Some of my other videos on breastfeeding include Cow’s Milk-Induced Infant Apnea; American Vegans Placing Babies At Risk; and Antioxidant Power of Plant Foods Versus Animal Foods. If you can’t breastfeed, what’s the best infant formula? See The Best Baby Formula. Unfortunately, even before your baby is born, our diets may be exposing them to pollutants. See CDC Report on Environmental Chemical Exposure; DDT in Umbilical Cord Blood; and Food Sources of Perfluorochemicals. Eating a more plant-based diet will help reduce exposure, and the resulting DNA damage; see Plants vs. Pesticides; DNA Protection From Broccoli; and The Best Detox.
For further context, check out my associated blog posts: Protecting Our Babies From Pollutants; Apple Peels Turn On Anticancer Genes; and Head Shrinking from Grilling Meat.
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