Study maps chemical residues in European children's diets

Tuesday, December 28, 2010 - 09:30 in Health & Medicine

A 10-year-old child eating a balanced diet may be exposed to as many as 128 chemical residues of 81 different substancesIn a single day, a 10-year-old child in Europe may be exposed through food to 128 chemical residues of 81 different substances. Forty-two of these substances are classified as "possibly or probably carcinogens", and five as "certainly carcinogens". No fewer than 37 substances are endocrine disruptors (ED).This is the conclusion of a study published this month by a partnership of environmental groups based in France and Belgium: Générations Futures, the Health and Environment Alliance (Heal), Réseau Environnement Santé (RES) and WWF-France. The authors of the study bought food in supermarkets in Oise, north of Paris, and in the French capital, sufficient to give a typical 10-year-old three meals a day and a snack. The food was not organic but was consistent with a balanced diet.The authors then asked independent laboratories...

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