Sex changes in frogs, puberty in children?

April 5, 2009

The frogs look normal on the outside. But trace amounts of one of the most

popular weedkillers in the US have caused male frogs to grow internal female sex

organs, according to a study published in the April 16, 2002 Proceedings of the

National Academy of Sciences. These mutant frogs may help explain why the

amphibian population is declining. The weedkiller atrazine is commonly found in

tap water, which is allowed to contain 30 times the concentration of the

weedkiller that affected these frogs. The amount thought to be toxic to humans

is 20 times higher than found in tap water. Frogs are much more sensitive to the

toxic effects, like canaries in the mineshafts that were affected before humans

- and were used as a warning. Atrazine changes the ratios of testosterone to

estrogen (increasing the estrogen effect). Among humans, growing children could

be the most sensitive to atrazine affects. If it were affecting our kids, we

would expect to see increasing

changes in puberty or sexual development -- although the kids might look normal

on the outside. Perhaps we would see an increase later in life of

estrogen-related tumors, such as breast cancer. We don't know yet whether

atrazine is a serious health problem for humans (but we didn't know about DDT

until 30 years after the fact). Either way, we should take the frog warning

seriously. More study is needed. In the meantime, simple carbon filters can

remove atrazine from drinking water. Also, this is another good reason to

consider choosing organic foods. Supporting environmentally friendly agriculture

can decrease the amount of atrazine and other chemicals in our water supply.

Alan Greene MD FAAP

Love, Gabby. :0)

" I know of nobody who is purely Autistic or purely neurotypical. Even God had

some Autistic moments, which is why the planets all spin. " ~ Jerry Newport

Recommended Posts