Kathy Dettwyler writes:

>I find Dr. Steingraber's info fascinating -- it just leads to more and more
>and more questions.

>For instance, if a woman's first pregnancy ends in a loss (either a
>miscarriage or an abortion, say) does that mean she 'dumps' a lot of her
>acquired toxins up to that point in that fetus?

>I can just imagine a science fiction scenario in which women get pregnant,
>carry the pregnancy almost to term, and then abort -- to "cleanse" their
>body of toxins, so they can then go on to produce 'healthy' babies.
>Gross/bizarre idea -- I am *not* advocating this!  Just thinking through the
>various possibilities to their conclusions.

A:   Far less dioxin crosses the placenta than is lactated out
through the breasts because blood has less fat in it than milk on a
per volume basis.  So, from the point of view of the mother, her body
burden drops faster during lactation than during pregnancy.  On the
other hand, the baby appears to suffer more from the smaller amounts
of transplacental transfer than from breast milk exposure.

Thus, in your sci. fi. scenario, it would be wet nurses that would
"benefit" most.  (or maybe lipo-suction enthusiasts?)  All very
chilling, as you say!

(By the way, our low-fat blood is also why dioxins are often measured
in human milk instead of in blood.  It's not that breast milk has
proportionally MORE dioxins than any other human tissue; it has
roughly the same concentration as blood serum does.  But because the
lipid fraction of the blood is so scanty, you have to draw quite a
lot of it to get an accurate reading.  With breast milk, you just
need a little bit.)


>Since cows are very low on the food chain, why are beef, dairy products, and
>'milk' considered the 3 top sources of dioxins for humans?

A:   I think probably because beef and milk have such high fat
content.  And (I'm guessing here) because most Americans eat a lot
more dairy and beef than other animal foods.  Maybe also because cows
live comparatively longer than some other livestock animals?

>So -- the alternative is to give the
>baby formula made from cows' milk?  But cows' milk is one of the top sources
>of dioxin?  This makes no sense.

A:   Commercial formula contains no dairy fat; my understanding is
that it's all plant oils.   But there are probably others on the
listserv that know the ins and outs of formula ingredients better
than I.


>Are there *good* websites with accurate information about dioxin?

A:    The American People's Dioxin Report is a reliable source,
written by top-flight scientists with activist hearts.  It should be
on-line at http://www.chej.org


warmly, Sandra

--
--

Sandra Steingraber, Ph.D.
Visiting Assistant Professor
Program on Breast Cancer and Environmental Risk Factors
110 Rice Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY  14853
[log in to unmask]
www.steingraber.com

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