Among dietary factors, learning and behavior are influenced not only by nutrients, but also by exposure to toxic food contaminants such as mercury that can disrupt metabolic processes and alter neuronal plasticity. 

Neurons lacking in plasticity are a factor in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and mental retardation. Essential nutrients help maintain normal neuronal plasticity. Nutritional deficiencies, including deficiencies in the long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, the amino acid methionine, and the trace minerals zinc and selenium, have been shown to influence neuronal function and produce defects in neuronal plasticity, as well as impact behavior in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. 

Nutritional deficiencies and mercury exposure have been shown to alter neuronal function and increase oxidative stress among children with autism. These dietary factors may be directly related to the development of behavior disorders and learning disabilities. 

Mercury, either individually or in concert with other factors, may be harmful if ingested in above average amounts or by sensitive individuals. High fructose corn syrup has been shown to contain trace amounts of mercury as a result of some manufacturing processes, and its consumption can also lead to zinc loss. Consumption of certain artificial food color additives has also been shown to lead to zinc deficiency. Dietary zinc is essential for maintaining the metabolic processes required for mercury elimination.

Since high fructose corn syrup and artificial food color additives are common ingredients in many foodstuffs, their consumption should be considered in those individuals with nutritional deficits such as zinc deficiency or who are allergic or sensitive to the effects of mercury or unable to effectively metabolize and eliminate it from the body. 

Reference:

Dufault R, Schnoll R, Lukiw WJ, Leblanc B, Cornett C, Patrick L, Wallinga D, Gilbert SG, Crider R., Mercury exposure, nutritional deficiencies and metabolic disruptions may affect learning in children, Behav. Brain Funct. 2009 Oct 27;5(1):44.

Twenty-eight incapacitated individuals (average 43 years old, 7 males, 21 females, range 12-70) exposed to molds and mycotoxins were studied and treated with a protocol of cleaning up or changing their environment to be mold free.

Injections of the optimum dose of antigens were given as part of the treatment protocol as was oral and intravenous (i.v.) antioxidants; heat depuration (sauna); physical therapy with massage and exercise under environmentally controlled conditions; oxygen therapy at 4-8 L/min for 2 hours with a special wood-grade cellophane reservoir and a glass oxygen container. Many patients were sensitive to plastics; therefore, exposures to these were kept to a minimum. Autogenous lymphocytic factor (ALF) was given as an immune modulator.

Of 28 patients, 27 did well and returned to work. One patient improved but did not return to work during the period of study

Reference: Rea WJ, Pan Y, Griffiths B., The treatment of patients with mycotoxin-induced disease, Environmental Health Center – Dallas, TX, USA, Toxicol Ind Health. 2009 Oct-Nov;25(9-10):711-4.

Most studies on sick building syndrome (SBS) are cross-sectional and have dealt with symptoms among office workers. There are very few longitudinal cohort studies and few studies on SBS in relation to domestic exposures. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in SBS symptoms during the follow-up period and also to investigate changes in different types of indoor exposures at home and relate them to SBS symptoms in a population sample of adults from Sweden. We also wanted to investigate if there was any seasonal or regional variation in associations between exposure and SBS.

 A random sample of 1,000 people of the general population in Sweden (1991) was sent a self administered questionnaire. A follow-up questionnaire was sent in 2001.

An increased risk for onset of any skin symptoms (risk ratio (RR) 2.32, 1.37-3.93), mucosal symptoms (RR 3.17, 1.69-5.95) or general symptoms (RR 2.18, 1.29-3.70) was found for those who had dampness or moulds in the dwelling during follow-up. In addition people living in damp dwellings had a lower remission of general symptoms and skin symptoms.

Dampness in the dwelling is a risk factor for new onset of SBS symptoms. Focus on indoor environment improvements in dwellings can be beneficial both for the inhabitants and the general population. Reducing dampness in buildings is an important factor for reducing SBS symptoms in the general population.

Reference:
Sahlberg B, Wieslander G, Norbäck D., Sick building syndrome (SBS) in relation to domestic exposure in Sweden – A cohort study from 1991 to 2001, Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Uppsala University Hospital and Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden, Scand J Public Health. 2009 Oct 22.

A new study in China has found that people with higher levels of pesticide exposure are more likely to have suicidal thoughts. The study was carried out by Dr Robert Stewart from the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London together with scientists from Tongde Hospital Zhejiang Province. 

The agricultural pesticides commonly used in China are organophosphates which are in wide use in many lower income countries but have been banned in many Western nations. It is well known that they are very dangerous if ingested as an overdose but there is also biological evidence that chronic low-grade exposure to these chemicals, which are very easily absorbed into the body through the skin and lungs, may have adverse effects on mental health. This study is the first epidemiological evidence to suggest possible effects on suicidal thoughts. 

The study was carried out in central/coastal China, a relatively wealthy area with a rapidly developing economy. In a very large survey of mental health in rural community residents, participants were also asked about how they stored pesticides. The study found that people who stored pesticides at home, i.e. those with more exposure, were more likely to report recent suicidal thoughts. Supporting this, the survey also found suicidal thoughts to be associated with how easily accessible these pesticides were in the home and that the geographic areas with highest home storage of pesticides also had highest levels of suicidal thoughts in their populations. 

Given the high level of pesticide exposure and the high suicide risk in rural China, clarification of the causal mechanisms underlying this association and the development of appropriate interventions should be priorities for public health and health policy. 

Dr Robert Stewart comments: ‘Organophosphate pesticides are widely used around the world although are banned in many countries because of their risk to health. They are particularly lethal chemicals when taken in overdose and are a cause of many suicides worldwide. Our research findings that suggest that higher exposure to these chemicals might actually increase the risk of suicidal thoughts provides further support for calls for tighter international restrictions on agricultural pesticide availability and use.’

Dr Jianmin Zhang, Associate Chief Psychiatrist, Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, and Vice Director, Zhejiang Office of Mental Health, China added: “The findings of this study suggested potential causal links and might partially account for the much higher incidence of suicide in rural than urban areas of China. However, further studies particularly with more precisely defined and assessed exposure are critically needed, as awareness of safer access to pesticides is important both to policy-makers and pesticide users.”

Reference: King’s College London, Pesticides exposure linked to suicidal thoughts, October 22, 2009  

Notes:

Pesticide exposure and suicidal ideation in rural communities in Zhejiang province, China by Jianmin Zhang, Robert Stewart, Michael Phillips, Qichang Shi & Martin Prince was published in the October issue of the WHO Bulletin. The full article can be accessed on http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/10/08-054122.pdf 

The analysis involved data from a survey of a representative sample of 9,811 rural residents in Zhejiang province who had been asked about the storage of pesticides at home and about whether or not they had considered suicide within the two years before the interview. The Chinese version of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) was administered to screen for mental disorder.

Breakthrough study on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity shows MCS is an epidemic caused by toxic chemicals; peer-reviewed paper is published in prestigious toxicology reference work.

A major paper on multiple chemical sensitivity by Professor Martin L. Pall is to be published October 23, 2009 as chapter XX in a prestigious reference work for professional toxicologists, “General and Applied Toxicology, 3rd Edition” (John Wiley & Sons).  Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) is also known as chemical sensitivity, chemical intolerance and toxicant-induced loss of tolerance, with this last name emphasizing the role of chemicals in initiating cases of this disease.  Pall’s  paper, entitled Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: Toxicological Questions and Mechanisms, establishes five important facts about  MCS:

1. MCS is a stunningly common disease, even more common than diabetes.  This has been shown in a series of nine epidemiological studies from the U.S. and one study each from Canada, Germany, Sweden and Denmark.  In the U.S., approximately 3.5% of the population is affected by severe MCS, with much larger numbers, at least 12% of the population, being moderately affected.  MCS is, therefore, a very large international disease epidemic with major implications in terms of public health.

2. MCS is caused by toxic chemical exposure.  Cases of MCS are initiated by exposure to seven classes of chemicals.  These include three classes of pesticides and the very large class of organic solvents and related compounds.  In addition, published studies implicate mercury, hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide as initiators.  All seven of these classes of chemicals have been shown in animal studies to produce a common response in the body, excessive activity of a receptor in the body known as the NMDA receptor.  Furthermore animal studies have demonstrated that chemicals belonging to each of these seven classes can have their toxic responses greatly lowered by using drugs that lower this NMDA response.  Because excessive NMDA activity is implicated in MCS from other studies, we now have a compelling common response that explains how such diverse chemicals can produce the disease that we call MCS.

3. The role of chemicals acting as toxicants in MCS has been confirmed by genetic studies.  Four such studies have shown that genes that determine the rate of metabolism of chemicals otherwise implicated in MCS, influence susceptibility to becoming ill with MCS.  These four studies have been published by three research groups in three countries, the U.S., Canada and Germany, have collectively implicated six genes in determining susceptibility to MCS.  Each of these six genes has a role in determining the rate of metabolism of MCS-related chemicals.  The German studies by Schnakenberg and colleagues are particularly convincing on this because of the extremely high level of statistical significance of their studies implicating four of these six genes. There is only one interpretation for the role of these six genes in determining susceptibility to MCS.  It is that chemicals act as toxicants in initiating cases of MCS and that metabolizing these chemicals into forms that are either less or more active in such initiation, influences therefore, the probability that a person will become ill with MCS.  It is clear, therefore, that MCS is a toxicological phenomenon, with cases being caused by the toxic response to chemical exposure.

4. We have, a detailed and generally well supported mechanism for MCS.   This mechanism explains both the high level chemical sensitivity that is the most characteristic symptom of MCS, as well as many other symptoms and signs of this disease, can be generated.   This mechanism is centered on a biochemical vicious cycle, known as the NO/ONOO- cycle, which interacts with other mechanisms previously implicated in MCS, notably neural sensitization and neurogenic inflammation.  These act locally, in various tissues of the body, to generate local sensitivity in regions of the brain and in peripheral tissues including lungs, upper respiratory tract and regions of the skin and the GI tract.  Because of this local nature, different MCS patients differ from one another in their sensitivity symptoms, because the tissues impacted differ from one patient to another.  In addition to the evidence discussed above, this general mechanism is supported by various physiological changes found in MCS and in related illnesses, by studies of MCS animal models, by objectively measurable responses of MCS patients to low level chemical exposure and by therapeutic responses reported for MCS and related illnesses.

5. For over 20 years, some have falsely argued that MCS is a psychogenic disease, being generated in their view by some ill defined psychological mechanism.  However this view is completely incompatible with all of the evidence discussed earlier in this release. While such incompatibility is more than sufficient reason to reject these psychogenic claims, the MCS toxicology paper lists eight additional serious flaws in the psychogenic arguments.  There is a long history of false psychogenic claims in medicine, where such diseases as asthma, autism, Parkinson’s disease, ulcers, multiple sclerosis, lupus, interstitial cystitis, migraine and ulcerative colitis have been claimed to be generated by a psychological mechanism.  The 2005 Nobel Prize in physiology and medicine was give to Drs. Robin Warren and Barry Marshall for showing that ulcers are caused by a bacterial infection, and are not of psychogenic origin.  It is clear, now, that MCS is physiological disease initiated by toxic chemical exposure that has been falsely claimed to be psychogenic.

—

Martin L. Pall is Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Science, at Washington State University.

He is located on Pacific time in the U.S. and can be contacted at:  503-232-3883 and at martin_pall@wsu.edu.

His Website is: www.thetenthparadigm.org

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