REVIEW
April Monthly Luncheon Wednesday, 6th April 2022
The Secret Life of Chemicals We were honoured to welcome our guest speaker to the April Monthly Luncheon, Professor Alfred Poulos, who spoke about his book, The Secret Life of Chemicals, published in 2019. Prof Alfred Poulos has worked in universities, research institutes and hospitals in the UK, USA, Canada and has published over 150 papers in the international scientific and medical journals. While his medical and scientific research has been wide and varied, it has chiefly focused on the role fats play in health and disease. His recent interests are in nutrition, and in the chemical pollutants present in our food, water and the environment. The Secret Life of Chemicals provides a guide to the many chemicals present in the environment, and their connection to disease including cancer, heart disease and auto-immune disorders. Below is a summary Professor Poulos’s talk. Humans are exposed to a staggering variety of chemical pollutants. Sources of these pollutants include •
Agriculture -APVMA
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Plastics
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Paper
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Water
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Electronic waste
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Motor vehicles/transport
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Power generation
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Pharmaceuticals/supplements > 19, 000 FDA
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Cosmetics
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Clothing
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Cleaning
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Food additives
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Building and construction
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Mining
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Smelting
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Landfill waste
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Fire retardants
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Industry
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Some appreciation of the problem of chemical pollution is apparent from the USA Toxic Substances Inventory which lists more than 80,000 industrial chemicals. The Australian Pesticide and Veterinary Medicine Authority lists more than 3000 herbicide, 1300 pesticide and fungicide chemicals while there are 90,000 registered therapeutic goods, mostly drugs and supplements registered with the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration. Plastics in particular are a major source of pollution. There are many different types of plastics. In addition to the plastic polymers and monomers, plastics may contain a variety of other chemicals including initiators, antioxidants, dyes/inks, flame retardants, light stabilisers, plasticisers, lubricants, whitening agents, and antimicrobials. Environmental degradation of plastics results in the slow release of the various chemical components. Tiny plastics particles, referred to as microplastics, are also generated from the breakdown of plastics and are now found everywhere including the oceans, rivers, lakes and even in reservoirs and tapwater. They are of particular concern because of their ability to bind other chemicals, including pollutants. After being released into the environment, pollutants can be taken up by animals and plants. They have also been detected in human tissues such as in the blood and brain. Environmental chemicals have even been detected in breast milk in some of the most remote parts of the planet (e.g the Faroes Islands). The source of chemicals taken up are many and varied; and include food and food containers, drugs and supplements, water, indoor and outdoor air, smoking/ vaping, surgery/prosthesis/dental, cosmetics, soaps and other detergents. A major source of chemical exposure for many people within their occupation and there is considerable evidence that workplace chemicals can cause diseases. There are mechanisms in our bodies for detoxifying and eliminating chemical pollutants. One particular protein, cytochrome P450 plays an important role but there is increasing evidence that there are slight differences in the genes for this protein (and many other proteins), referred to as polymorphisms, and it is likely that these differences probably affect the efficiency of detoxification and excretion of many pollutants.
