Eight years ago, because of a serious illness, I started researching chemical body burden and the effects chemicals present in my body could be having on my mental and physical health. When I first started doing research the information was limited, but in the last few years it seems to have gone mainstream.

What is "Chemical Body Burden?"

"Toxic chemicals, both naturally occurring and man-made, often get into the human body. We may inhale them, swallow them in contaminated food or water, or in some cases, absorb them through skin. The term "body burden" refers to the total amount of these chemicals that are present in the human body at a given point in time." These chemicals are often stored in our fat cells for years if not our entire lives. Researches still do not know the potential health risks of the combined affect that multiple carcinogenic chemicals have on our bodies. To learn more go to chemicalbodyburden.org.

Every person alive today, whether living in industrial centers or remote areas, carries a chemical body burden of over 300 chemicals, most of which did not exist before World War II. The health effects of some of these chemicals are documented, but many others have undergone little or no testing. How these chemicals might interact with each other to affect human health is rarely tested and poorly understood.

National Geographic sponsored and published an article by David Ewing Duncan called "The Pollution Within." The author decided to use himself as a guinea pig and get his body tested for toxic chemicals and boy, was he surprised! As he describes it, "I'm engaged in a journey of chemical self-discovery. Last fall I had myself tested for 320 chemicals I might have picked up from food, drink, the air I breathe, and the products that touch my skin-my own secret stash of compounds acquired by merely living. It includes older chemicals that I might have been exposed to decades ago, such as DDT and PCBs; pollutants like lead, mercury, and dioxins; newer pesticides and plastic ingredients; and the near-miraculous compounds that lurk just beneath the surface of modern life, making shampoos fragrant, pans nonstick, and fabrics water-resistant and fire-safe." Read more about The Pollution Within.

One of the most disturbing things about the research is the lack of information on the synergistic effect the chemicals in our body have on our physical and mental wellbeing. Chemical companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to ensure that the general public "feels safe" using their products. Read Chemicals in Our Food and Toxic Brain to learn more about what is in the every day products you use and how they may be affecting your health.

After spending the first year of my illness researching the current data on chemical body burden, it led me to looking into what I may have been exposed to during my childhood. What I found was fascinating. After contacting several of the children that I grew up with, I found that there were a total of five of us with the same or similar disorder. And all of us played and swam in a small river behind our houses that was later found to be, as one toxicologist put it, a "toxic stew."

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Living in a society where we are inundated on a daily basis with advertisements and media reports suggesting that the latest research showing the dangers of certain chemicals is false and unfounded makes it difficult to decide what your priorities should be, but to me it is simple, health, happiness and family come first.

Consider limiting the chemicals you use in your home, your food and in your life.

Stay Well and Healthy,

Michelle