Unwanted Chemicals in our Bodies (6) – OCP’s and PCB’s

OCB’s Organochlorine Pesticides) and PCB’s (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) enter the body through food or airborne particles.

They are believed to damage the bodies vital organs and immune system and are also believed to be carcinogens.

PCB’s were used in electrical equipment and coolants until the 1970’s where they were banned by the US congress. They are both toxic and bioaccumilating and there have been numerous recorded cases of large scale contamination (click here to read more). PCB’s are endocrine disruptor’s.

Image kindly reproduced according to the licence at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Polychlorinated_biphenyl_structure.svg

OCP’s are now banned from agricultural use – the most infamous OCP is DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane). They are again, believed to be endocrine disruptor’s and are linked to infants to be born prematurely and with a low birth weight.

DDT is also believed to be carcinogenic.

The above image is that of DDT.

This image was kindly reproduced according to the licence at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:P,p%27-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane.svg

This posting concluded the mini -series on ‘Unwanted Chemicals in our Bodies’. I hope it hasn’t put you off anything!