Pollution 'putting millions of children at brain damage risk'

Millions of children throughout the world may have suffered brain damage as a result of industrial pollution, researchers say.
Common pollutants may be causing a “silent pandemic” of neurodevelopmental disorders by impairing the brain development of foetuses and infants, scientists writing today in The Lancet medical journal say. Potential effects of exposure to even tiny amounts of toxic chemicals include lower IQ scores and conditions such as autism, attention deficit disorder, and cerebral palsy. One in six children is thought to have some kind of developmental disability, but the exact causes are largely unknown.
The American and Danish researchers say that lead, methylmercury, arsenic and solvents such as ethanol and toluene are among 202 industrial and agricultural chemicals with potential to damage the brain. But these are likely to be the “tip of a very large iceberg” of potentially noxious chemicals, they write.
More than 1,000 chemicals are known to be neurotoxic in animals, and are also likely to be harmful to humans, especially during the vulnerable phases of development that begin during pregnancy and can extend as late as the onset of adolesence.

Other substances that could prove to be toxic in excessive amounts include fluoride, a common additive in drinking water and toothpaste, the researchers say.

They actually admit you can have too much fluoride!

Writing in the online version of The Lancet, the scientists conclude: “The combined evidence suggests that neurodevelopmental disorders caused by industrial chemicals has created a silent pandemic in modern society.”