Your kitchen faucet might be just as dangerous as your stovetop, according to a recent study published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Researchers found elevated levels of dichlorophenols, chemicals used in tap water and pesticides, in the urine of people affected with food allergies.
The tap water study is one more drop in the bucket of research indicating pesticides wreak havoc on the immune system. This study also illustrates how pervasive these harmful chemicals are. Exposure to pesticides is difficult to avoid, but immune booster supplements may help.
The Evidence against Pesticides
In 1996, the World Resources Institute published “Pesticides and the Immune System: The Public Health Risks.” The paper cited worldwide examples of immunosuppression.
After experiencing a dramatic rise in pesticide use, Philippian farmers also experienced higher mortality rates. High mortality only affected men who farmed, while their wives and men in other occupations experienced no such rise in mortality.
In Uzbekistan, people living in cotton-growing regions where high levels of pesticides were used suffered from more kidney disease, upper respiratory tract infections and gastrointestinal diseases. The study also concluded that pesticides damage organs and exacerbated existing conditions like tuberculosis.
The World Resources Institute goes on to say that people exposed to pesticides are more likely to develop cancers associated with immune suppression. Even though farmers enjoy less heart disease than other occupational groups, they are more likely to develop cancers normally reserved for people with a weakened immune system.
Pesticides Lower Immunity
A report from the Environmental Health Center in Dallas, Texas may help explain pesticides devastating impact on the immune system. Researchers examined 107 patients who had been exposed to pesticides. They found that 81 percent had low levels of T and B cells, immune cells that fight off infections. Furthermore, these levels improved after the patients were free of pesticide exposure for at least four days.
The report also says that a group of South American Indians who, thanks to the dense jungle canopy, were pesticide-free were also free of the diseases associated with industrialized civilizations.
Pesticides are Difficult to Avoid
Pesticide use is on the rise. According to the EPA, the U.S. spent almost $12 billion on pesticides in 2007.
Such heavy use has made pesticides hard to avoid. 99 percent of Americans test positive for DDT, according to the Pesticide Action Network (PAN). 93 percent test positive for a harmful insecticide. PAN says exposure to chemicals begin in the womb.
It may be nearly impossible to eliminate all of your pesticide exposure and its detrimental effects on immunity. Also, if you are one of the millions of Americans afflicted with food allergies due to pesticides, you are also more likely to succumb to wellness challenges.
Immune Booster Supplements May Help
For example, licorice root was shown to increase T cell activation in one study. Researchers at Harvard found that vitamin A supports the activity of both T and B cells. One of the most important immune booster vitamins, vitamin D is helps regulate the immune system’s production of T cells.
Environmental pollutants like pesticides are a fact of modern life. As research like the tap water study becomes more prevalent, perhaps the use of environmental pollutants will decrease. In the meantime, you can support your immune system by using high quality immune booster supplements like Purx ReBound.