Phillipe Grandjean and chemical brain drain

[thorbiorn]

A medical researcher in the field of toxicology and environmental pollutants, Phillipe Grandjean, has been mentioned in a few posts on SOTT:

http://www.sott.net/article/297154-Danish-environmental-group-declares-glyphosate-a-carcinogen-recommends-change-to-less-toxic-chemicals from May 30, 2015
http://www.sott.net/article/286063-The-Lancet-Neurology-Journal-Number-of-chemicals-known-to-be-toxic-to-childrens-brains-has-doubled-in-the-last-7-years from September 19, 2014
http://www.sott.net/article/280447-The-Lancet-Fluoride-is-a-neurotoxin from June 14, 2014
http://www.sott.net/article/274198-Toxic-chemicals-linked-to-Global-Silent-Pandemic-striking-children-worldwide from February 17, 2014
http://www.sott.net/article/266413-Chemical-brain-drain-endangers-generations-of-children from September 13, 2013
http://www.sott.net/article/168326-Methylmercury-Warning from October 30, 2008
http://www.sott.net/article/168113-Study-Many-pesticides-in-EU-may-damage-human-brain from October 23, 2008

and a few times on the forum but that takes us back to 2012.

Phillipe Grandjean wrote a book in 2013 about his research and its implicaitons: Only One Chance: How Environmental Pollution Impairs Brain Development -- and How to Protect the Brains of the Next Generation (Environmental Ethics ... ETHICS AND SCIENCE POLICY SERIES) This is the update page for his book: http://braindrain.dk/brain-drai/
Here is a list of known brain drainers: http://braindrain.dk/known-chemical-brain-drainers/
Here are some videos where Phillipe Grandjean explains the basics: http://braindrain.dk/videos/

Phillipe Grandjean's research in French and Danish
In February his book will come out in French and with the help of a Danish journalist there is also a light version in Danish. Behind pay walls, there are a few articles in Danish about the book release and its implicaitons of which now only the headline and the resumes are available: here, here and here Here are some older short popular article in Danish here, here and here.

By now much is know about the influence of chemicals on the brain, but in many places nothing gets done about it:

[...]Science is necessary to generate important documentation, but it provides an incomplete basis for protection of the brain against chemical toxicity. The main problem is that science has covered only a handful of chemicals, and we know the dose-response relationships only for substances, such as lead, mercury, arsenic, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).

However, we know from clinical poisonings that more than 200 chemicals can cause neurological symptoms in adults. [...]


A third problem is therefore that scientists usually express themselves in ‘soft’ language, using ‘hedged’ expressions with maybe, perhaps and other terms like that, while caveats are highlighted. This tradition in academic science has served to negotiate guarded conclusions, while balancing between skepticism and gullibility. However, vested interests have taken advantage of this tradition and raised doubt about the conclusions that can be drawn from the evidence. This has led to a belief that chemical safety is not needed unless proven by science, that is, ‘sound’ science. So a chemical is considered safe, unless otherwise proven.

The combination of these three problems – a triple whammy – puts the developing brain at extreme risk. While waiting for science to provide the desired documentation, we are exposing the next generation to risks of chemical brain drain.