Air Pollution
91% of the world’s population breathes polluted air! Yet over one-third of countries have no laws protecting outdoor air quality! The World Health Organization (WHO) released updated air quality guidelines and targets for common air pollutants. WHO’s new guidelines aim to push governments to reduce pollution levels, protect the health of children and adults, and prevent climate change.
Pesticides
Pesticides are chemicals designed to kill, repel or control unwanted pests, such as insects (insecticides), weeds (herbicides), fungus (fungicides), harmful to cultivated plants, humans and animals.
Only a small amount of the pesticides actually reach their target; most of it leaches in the environment, contaminating the air, water, soil, and our food. Persistent pesticides, like DDT, can still be detected in humans 50 years after they were banned. Scientists have found pesticides in:
• Blood, urine and hair
• Breast milk
• Cord blood of newborns
• Placenta
No Safe Level
No safe blood lead level in children has been identified. Even low levels of lead in blood have been shown to negatively affect a child’s intelligence, ability to pay attention, and academic achievement. While the effects of lead poisoning may be permanent, if caught early, there are things parents can do to prevent further exposure and reduce damage to their child’s health.
PFAS: Forever Chemicals
Hundreds of everyday products are made with highly toxic fluorinated chemicals called PFAS. They build up in our bodies and never break down in the environment. PFAS are universally detected in pregnant women and cross the placenta. Very small doses of PFAS have been linked to cancer, reproductive and immune system harm, and other diseases.
Microplastics and Babies
Microplastics are tiny fragments of plastic, often too small for the eye to see. And they’re everywhere.
A new study finds that they are released in huge quantities from plastic baby bottles when they’re used to prepare formula. The study suggests that bottle-fed infants around the world may be consuming more than 1.5 million particles of microplastics per day.
latest LTM News
What We Do
Little Things Matter raises awareness of the growing environmental risks we face as a global community by translating science into free, easy-to-understand and actionable materials. Our goal is to spread awareness about the effects of toxic chemicals on the health of our population and planet.
We believe that every child has the right to a healthy environment.
”
Follow Our Footsteps
📰In the News📰
Edgewell Personal Care recalled three batches of Banana Boat sunscreen spray due to the high levels of benzene.
Benzene is not an ingredient of Banana Boat sunscreen, but the nozzle used to release the sunscreen from the container had large amounts of benzene.
Benzene causes cancer. Benzene causes leukemia, a blood cancer of the bone marrow, and other life-threatening blood disorders.
Read the full announcement here: https://bit.ly/3SymmrY #healthyliving #benzene #toxic
✋You asked... we answered! 👇
You asked: "Why are children more vulnerable to toxic chemicals?"
The #prenatal and early-life period have been identified as being more #vulnerable to the influence of #toxic #chemicals as compared to other periods. There are many biological reasons why these are more vulnerable than other stages of life. 👇
👉First, #fetuses and #babies/#infants have higher exposures to chemicals in the #environment due to their higher metabolic rate, which means that they are exposed to higher concentrations of chemicals per pound of body weight as compared to both older #children and adults.
👉In addition to their faster metabolic rate, fetuses and children are experiencing periods of rapid growth, especially in the #brain, and this makes these cells more vulnerable to toxic chemicals interrupting their growth. Not only are growing cells more vulnerable, but plasticity makes the body`s organs, including the brain, particularly sensitive to toxic chemical influences.
👉In addition, the developing brain is especially vulnerable because the blood-brain barrier, which protects the brain from unwanted chemicals, is not fully formed prenatally so it is more permeable than the mature brain.
👉Lastly, fetuses and young children have immature metabolic pathways and they are missing certain enzymes that metabolize and excrete chemicals, making it more difficult to rid the body of toxicity.
What other questions do you have for us? 🧐
Reference: Lanphear 2015
https://bit.ly/3pwYIyW
Why are industry`s bad practices passed on to us?
We shouldn’t have to install a water filter…
The government should provide clean drinking water.💧
We shouldn’t have to buy an air filter…
The government should protect our air.🌫
We shouldn’t have to pay extra for organic foods…
The government should support and promote organic farms.🌳
Our elected officials should act in the interest of our family’s health.
You can remind them by:
Posting on your local representative’s social pages📰
Calling your local representative 📞
Writing your local representative ✍️
Telling your friends, family, and social networks to do the ^^same^^
Hundreds of unique calls can make a difference! 🤝🌎
@WHO @cdcglobal @amercapeds @johnshopkins
#CleanAir #protectchildren #healthyliving
✋ You asked… we answered! 👇
What is epigenetics?
How does a cell with the same DNA turn into a brain cell or a kidney cell?
Every cell in our body: brain cells, muscle cells, kidney cells – has the same sequence of DNA. Epigenetics are naturally occurring chemical modifications of DNA that turn on or off a gene without changing the DNA sequence. The genes in our DNA needed for a brain cell are left on and the other ones are turned off. The same thing happens to kidney cells.
Picture a tall office building with many windows full of highly trained technicians. The building is our DNA, the technicians (each trained in the formation of specific cells) represent the normal epigenetic process, and the windows are the genes. As the technicians come and go from their normal work, some lights in the windows are turned on, some are turned off in the process of creating healthy cells.
Can the environment change our DNA?
Toxic chemicals in the environment, like pollutants and heavy metals, can mimic and confuse the natural epigenetic process and incorrectly turn on or off genes. Imagine if the technician’s schedule was disrupted and they came and went at the wrong times. The genetic sequencing would be altered affecting the normal growth of cells.
Why is epigenetics important for children’s health?
We are still learning about how this impacts our health but we do know that some of these abnormal epigenetic changes can increase the risk for cancer or degenerative disease. This is especially important for children because fetal development and infancy are critical phases of developmental processes and fast growth takes place.
For more information on how epigenetics is affected by exposure to toxic chemicals, read here: https://bit.ly/3KGcN59
#Health #nontoxicliving #epigenetics
Over 200 schools, parks, and neighborhoods are now free from toxic pesticides thanks to @NonToxicNeighborhoods, which champions removing harmful chemicals from the spaces where children live, work and play. 🌳🤾🌱
Pesticides can cause childhood leukemia, impair children’s learning abilities, and decrease fertility.
Scientists have found pesticides in humans, including their:
• Blood, urine and hair
• Breast milk
• Cord blood of newborns
• Placenta
Reduce your family’s exposure to pesticides by:
• If possible, choose organic produce 🍓
• Advocate for policies that support organic farmers 🧑🌾
• If your children’s schools and recreational facilities are using pesticides, ask them to stop 🛑
Start a community coalition to remove pesticides from your neighborhoods with the support of @nontoxicneighborhoods 💪
#nontoxicliving 🌳
#healthychildren 🍎
Meet Teresa Vincente
Teresa Vicente led a historic, grassroots campaign to save the Mar Menor ecosystem—Europe’s largest saltwater lagoon—from collapse, resulting in the passage of a new law in September 2022 granting the lagoon unique legal rights. Considered to be the most important saltwater coastal lagoon in the western Mediterranean, the once pristine waters of the Mar Menor had become polluted due to mining, rampant development of urban and tourist infrastructure, and, in recent years, intensive agriculture and livestock farming.
Worried by the slow death of the Mar Menor, Teresa was moved to action after a mass fish die-off in 2019. She became convinced that the only way to give the lagoon a chance of survival was to grant it legal personhood and recognize its rights. “Rights of nature” has been proposed and debated for years, but the theory did not gain much traction until recently: Ecosystems in Latin America and New Zealand had been granted such legal rights but none in Europe. Despite being told by experts that it was impossible, Teresa pushed ahead. Courtesy of the Goldman Environmental Prize
The Toxic Chemicals Line Up
Phthalates
Phthalates
EDCs
EDCs
Pesticides
Pesticides
Lead
Lead
Air Pollution
Air Pollution
PFAS
PFAS
Fluoride
Fluoride
Microplastics
Microplastics
PFAS
PFAS
little Steps big impact
Sometimes the events that alter history and have enduring impact happen behind the scenes or without much fanfare. Little Steps, Big Impact takes a moment to highlight those significant events and celebrate their contributions.
Shifting to phthalate-free products
can quickly lower toxin levels
A new study shows that young women who use conventional foundation, blush, and mascara have higher levels of phthalates in their blood. Phthalates are hormone-disruptors, and can mimic or block hormones from properly signaling in the body, disrupting important reproductive and neurological systems.
When the young women in the study stopped using
products with phthalates, the level of some chemicals
in their blood lowered up to 45% after three days.
To reduce the amount of phthalates in your blood, swap personal care products for those without phthalates, parabens, or PFAS (or just stop using them). Products without these chemicals can be found by searching EWG’s SkinDeep database.
little videos that capture the big picture
Expand your mind and understanding of how environmental toxic chemicals affect all of us with these short educational videos.
The Deadly Impact of Airborne Particles: air pollution is all around us, what can we do?