Scientists have issued an urgent warning that some of the synthetic chemicals that help underpin the current food system are driving increased rates of cancer, neurodevelopmental conditions and infertility, while degrading the foundations of global agriculture.

The health burden from phthalates, bisphenols, pesticides and Pfas “forever chemicals” amounts to up to $2.2tn a year – roughly as much as the profits of the world’s 100 largest publicly listed companies, according to the report published on Wednesday.

Most ecosystem damage remains unpriced, they say, but even a narrow accounting of ecological impacts, taking into account agricultural losses and meeting water safety standards for Pfas and pesticides, implies a further cost of $640bn. There are also potential consequences for human demographics, with the report concluding that if exposure to endocrine disruptors such as bisphenols and phthalates persists at current rates, there could be between 200 million and 700 million fewer births between 2025 and 2100.

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[–] 30 points 11 months ago (5 children)

Thanks Nestle, Monsanto, the other fucking bastard mega corps.

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  • [–] 22 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    I think in this case it's more like fuck you DuPont, Dow, ICI and BASF. But fuck Nestle everyday.

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  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago

    Fuck the capitalist dictatorships we live in, where corporations are free to pollute and murder without ever facing criminal charges when they poison everything... because they're also free to poison our political, legal, and judicial systems.

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  • [–] 8 points 11 months ago

    You see, that's not a problem because that burden is not on the ones causing these problems! So this doesn't affect the profit line moving up! On the contrary, it creates opportunities for more profit!

    So all is fine people!

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago

    The fertility problem always surprises me. Synthetic estrogens and latex are responsible for low birth rates in almost every developed country, but only religious nuts really ever complain about that.

    Globally, infertility impacts about 14% of people. It gets higher with age, and in developed countries, more people are trying to get pregnant at older ages.

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  • 15 comments in c/health@lemmy.world view that post
    [–] 25 points 10 months ago (4 children)

    Asked whether the report could have looked beyond the groups of chemicals studied, Landridge said: “I would argue that they’re only the tip of the iceberg. They’re among the very small number of chemicals, maybe 20 or 30 chemicals where we really have solid toxicologic information.

    “What scares the hell out of me is the thousands of chemicals to which we’re all exposed every day about which we know nothing. And until one of them causes something obvious, like children to be born with missing limbs, we’re going to go on mindlessly exposing ourselves.”

    This situation is ridiculous.

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  • [–] 8 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    Fortunately, good solid healthy and untouched food is cheaply available in every grocery store, which is in no way genetically modified to maximize shareholder profits at the expense of The Poors who are exposed to eating it...

    It really killa me to have to put a /s here, damn - this would have been the perfect time for an actual For The Children slogan call to action, if anyone truly cared. Instead politicians will pretend to care, then line their pocketbooks, then laugh and carry on as usual if not worse than before.:-(

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago (2 children)

    None of the things mentioned have to do with GMOs. Which, IMO, are going to be instrumental in agriculture going forward as the climate continues to decline.

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago (1 child)

    If done properly, and with transparency offering choices. Sadly there is not so much trust in that these days that, similar to how Boeing handles airplanes and we know Monsanto and Roundup handles matters in their own respective areas. But then again... should there be?

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  • [–] 2 points 10 months ago

    It’s not a burden it’s by design to funnel all the wealth to the pedofile capitalist class

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  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago

    I was told the free market would regulate itself. What happened?

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  • [–] 1 point 10 months ago* (3 children)

    Don't worry about the details, whole foods are the best foods. That is where you buy whole ingredients as they come directly from the farm (or as close as you can get). Shop the outside edge of your grocery store. Don't buy anything from a box, or wrapped in plastic, or from a petrochemical plant (including oil). Look at the ingredients for everything you buy, and if it's complex or you can't pronounce it, don't buy it.

    Bonus points for organic and avoiding pesticides

    This is probably overkill, but it avoids lots of the new advances in food and processing in the last 100 years which coincides with the rise of modern non communicable diseases.

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  • [–] -3 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    And you called rfk crazy when he said the same thing. Ohh the irony

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