Barbara Demeneix's Books

Losing Our Minds

How Environmental Pollution Impairs Human Intelligence and Mental Health

By: Professor Barbara Demeneix

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Losing Our Minds

How Environmental Pollution Impairs Human Intelligence and Mental Health

By: Professor Barbara Demeneix

The global prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders is accelerating. Numbers of children affected by an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the United States have reached 1 in 88 -- 1 in 56 among boys -- and even more children have developed attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders (ADHD). The burden of these disorders to individuals and society overall is enormous; ASD alone costs the United States a staggering $130 billion, with ADHD costs reaching similar heights. Genetic causes of these neurodevelopmental disorders cannot account for such radically increased rates of incidence. The causes must also implicate environmental chemicals, many of which have been shown to disrupt normal thyroid function. In this book, Barbara Demeneix makes the case that thyroid hormone signaling bridges the environment and gene programs needed for brain development--and that environmental chemicals that disrupt normal thyroid function pose significant risks to the inherited intelligence and mental health of future generations. The first chapter provides an historical overview of documented cases in which environmental pollution has caused IQ loss across populations. The following chapters explain the physiology of thyroid hormone action, the importance of iodine and selenium for thyroid hormone signaling and brain development, and why thyroid hormone is such a sensitive target for environmental pollution. The final chapters discuss the role of gene-environment interactions in neurodevelopmental disorders and address what can and must be done by individuals, associations, and decision-makers to staunch these epidemics.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

313

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0199917523

ISBN 13

9780199917525

Toxic Cocktail

How Chemical Pollution Is Poisoning Our Brains

By: Barbara Demeneix

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Toxic Cocktail

How Chemical Pollution Is Poisoning Our Brains

By: Barbara Demeneix

In today's world, everyone carries a toxic load of dozens of industrially produced chemicals in their bloodstream. Not only do these adversely affect the health of adults and children, but also, and more worryingly, they damage the development of unborn infants. The amniotic fluid of pregnant women has been found to contain a variety of chemicals, such as pesticides, plasticizers, disinfectant products, flame-retardants, surfactants and UV filters, many of which interfere with fetal physiology, especially thyroid hormone action. Thyroid hormone is vital for brain development, particularly for the fetus during pregnancy and for toddlers. In fact, children born to women who lack this thyroid hormone (or who are unwittingly exposed to thyroid-disrupting chemicals) have lower IQs and more neurodevelopmental problems. Evolution of the human brain has involved multiple changes and processes dependent on thyroid hormone. The urgent question thus arises: Is chemical pollution poisoning brain development and reversing evolution's most outstanding achievement: the human brain? And if so, as this book convincingly illuminates, what can be done about it both collectively and individually? Toxic Cocktail provides a clear view of how many environmental chemicals interfere with brain development. As a result, this book looks at how we define and test IQ, the evidence for IQ loss, and how chemical pollution and thyroid hormone disruption can be actors in this process, as well as increasing neurodevelopmental disease risk.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

273

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0190260947

ISBN 13

9780190260941

Losing Our Minds

How Environmental Pollution Impairs Human Intelligence and Mental Health

By: Professor Barbara Demeneix

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Losing Our Minds

How Environmental Pollution Impairs Human Intelligence and Mental Health

By: Professor Barbara Demeneix

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

313

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0199917523

ISBN 13

9780199917525

Toxic Cocktail

How Chemical Pollution Is Poisoning Our Brains

By: Barbara Demeneix

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Toxic Cocktail

How Chemical Pollution Is Poisoning Our Brains

By: Barbara Demeneix

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

273

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0190260947

ISBN 13

9780190260941

Book's by Barbara Demeneix

Losing Our Minds

Losing Our Minds

Toxic Cocktail

Toxic Cocktail

Losing Our Minds

Losing Our Minds

Toxic Cocktail

Toxic Cocktail

Username

Password

Username

Password

Password again

Birthday

Email