Environmental Working Group (EWG): Study: Dogs and Cats Contaminated With High Levels of Toxic Industrial Chemicals
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 17, 2008
11:10 AM
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CONTACT: Environmental Working Group (EWG)
EWG Public Affairs, (202) 667-6982
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Study: Dogs and Cats Contaminated With High Levels
of Toxic Industrial Chemicals
Amounts of Toxics in Blood and Urine Many Times Higher in Pets Than Humans
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WASHINGTON, DC - April 17 - In the first study of its kind, Environmental Working Group
(EWG) found that companion cats and dogs are polluted with even higher
levels of many of the same synthetic industrial chemicals that researchers
have recently found in people, including newborns.
In addition to being guardians, playmates and even beloved family members,
dogs and cats may also be serving as sentinels for human health problems
that can arise from exposures to industrial chemicals.
In recognition of the unique roles that pets play in our lives, the
Environmental Working Group (EWG) undertook a study to investigate the
extent of exposures dogs and cats face to contaminants in our homes and
outdoor environments. What we found was startling.
Dogs and cats were contaminated with 48 of 70 industrial chemicals tested,
including 43 chemicals at levels higher than those typically found in
people, according to our study of blood and urine from 20 dogs and 40 cats.
Average levels of many chemicals were substantially higher in pets than is
typical for people, with 2.4 times higher levels of stain-and grease-proof
coatings (perfluorochemicals) in dogs, 23 times more fire retardants (PBDEs)
in cats, and more than 5 times the amounts of mercury, compared to average
levels in people found in national studies conducted by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and EWG.
"Like humans, pets are also exposed to toxic chemicals on a daily basis, and
as this investigation found, are contaminated at higher levels," said Jane
Houlihan, VP for Research at EWG. "The presence of chemicals in dogs and
cats sounds a cautionary warning for the present and future health of
children as well. This study demonstrating the chemical body burden of dogs
and cats is a wake-up call for stronger safety standards from industrial
chemical exposures that will protect all members of our families, including
our pets."
"This study is valuable in that it used pet animals that live in nearly
fifty percent of all US households as environmental sentinels to measure the
level of contamination with a wide variety of industrial chemicals that have
also been shown to be present in human tissue. Because pet animals tend to
have similar or higher concentrations of these chemicals in their body than
humans, epidemiological studies of pets can be used to identify potential
adverse health effects at a lower cost and in a much shorter period of time
than it would take to perform similar studies in humans," said Dr. Larry
Glickman a leading veterinarian and distinguished scientist who for the
past three decades conducted research in veterinary epidemiology.
"This study shows that our pets are susceptible to the absorption of
potentially harmful chemicals from our environment just as we are. Perhaps
even more troubling is that these chemicals have been found in higher levels
in pets than in humans implying potential harmful consequences for their
health and well being and the need for further study," said Dr. John
Billeter, DVM, the veterinarian who conducted the blood and urine tests.
Just as children ingest pollutants in tap water, play on lawns with
pesticide residues, or breathe in an array of indoor air contaminants, so do
their pets. But with there compressed lifespans, developing and aging seven
or more times faster than children, pets also develop health problems much
more rapidly. Pets, like infants and toddlers, have limited diets and play
close to the floor, often licking the ground as well as their paws, greatly
increasing both their exposures to chemicals and the resulting health risks.
In America there are 8 times more companion dogs and cats than there are
children under five. Seventy percent more households have dogs or cats than
children of any age. These pets are often beloved family members, and yet
they can be subjected to chronic, constant exposures to chemical
contaminants in homes, yards, and parks that pet owners cannot always
prevent.
Scientists Link Chemical Exposure to Increased Rates of Cancer, Other
Diseases in Pets:
Under current federal law, chemical companies do not have to prove chemicals
are safe before they are used in products, including pet toys and other
products for our companion animals. For pets as for people, the result is a
body burden of complex mixtures of industrial chemicals never tested for
safety. Health problems in pets span high rates of cancer in dogs and
skyrocketing incidence of hyperthyroidism in cats. Genetic changes can't
explain the increases in certain health problems among pets, leaving
scientists to believe that chemical exposures play a significant role.
EWG is a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC that uses
the power of information to protect human health and the environment. The
group's research on xx issue is available online at
http://www.ewg.org/reports/pets
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