Alzheimer’s Is Diabetes of the Brain: Diet & Vaccination Connections

Gaia Health

by Heidi Stevenson

The now-traditional belief that Alzheimer’s disease is caused by a buildup of plaques on the brain has always been deficient for one simple reason: It completely ignores why those plaques build up. We now have good information that documents the reason for it. Alzheimer’s shares its genesis with diabetes. It’s a derangement of the body’s ability to process or produce insulin. Alzheimer’s is a third type of diabetes: type 3.

Alzheimer’s is a terrible disease that steals people’s twilight years, takes grandparents from children years before they actually die, and costs society untold resources. And this disastrous condition is a growing epidemic.

It should come as no surprise that Alzheimer’s is yet another chronic disease that can blamed on modern life. It’s long been known that it’s related to diet, that those who eat primarily from Agribusiness offerings are more likely to become afflicted. It may also be triggered by vaccinations.

Alzheimer’s and the Glucose Connection

The brain burns a great deal of energy. People who use their brains intensely, such as chess players, have a tendency to eat large amounts of sugary foods during matches. There’s a reason: It literally fuels their ability to think. That’s because glucose is a type of sugar, so eating it is a quick way to increase the brain’s energy.

There is, though, a big downside to bingeing on sugar. While it can temporarily give a boost to mental function, ultimately the ability to think can be destroyed.

Insulin is required to metabolize glucose. Sudden spurts of glucose in the blood stream normally result in increased production of insulin to move the excess glucose into cells, where it’s utilized. Cells can develop insulin resistance when glucose blood levels are too high, either fairly constantly or in surges. However, sugar must be cleared from the blood stream. Therefore, the pancreas will create more insulin in an attempt to get the excess sugar moved into cells.

That works for a time, but a vicious cycle is started. Too much glucose in the blood causes more insulin to be produced. More insulin causes cells to become resistant to it, which causes more insulin to be made, and that causes even more insulin resistance, which causes even more insulin to be made, which …You get the picture.

A study has shown that high glucose levels in the blood are associated with brain atrophy in Alzheimer’s patients. Even when patients had not reached the point of being diabetic, high blood glucose was associated with brain atrophy.

Brain Plaques

Plaques are found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. It’s been commonly believed that these plaques are the cause of the disease. Now though, it’s clear that they are merely a symptom. The plaques are sticky deposits of a protein called ß-amyloid. They were believed to simply build up, for some unexplained reason, and destroy neurons (brain cells).

It now appears that they are the hardened form of a protein called amyloid ß-derived diffusible ligand—most commonly referred to as ADDL—which makes neurons resistant to insulin by removing insulin receptors.

ADDL proteins are referred to as toxic. However, they are made by the body and are found in normal brains. They exist for a reason. While the focus has been on the fact that they’re excessive in Alzheimer’s patients, the fact is that they do serve a purpose in normal brains. Just as high cholesterol is not a disease, but only a marker for some heart disease, we’d be going down the wrong path if we treated ADDL proteins as inherently harmful.

One can easily imagine that ADDL is necessary to stop glucose-saturated cells from taking up excess glucose, which can be harmful. If that’s the case, then trying to control ADDL artificially could—and probably would—be harmful. The suggestion that ADDL is the problem is short sighted. Of course, that’s exactly what we can expect of modern medicine and it’s collaborator, Big Pharma. In fact, one of the author of the paper that first reported on the plaques, Grant A. Krafft, PhD, is on the board and is chief scientific officer for Acumen Pharmaceuticals, which was founded to take advantage of the ADDL-plaque discovery.

Northwestern University and USC jointly hold patents on the composition and use of ADDLs in neurodisorders. Acumen has licensed the rights the patent rights, which gives them the exclusive right to take advantage of drugs or other treatments that could control ADDLs.

As ever, the medical world’s focus is not on prevention, but on treatment. In the growing Alzheimer’s epidemic, the amount of money to be made on such treatments could be astronomical. Of course, this isn’t being done for the patients’ benefit. It’s being done for profits.

The Vaccination Connection

Obviously, diet is a factor in type 3 diabetes. Its similarity with type 2 diabetes, in which cells becomes insulin-resistant, is clear. However, as was documented in Vaccination Causes Diabetes, it’s likely that the trigger may often be vaccinations.

As has been documented at the Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders at the University of California, Irvine, excess cortisol in the blood is a precursor and cause of Alzheimer’s disease. As Vaccination Causes Diabetes notes, excess cortisol is also a cause of type 2 diabetes. The excessive inflammation and cortisol production caused by vaccinations can be identified as the trigger that often leads to diabetes.

That same vaccination-induced inflammatory process is a likely trigger of the vicious round of insulin resistance and increased insulin production. That cycle is the root of metabolic syndrome. Until we have solid research that demonstrates no such connection, it is only reasonable to assume that vaccinations trigger the metabolic syndrome that leads to type 3 diabetes-Alzheimer’s disease.

We will, of course, be informed that such a connection has never been documented. However, the same could be said of the connections between vaccinations and other conditions, such as autism, allergies, and diabetes. The proof of vaccination’s relationship to all these conditions could readily be found—but such studies aren’t being funded.

Such research would actually be quite simple. Compare a large group of unvaccinated people against an equivalent group of vaccinated people and see how many cases of these diseases and conditions exist in each group. A large unvaccinated group of people exists: the Amish of America do not vaccinate. As it happens, we have plenty of anecdotal evidence on the issue, and it speaks volumes. The fact is that there is hardly any diabetes, allergies, or autism among them. Those few who are afflicted with autism were adoptees, children who’d been vaccinated before joining the Amish.

Stay Smart

Research is demonstrating that giving insulin to Alzheimer’s sufferers can ease, and perhaps even reverse, mental decline. It seems likely that Acumen Pharmaceuticals will find a drug – or two or three – that will attack the ADDL-induced plaque. However, as with any drug or treatment that addresses a symptom, rather than the underlying cause, any benefits will come at a cost.

Rather than focusing on treating Alzheimer’s patients, wouldn’t it be ever so much better to prevent it? Though the authors of the study showing that ADDL proteins are mostly interested in finding a drug to treat the disease, wouldn’t it be better to simply not lose your mind in the first place? We know how, so let’s just act on our knowledge.

We know that vaccinations are a likely trigger for all three types of diabetes: types 1, 2, and 3. At the very least, consider whether they are worth the risk of these diseases, among many others, including autism, asthma, and allergies.

We know that a diet high in sugars of all kinds, especially fructose in artificial form, as in sodas, pseudo-fruit juices, and the majority of prepared foods sold in supermarkets, are fueling the diabetes epidemic. At the very least, limit them so that they rarely pass your lips.

Avoid all refined grains and most whole grains. At the least, limit your intake of grains to whole grains, and do not fall for the con that they’re healthy. They also help fuel insulin resistance.

Do eat a diet rich in a variety of vegetables—and make sure they’re organic as much as possible. Eat fruits, not cakes and ice cream. If you eat meat, avoid factory-farmed, both for your personal health and to keep your food dollars from supporting such cruelty and environmental devastation.

Be sure to avoid trans fats. They are devastating to your health. However, that does not mean you should avoid fats. Healthy natural saturated fats, including pure butter, are very important to your health, along with oils high in omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, such as olive and nut oils.

Exercise! Nearly everyone can do it. It doesn’t have to mean lifting weights or working yourself into a lather. Make a point of walking to the store instead of driving. Ride a bicycle. Take up a sport if that suits you. Get a walking partner or walk alone, whichever works for you. Take up dancing! Go for a swim! It doesn’t matter—just get up and start moving.

No matter what your age or previous lifestyle, a good healthy diet, along with good exercise, can prevent Alzheimer’s or help alleviate it. Why waste your last years and put both emotional and financial stress on your family, when you could be living life to the hilt?

Enjoy every minute you have on this earth. Don’t hand your greatest wealth—your health and your mind—over to rampaging Agribusiness, Big Pharma, or Big Medicine.

Brainy beverage: Study reveals how green tea boosts brain cell production to aid memory

Science Blog

It has long been believed that drinking green tea is good for the memory. Now researchers have discovered how the chemical properties of China’s favorite drink affect the generation of brain cells, providing benefits for memory and spatial learning. The research is published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research.

“Green tea is a popular beverage across the world,” said Professor Yun Bai from the Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China. “There has been plenty of scientific attention on its use in helping prevent cardiovascular diseases, but now there is emerging evidence that its chemical properties may impact cellular mechanisms in the brain.”

Professor Bai’s team focused on the organic chemical EGCG, (epigallocatechin-3 gallate) a key property of green tea. While EGCG is a known anti-oxidant, the team believed it can also have a beneficial effect against age-related degenerative diseases. “We proposed that EGCG can improve cognitive function by impacting the generation of neuron cells, a process known as neurogenesis,” said Bai. “We focused our research on the hippocampus, the part of the brain which processes information from short-term to long-term memory.”

The team found that ECGC boosts the production of neural progenitor cells, which like stem cells can adapt, or differentiate, into various types of cells. The team then used laboratory mice to discover if this increased cell production gave an advantage to memory or spatial learning.

“We ran tests on two groups of mice, one which had imbibed ECGC and a control group,” said Bai. “First the mice were trained for three days to find a visible platform in their maze. Then they were trained for seven days to find a hidden platform.”

The team found that the ECGC treated mice required less time to find the hidden platform. Overall the results revealed that EGCG enhances learning and memory by improving object recognition and spatial memory.

“We have shown that the organic chemical EGCG acts directly to increase the production of neural progenitor cells, both in glass tests and in mice,” concluded Bai. “This helps us to understand the potential for EGCG, and green tea which contains it, to help combat degenerative diseases and memory loss.”

Cargill and Others Behind anti-Organic "Stanford Study"

Activist Post
by Tony Cartalucci

Harry Wallop of the London Telegraph ends his anti-organic food editorial with the following sentence: "Tomorrow, the baby is going to get an extra dollop of pesticide-sprayed carrots."

Whether or not Wallop is as brain-addled as he leads on to being, the point of his editorial is to encourage similar attitudes amongst the Telegraph's readership, attempting to manipulate public perception in the wake of a recent Stanford "study" regarding organic food.

Whether or not readers of the Telegraph will put their own health and that of their children at risk for the sake of protecting big-agri's bottom line and the faltering paradigm that big-agri products are safe for human consumption simply because Harry Wallop thinks its good to feed his baby with pesticide-sprayed carrots remains to be seen.

The London Telegraph, when not fabricating news to support England's latest imperial adventures overseas, is at the forefront of many of the largest corporate-financier funded lobbying campaigns. Recently, someone has splurged, and splurged big on anti-organic food lobbying built atop a suspect Stanford study.

A Flawed "Study"

When entire news cycles are dominated by headlines built on a single university study, with editorials attempting to hammer in big-agri talking points, a lobbying effort is clearly afoot.

Two news cycles have already been dedicated to trashing organic food. Organic food is free of pesticides and genetic manipulation, both of which are proven to cause learning disabilities, decreased IQ, sterility, and a myriad of other health problems including a wide variety of cancers.

This most recent anti-organic food campaign began with a Stanford study out of its Center for Health Policy (a subsidiary of Stanford's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies), examining the nutritional value of organic food versus non-organic. Food with pesticides on it had nearly the same nutritional value, the study claims, as organic food - completely skipping over the whole point of eating organic.

Indeed, the nutritional value would be similar - but the entire point of eating organic is not because of vastly superior nutritional value, but to avoid the "extras" included with products from big-agri corporations.

The Stanford study intentionally dismisses concerns regarding the presence of pesticides by simply claiming levels were within legal tolerances. No discussion was made on whether legal tolerances equated to safe tolerances, nor was there any mention made of the harmful effects of genetically modified organisms (GMO) or other controversial food additives found in non-organic food products.

So why the strawman argument?

A Corporate-funded "Study"

The Stanford Center for Health Policy states the following on its own website:

The Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) relies on support from its friends, as well as from national and international foundations and corporations, for the funding of the Institute's research, teaching and outreach activities.

The Center for Health Policy is a subsidiary of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI).
So who are these "friends," national and international foundations and corporations funding the research of FSI and its subsidiary, the Stanford Center for Health Policy?

West Nile Virus “Outbreak” Justifies Spraying Toxic Chemicals onto Citizens

Infowars
by Susanne Posel

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) state that the cases of West Nile virus (WNV) are raising to the point of having the largest outbreak ever seen in the domestic US. In total, the CDC is reporting 1,118 cases with 41 deaths attributed.

Yet the CDC claims that most bitten by an infected mosquito do not come down with WNV. It appears the governmental agency fear-mongers and downplays the threat in the same breath.

Dr. Lyle Petersen, the director of the CDC’s Vector-Borne Infectious Disease Division confirmed:

The peak of West Nile virus epidemics usually occur in mid-August, but it takes a couple of weeks for people to get sick, go to the doctor and get reported. Thus we expect many more cases to occur.

The Connecticut Mosquito Management Program asserts that because the mosquitos carrying WNV are one an estimated 1 in 500 which would point the attribution of the infected to another source.

The areas of the country where the most cases have been reported are Texas, South Dakota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Michigan. Petersen believes that “we think the reported numbers will get higher through October.”

Fifty-six percent of the reported cases correlate with a neuroinvasive disease wherein the WNV enters the nervous system directly causing the manifestation of meningitis or encephalitis.

In response to the “national outbreak” of WNV, there have been concerted efforts to step up the aerial assault of spraying to eradicate the disease. This spraying, to kill the mosquito population is causing viable damage to the humans and the environment which is most likely the reason for calling the WNV outbreaks a sorted epidemic.

The US government has been involved in creating designer viruses onto unwitting populations that have been the obvious causation of viral epidemics. In response to WNV and a burgeoning mosquito population in 2000, the spraying of malathione began. The result was a massive attack on the human immune system from the toxic chemical.

As the WNV “outbreak” is being hyped in the mainstream media now, the use of malathione is again being utilized. However, this chemical use is tantamount to bioterrorism on the American public. Malathione is a cancer-causing toxic substance that has been sprayed over-head in the name of keeping the WNV from continuing to spread.

Governmental propaganda extends to WNV outbreaks being initiated by suspected Middle Eastern “terrorists” according to Congressional record. In a 2002 Congressional testimony, Dr. Leonard Horowitz, said that the makers of WNV vaccines were suspect as participating in public outbreaks.

By combining CDC reports, with the documentation of pharmaceutical corporations, and bioweapons laboratories that supplied vials of WNV to Iraq in the 1980s, the movement of the bioweapon has been traced.

The Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) has conducted extensive research and development into bioterrorism since 1986. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) believes that the CIGB is a biological weapons laboratory. Because the CIGB was located in Cuba, the Castro connection and classification of Cuba as a terrorist nation then creeps into the American social meme.

The aerial response to the current WNV outbreak involves the chemical Duet which is an “advanced dual-action mosquito adulticide” that is combined with Anvil, another mosquito pesticide, as well as prallethrin. The purpose of these chemicals is because of their neurotoxic properties and damaging effects on the human immune system. They also are associated with organ failure, as well as dangerously carcinogenic as they have been linked to breast cancer.

Oregon to get $4.2M in pharma settlement

Portland Business Journal

Oregon will met about $4.2 million in a multi-state settlement with a pharmaceutical company over alleged deceptive marketing. Oregon is among 36 states that will get a piece of a $181 million settlement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ). The states sued the company over alleged deceptive marketing of antipsychotic drugs used by children and seniors.

The deal is reportedly the largest multi-state consumer protection settlement ever with a pharmaceutical company. The states claimed that Janssen broke federal law when it marketed its antipsychotic drug Risperdal to children and senior patients as treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, depression and anxiety. Doctors can prescribe drugs to treat conditions other than the drugs' intended use, but drug manufacturers are not allowed to promote their products for alternative uses.

As part of the settlement, Janssen must also more clearly identify potential risks on product labels, refrain from marketing its drugs for specific symptoms, and have scientifically trained employees (instead of marketing employees) write the medical content of responses to doctor inquiries about the drugs.

The company cannot use grants to promote antipsychotic drugs or give bonuses to employees for promoting unapproved marketing.

Gates Foundation Funds Surveillance of Anti-Vaccine Groups

GreenMedInfo
by Sayer Ji

The Bill & Melinda Gates foundation launched the Grand Challenges in Global Health (GCGH) in partnership with the National Institutes of Health in 2003 which, according to the GCGH website, is aimed at "creating new tools that can radically improve health in the developing world." So far, 45 grants totaling $458 million were awarded for research projects involving scientists in over 30 countries.

But where has all the money actually gone? Towards developing and implementing water purification and sanitation systems? Or basic nutritional support aimed at optimizing immune function? How about providing shelter and medical facilities for the homeless? Not even close.

For example, a $100K grant was recently disbursed to Seth C. Kalichman, professor at the Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut, for "Establishing an Anti-Vaccine Surveillance and Alert System," which intends to "establish an internet-based global monitoring and rapid alert system for finding, analyzing, and counteracting misinformation communication campaigns regarding vaccines to support global immunization efforts."

We can only wonder what organizations might be labeled as "misinformation communication campaigns" considering the fact that Bill Gates, in a Feb. 4th, 2011 interview on CNN with Sanjay Gupta said that "anti-vaccine groups "kill children."" Here is the full quote:

“So it's an absolute lie that has killed thousands of kids. Because the mothers who heard that lie, many of them didn't have their kids take either pertussis or measles vaccine, and their children are dead today. And so the people who go and engage in those anti-vaccine efforts -- you know, they, they kill children. It's a very sad thing, because these vaccines are important.”

It is quite possible that any dissenting voice not in support of universal vaccination campaigns may be included in this type of "surveillance and alert system" as a potentially endangering the lives of others, i.e. "killing children." What is so ironic about the situation is that the Gates Foundation supported Polio Global Eradication Initiative may have resulted in over 47,500 cases of vaccine-induced paralysis in Indian children in 2011 alone, and which is twice as deadly as the wild-type polio it claimed to have put an end to officially on Jan. 11 2012. Who here then, is truly concerned about the health of children?

Moreover, it is exceedingly difficult to view Bill & Melinda Gates foundation's GCGH as a strictly humanitarian foundation considering many of the projects it chooses to fund. Here are a few listed on their website which have already received funding.

Synthetic Lymph Nodes: Steven Meshnick and Carla Hand of the University of North Carolina in the U.S. will develop a bio-compatible, biodegradable polymer device that can be placed under the skin to introduce vaccines and antigens to the immune system. The device will attract immune cells and trigger their proliferation as well asact as an adjuvant at the site of injection. If successful, the device could help boost immune response to new and existing vaccines. [see our article on transhumanistic technologies].

Needle Free Vaccination Via Nanoparticle Aerosols: Vaccine delivery systems that target specific areas of the body have the potential to be especially effective against some types of infection. For example, inhaled vaccines may better guard against respiratory diseases, such as tuberculosis, and those that commonly infect the tissues of the nose and throat, such as diphtheria. Dr. Edwards is leading a multidisciplinary team using materials science technologies combined with infectious disease, device, and toxicology expertise to reformulate tuberculosis and diphtheria vaccines into aerosol sprays that can be inhaled. The team's ultimate objective is to develop a cell-based BCG vaccine for tuberculosis and a protein antigen CRM 197 vaccine for diphtheria in the form of novel porous nanoparticle aggregate (PNAP) aerosols.

Plant-Produced Synthetic RNA Vaccines: Alison McCormick of Touro University, California in the U.S. will test the ability of a low-cost plant-based synthetic biology method to produce a combined viral protein epitope with an antigen RNA expression system for use in an RNA malaria vaccine. Using plants for this viral transfection system could make RNA vaccine production scalable and cost effective.

Profitable Vaccine Distribution In Emerging Markets: Lisa Ganley-Leal and Pauline Mwinzi of Epsilon Therapeutics, Inc. in the U.S. will test the hypothesis that selling vaccines through medicine shops in emerging markets can lead to profits for both vaccine developers and the small business owners. Demonstrating profitability may lead pharmaceutical companies to invest greater resources in vaccine development and distribution and develop local partnerships for profitability strategies.

Genetically Programmed Pathogen Sense and Destroy: Saurabh Gupta and Ron Weiss of Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the U.S. proposed creating sentinel cells that can detect the presence of a pathogen, report its identity with a biological signal, and secrete molecules to destroy it. This project's Phase I research demonstrated that commensal bacteria can be engineered to detect and specifically kill the model bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In Phase II, Gupta and Weiss will engineer the human microbiota to specifically detect and destroy the gut pathogen Shigella flexneri, which is responsible for high mortality rates in children.

Vaccine in a Salt Shaker: A New, Safe, Low-Cost Approach: Shiladitya DasSarma will lead a team at the University of Maryland, Baltimore in the U.S. to develop an inexpensive, safe, and effective oral vaccine against invasive Salmonella disease using gas-filled bacterial vesicles. The project seeks to produce a salt-encased, shelf-stable vaccine requiring no refrigeration for distribution worldwide.

A Humanized Mouse Model to Evaluate Live Attenuated Vaccine Candidates: To develop new vaccines against some of the world's biggest killers, including HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis, scientists must be able to evaluate promising candidates. Some of the most promising potential vaccines, are made from weakened live versions of the infectious agent. As a result, they cannot be studied in human trials unless researchers can be confident that the weakened vaccines will be safe. Dr. Flavell and his colleagues are working to genetically engineer laboratory mice whose immune systems are similar enough to humans to permit testing of vaccines against diseases that disproportionately affect people in the developing world.

Alternative Delivery of Human Milk Proteins to Infants: Qiang Chen of Arizona State University in the U.S. proposes to engineer edible plants, such as lettuce and rice, to express beneficial proteins found in human milk. The protein bodies in these plants allow for the stable, high accumulation of these human milk proteins, and the plants can either be eaten directly by infants or formulated into baby food to provide essential nutrients and antibacterial benefits.

Non-Hormonal Female Contraceptive Targeting Egg-Specific Metalloprotease: John Herr of the University of Virginia in the U.S. will research the egg-specific membrane enzyme metalloprotease as a target for a non-hormonal female contraceptive. After determining the nature of the enzyme's catalytic pocket, a family of peptidomimetic compounds will be tested for their ability to bind to the enzyme and block its key role in egg fertilization.

Bacillus-Fermented Natto as Edible Vaccines for the Developing World: Michael Chan of the Ohio State Research Foundation in the U.S. will develop an engineered strain of bacteria used to ferment beans in traditional Asian and African diets, to display an antigen from the Tuberculosis bacterium. The engineered bacillus will then be used to make the traditional Asian dish natto, which can serve as a kind of oral vaccine to elicit a strong immune response. If successful, this strategy can be used to introduce a variety of disease antigens through culturally accepted foods.

Nanotechnology-Based Contraception: David Clapham of Children's Hospital Boston in the U.S. will develop and test a nanoparticle contraceptive that releases sperm tail inhibitors in response to vaginal pH changes or exposure to prostatic fluid. If successful, the nanoparticles could be incorporated into a vaginal gel to block sperm motility required for fertilization. Circumcision tool For Traditional Ceremonies In Africa: Kathleen Sienko of the University of Michigan in the U.S. has developed a prototype circumcision tool for use in traditional ceremonies in Africa, and seeks to demonstrate the functionality, cultural suitability, and potential for low-cost mass production of the device. Such a tool could increase the circumcision rates leading to lower rates of HIV transmission in the region.

Discovery of Chemosensory Molecules as Novel Contraceptives: John Ngai and Scott Laughlin of the University of California, Berkeley in the U.S. seek to identify chemical compounds in the female reproductive system that guide sperm cells to the egg. By characterizing these "odorants," synthetic versions can be produced and administered to disrupt this navigation system thus inhibiting fertilization.

Transgenic Cow Milk Containing Human Antimicrobial Protein: Hironori Matsushima of the University of Toledo in the U.S. will test the hypothesis that adding an antimicrobial peptide to powdered milk products can confer protection against enteric diseases. Research will focus on testing the peptide for its ability to kill pathogens in stomach conditions, and on its ability to maintain integrity through the milk pasteurization and drying processes.

Ultrasound as a Long-Term, Reversible Male Contraceptive: James Tsuruta and Paul Dayton of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill will study the ability of therapeutic ultrasound to deplete testicular sperm counts. Characterizing the most beneficial timing and dosage could lead to the development of a low-cost, non-hormonal and reversible method of contraception for men.

You will notice from the examples listed above that all of these funded projects involve the development of proprietary (read: potentially profitable) and as-of-yet unproven technologies, and which will require the transformation and/or alteration of a natural process or substance. Also, many of the grant disbursements have gone towards contraception. This appears to diverge from the GCGH's mission statement of "improving health in the developing world," insofar as it is focused on reducing population in the developed world, rather than supporting the health of those already living, in need of help.

Big Chem, Big Harm?

NYTimes
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

NEW research is demonstrating that some common chemicals all around us may be even more harmful than previously thought. It seems that they may damage us in ways that are transmitted generation after generation, imperiling not only us but also our descendants.

Yet following the script of Big Tobacco a generation ago, Big Chem has, so far, blocked any serious regulation of these endocrine disruptors, so called because they play havoc with hormones in the body’s endocrine system.

One of the most common and alarming is bisphenol-A, better known as BPA. The failure to regulate it means that it is unavoidable. BPA is found in everything from plastics to canned food to A.T.M. receipts. More than 90 percent of Americans have it in their urine.

Even before the latest research showing multigeneration effects, studies had linked BPA to breast cancer and diabetes, as well as to hyperactivity, aggression and depression in children.

Maybe it seems surprising to read a newspaper column about chemical safety because this isn’t an issue in the presidential campaign or even firmly on the national agenda. It’s not the kind of thing that we in the news media cover much.

Yet the evidence is growing that these are significant threats of a kind that Washington continually fails to protect Americans from. The challenge is that they involve complex science and considerable uncertainty, and the chemical companies — like the tobacco companies before them — create financial incentives to encourage politicians to sit on the fence. So nothing happens.

Yet although industry has, so far, been able to block broad national curbs on BPA, new findings on transgenerational effects may finally put a dent in Big Chem’s lobbying efforts.

One good sign: In late July, a Senate committee, for the first, time passed the Safe Chemicals Act, landmark legislation sponsored by Senator Frank Lautenberg, a New Jersey Democrat, that would begin to regulate the safety of chemicals.

Evidence of transgenerational effects of endocrine disruptors has been growing for a half-dozen years, but it mostly involved higher doses than humans would typically encounter.

Now Endocrinology, a peer-reviewed journal, has published a study measuring the impact of low doses of BPA. The study is devastating for the chemical industry.

Pregnant mice were exposed to BPA at dosages analogous to those humans typically receive. The offspring were less sociable than control mice (using metrics often used to assess an aspect of autism in humans), and various effects were also evident for the next three generations of mice.

The BPA seemed to interfere with the way the animals processed hormones like oxytocin and vasopressin, which affect trust and warm feelings. And while mice are not humans, research on mouse behavior is a standard way to evaluate new drugs or to measure the impact of chemicals.

“It’s scary,” said Jennifer T. Wolstenholme, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Virginia and the lead author of the report. She said that the researchers found behaviors in BPA-exposed mice and their descendants that may parallel autism spectrum disorder or attention deficit disorder in humans.

Emilie Rissman, a co-author who is professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics at University of Virginia Medical School, noted that BPA doesn’t cause mutations in DNA. Rather, the impact is “epigenetic” — one of the hot concepts in biology these days — meaning that changes are transmitted not in DNA but by affecting the way genes are turned on and off.

In effect, this is a bit like evolution through transmission of acquired characteristics — the theory of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, the 19th-century scientist whom high school science classes make fun of as a foil to Charles Darwin. In epigenetics, Lamarck lives.

“These results at low doses add profoundly to concerns about endocrine disruptors,” said John Peterson Myers, chief scientist at Environmental Health Sciences. “It’s going to be harder than just eliminating exposure to one generation.”

The National Institutes of Health is concerned enough that it expects to make transgenerational impacts of endocrine disruptors a priority for research funding, according to a spokeswoman, Robin Mackar.

Like a lot of Americans, I used to be skeptical of risks from chemicals like endocrine disruptors that are all around us. What could be safer than canned food? I figured that opposition came from tree-hugging Luddites prone to conspiracy theories.

Yet, a few years ago, I began to read the peer-reviewed journal articles, and it became obvious that the opposition to endocrine disruptors is led by toxicologists, endocrinologists, urologists and pediatricians. These are serious scientists, yet they don’t often have the ear of politicians or journalists.

Related: EVEN BPA-FREE PLASTIC NOT ALWAYS SAFE