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Friday, November 29, 2013

Scientific Evidence to Support 'Seven Generations' future thinking; our toxic chemical exposures may harm our great-grandchildren

Thinking beyond today and beyond specific employee exposure is critical for the analysis of the consequences of our environment and health. One would think that we woud have learned of the serious medical problems caused by the consequences of being a household contact to an asbestos worker. Proven has been the causal relationship to asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. The future effects of industrial and environmental pollution are the subject of an insightful article by Jennifer Sass, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and, Professorial Lecturer, George Washington University (SEIU Local 500).
Native American tribes hold dear the concept of seven generations planning, that the impact of decisions should be considered out seven generations into the future, about 150 years. The idea is that our decisions today should consider the potential benefits or harm that would be felt by seven future generations. While such future-thinking has obvious ethical and moral value, it seems that it may also have scientific validity.
A recent article by Washington State University biologist, Dr. Michael Skinner and his scientific team provides evidence from rat studies that male infertility can result from an exposure to the pesticide vinclozolin. What’s the catch? The pesticide exposure was not to the infertile rat, but to its great grandmother, three generations earlier!
But, this wasn’t Skinner’s first article on...
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