Nathan, Can environmental estrogens affect health?

The reading discusses what is considered the most famous example of “the effects of hormone-like chemicals upon wildlife” [1] . According to the text, in the mid 1980’s alligators in Lake Apopka, Florida, suffered severe birth defects ranging from sterility to eggs remaining unhatched. In the males they found that “the ratio of natural estrogen to the male sex hormone testosterone” was severely elevated resulting in decreased genital size [1]. The defects were the specific result of large quantities of DDT being spilled into Lake Apopka. The text goes on to explain that the effects of environmental estrogen do not take effect on those who ingest them, but rather upon their offspring. Their offspring often have “reproductive system abnormalities” which most commonly result in sterility as well as cancer when the offspring matures. In humans, a synthetic estrogen given to women in an attempt to prevent miscarriages often led to sterility in their offspring and in rare cases a form of vaginal cancer developed.

I was unaware that estrogens could have such a dramatic effect on organisms. In retrospect it seems obvious that abnormal hormone ratios would cause severe problems, although I would not have predicted that they would arise in the offspring. The results are especially stunning when considering the effects of the miscarriage preventative medication. It’s becoming abundantly clear to me that no medicines can truly be considered safe until they have been tested for two generations.

Baird, Colin. Chemistry In Your Life. W.H. Freeman and Company, New York. 2006. Pg405,406.