UNH Research: Flame Retardants Found to Cause Metabolic, Liver Problems

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.unh.edu/news/releases/2015/02/lw16obesity.cfm

[font face=Serif]February 16, 2015
[font size=5]UNH Research: Flame Retardants Found to Cause Metabolic, Liver Problems[/font]

[font size=3]DURHAM, N.H. – Chemicals used as synthetic flame retardants that are found in common household items such as couches, carpet padding, and electronics have been found to cause metabolic and liver problems that can lead to insulin resistance, which is a major cause of obesity, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire.

“Being obese or overweight increases one's risk of many diseases including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke, gall bladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea and certain cancers,” said Gale Carey, professor of nutrition and the lead researcher. In 2003, overweight and obesity-related medical expenses were 9.1 percent of total U.S. medical expenses at about $80 billion. New Hampshire's portion of this expense was $302 million.

Carey and her team of researchers found that laboratory rats exposed to polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs, experienced a disruption in their metabolism that resulted in the development of metabolic obesity and enlarged livers.

“Despite the plethora of resources devoted to understanding the roles of diet and exercise in the obesity epidemic, this epidemic continues to escalate, suggesting that other environmental factors may be involved. At the biochemical level there is a growing body of experimental evidence suggesting certain environmental chemicals, or ‘obesogens’, could disrupt the body's metabolism and contribute to the obesity epidemic,” she said.

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[Chemisse]

1. Obesogens? That's a new word for me.

I would like to see a lot more research in this area. It's a huge and growing problem and it's just too easy to blame it on McDonald's and bad moms, and not look any further.