My son lost his ability to speak/learn/make eye contact between ages 1-2. Until then he was developing normally.

Was it the pesticides in the puddles he played in? Was it the flame retardent pajamas? The icky foam in his new crib mattress? The BPA in the baby bottles? Mercury in the vaccines? Lead toys from China? Our state’s 12 coal-fired power plants? So many plausible factors — and no way of knowing for sure. And the burden of staying safe is being carried by busy/struggling families. That’s just wrong.

We do know for sure that 70-100,000 chemicals have been “released onto the market”/into our air, soil where our food grows, water that we drink, cook, & bathe with since 1976… Kids these days are exposed to so much more than we were, or our parents or grandparents.

We do know that, in 2009, American children are born with 287 industrial chemicals already in their bloodstream.

Here’s what we need to do:

• Reform the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), ENACT KSCA (Kid Safe Chemicals Act).
• Stop buying harsh chemicals- phase them out of your homes/yards/bodies/children.
• Request safer, organic, natural products in glass containers.

My son is one of the “canaries in the coal mine.” Other kids may end up with problems later on, like diabetes, various cancers, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, obesity, neurological disorders…the list goes on.

All of these conditions have been linked in at least one bonafide scientific study to the exposure to certain chemicals. No one has a test on what will happen to the boy with 287 chemicals in his bloodstream.

It’s time for a new era for humankind. In the words of Chief Seattle: “Whatever mankind does to the Earth, he does to himself - It is all connected.”

God bless you all, take care, and best wishes.

Sarah French
Greensboro, North Carolina