Say No To Antibacterial Soaps

By Dr. Ben Kim on November 13, 2006

Health Warnings

If you are still using antibacterial soap that contains a compound called triclosan, I hope that a brilliant study published in the journal, Aquatic Toxicology will persuade you to consider switching to the plainest bar of soap that you can find.

Researchers have discovered that exposure to triclosan can cause significant disruption to the endocrine system, a finding that has countless and serious health implications.

The study found that triclosan - at concentrations found in North American streams - can disrupt thyroid hormone function in bullfrogs, which can lead to:

Elevated activity in the brain of genes linked with uncontrolled cell growth
Accelerated hind-limb development
Unhealthy weight loss

What's especially disturbing about this discovery is that the hormone signaling mechanisms that triclosan disrupts is virtually identical in frogs and humans.

Could this be another reason why we have an ever increasing number of children who experience puberty far earlier than can be considered healthy?

The bottom line: antimicrobial household products that contain triclosan should be avoided by everyone, but particularly by pregnant women and growing children.

Not only do we need to ensure that these products don't have a place in our homes, we need to be proactive in having them removed from our schools, community centers, and other public facilities.

To view the original abstract of this study, click here:

Triclosan Effects Thyroid Hormone-Regulated Gene Expression

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