Friday, August 05, 2016
Baby
Teeth of Iraqi Children Tell Troubling Tale of War's Toxic Impacts
New study finds exposure to heavy metals and other toxins having
severe impact on generation who have grown up amid endless bombings and
violence
In an effort to learn more about the impacts of long-term
exposure to heavy metals and other toxins associated with warzone bombardments
and military installations, a new study released Friday examined a sample of
donated teeth and discovered that the children of Iraq are suffering from
alarming levels of such substances, specfically lead.
The study—entitled Prenatal Metal
Exposure in the Middle East: Imprint of War in Deciduous Teeth of Children—focused
on Iraq, invaded by the U.S. and coalition forces over thirteen years ago, due
to the amount of bombing its population has witnessed over the last thirteen
years and the troubling level of cancers and birth defects now evidenced in the
population that could be related to that relentless violence. The Iraqi teeth
were compared to donated samples from both Lebanon, which has seen a more
moderate level of bombing and warfare during the same time period, and Iran,
which has experienced relative peace since the end of the Iraq/Iran War in
1988.
"In war zones," the abstract of the study explains,
"the explosion of bombs, bullets, and other ammunition releases multiple
neurotoxicants into the environment. The Middle East is currently the site of
heavy environmental disruption by massive bombardments. A very large number of
US military bases, which release highly toxic environmental contaminants, have
also been erected since 2003. Current knowledge supports the hypothesis that
war-created pollution is a major cause of rising birth defects and cancers in
Iraq."
Scientifically known as a person's "deciduous teeth,"
what are also called "baby teeth" are useful to study, the
researchers explain, because they "originate in fetal life and may prove
useful in measuring prenatal metal exposures." The researchers say their
findings confirm the hypothesis that in war-torn Iraq the levels of
contaminants found were much higher than in those countries that have seen markedly
less violence.
"Our hypothesis that increased war activity coincides with
increased metal levels in deciduous teeth is confirmed by this research,"
reads the study. "Lead levels were similar in Lebanese and Iranian
deciduous teeth. Deciduous teeth from Iraqi children with birth defects had
remarkably higher levels of Pb [lead]. Two Iraqi teeth had four times more Pb,
and one tooth had as much as 50 times more Pb than samples from Lebanon and
Iran."
To further explain the context and implications of the newly-published
researchers, it is worth quoting the study at length:
In war
zones, the explosion of bombs, bullets, and other ammunition releases multiple
neurotoxicants into the environment, adding to the burden of childhood
exposures. Recent studies in Iraq indicate widespread public exposure to
neurotoxic metals (Pb and mercury) accompanied by unprecedented increases in
birth defects and cancers in a number of cities (Savabieasfahani 2013).
Current knowledge supports the hypothesis that war-created pollution is a major
factor in the rising numbers of birth defects and cancers in Iraq.
The
Middle East has been the site of a massive environmental disruption by
bombardments. In 2015 alone, the USA dropped over 23,000 bombs in the Middle
East. Twenty-two thousand bombs were dropped on Iraq/Syria (Zenko 2016).
US military bases also produce and release highly toxic environmental
pollutants in the Middle East. Though our knowledge is limited, a recent report
by Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) offers a conservative estimate of
two million killed in the Middle East since the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.
Around one million people have been killed in Iraq, 220,000 in Afghanistan, and
80,000 in Pakistan. A total of around 1.3 million, not included in this figure,
have been killed in other recently created war zones such as Yemen and Syria (Physicians for
Social Responsibility (PSR)).
It may
seem callous to focus on the “long-term” effects of war while these horrific
consequences of war are here and now. Nevertheless, long-term public health
consequences of war need to be better examined if we are to prevent similar
wars in the future (Weir 2015).
To that end, here we report the results of our last samples from a growing
war-zone.
Deciduous
teeth of children from Iraq, Lebanon, and Iran can show a continuum of high to
low war-related-exposures in children. Measurements of environmental samples in
the areas of our interest are rare in the literature. Therefore, we deduce that
a continuum of high to low war-related exposures can be detected in children of
the selected areas based upon the knowledge of the number and length of wars
fought in each country in modern times. We do know that Iraq continues to be
the target of repeated bombings and military activity, that Lebanon has been
the site for multiple wars, and that military activities have occurred in
Lebanon intermittently up to 2016 (Haugbolle 2010).
In contrast, Iran has been the site of only one war in modern times, which
ended in 1988 (Hersh 1992).
Our aim is to evaluate deciduous teeth for their suitability to serve as
markers of prenatal exposures to neurotoxic heavy metals.
Metals
are one of the main components of bombs, bullets, and other weaponry. Buncombe
(2011)
offers a historic account of the very large number of bombs and bullets that
were dropped in the Middle East post-2003. Additionally, 1500 US military bases
and facilities—with their associated toxic pollutants—have been erected in the
Middle East since 2003 (Nazaryan 2014;
Vine 2014).
It has been suggested that US military bases are among the most polluting
operations on earth (Nazaryan2014;
Broder 1990;
Milmo 2014).
In Iraq,
there are currently over 500 US military bases (Kennedy 2008;
Vine 2014).
Pollutants released from these bases have reportedly harmed human health
(Institute of Medicine, IOM 2011).
Metals are released in the environment in large quantities during and following
wars, either by direct bombing or as a result of waste generated and released
by military installations (IOM). Metals are persistent in the environment (Li
et al. 2014),
and their adverse effects on health—especially the health of sensitive
populations (i.e., pregnant mothers, fetuses, growing children)—have been
established (Parajuli et al. 2013;
Grandjean and Landrigan 2014).
Public exposure to war-related pollutants intensifies as wars become frequent
and as the environmental release of waste associated with military bases
increases. Metal exposures and toxicity are frequently reported in children,
particularly those living in areas of protracted military attacks in the Middle
East
"As prenatal exposures become more severe and common in war
zones," the authors write, "the accurate measurement of those
prenatal exposures becomes more urgent. The use of deciduous teeth, which
originate in fetal life, as a biomarker of prenatal exposure, is worthwhile if
we are to protect children from such exposures in the future.
Donations
can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The
master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought
the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while
the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially
their lives." Eugene Victor Debs
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