14 DAY TRIAL // Kids and teens who pack more pounds than what is normal for their age and who display symptoms listed as diabetes precursors may partly owe their poor health to chemical compounds used to manufacture food packaging, researchers at the New York University believe.
These specialists base their claims on data collected while looking into the medical records of 766 teens between the ages of 12 and 19.
The data was collected between 2003 and 2008, while carrying out a health and nutrition survey.
The scientists argue that, as far as they can tell, children who are regularly exposed to two chemical compounds known as phthalate and bisphenol A are more likely to be either overweight or obese.
Besides, their risk of developing diabetes at some point in their lives is significantly higher than that of children who seldom come in contact with said chemical compounds.
Investigations have shown that kids whose urine contains noteworthy amounts of phthalate, i.e. a chemical compound typically used to soften plastic, have a higher risk of insulin resistance, Daily Mail tells us.
Furthermore, children whose urine contains traces of bisphenol A, i.e. a compound used to manufacture aluminum cans, have higher chances of being affected by obesity.
The same source informs us that, according to reports issued by the country's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly one in six of the children and teenagers presently living in the US qualifies as obese.
While it is very much true that poor diet and lack of exercise are the driving forces behind this obesity epidemic, the New York University researchers suspect that certain chemical compounds that these kids are exposed to on a daily basis also have a say in the matter.
“Clearly unhealthy diet and lack of physical activity are the drivers of this epidemic,” Dr. Leonardo Trasande wished to stress.
“However, increasingly environmental chemicals are being identified as possible contributors,” he went on to argue.