Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are foreign substances that interfere with hormone function, leading to health risks like reproductive issues, cancers, and metabolic disorders. These chemicals act by mimicking, blocking, or triggering hormonal responses, even at low doses. Understanding and reducing exposure to EDCs in food, water, and personal care products is crucial for long-term health.
How Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals Affect Our Body
Here is a lot of scientific evidence showing that some substances can mess with the endocrine system and cause health problems in humans and animals.
These compounds, known as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) or endocrine disruptors (EDs) have been defined as exogenous substances that cause adverse health effects in an intact organism, and causing changes in endocrine function. This will affect the normal function of the endocrine system and can results in a lot of diseases complications in the functions of the systems in our body.
- Endocrine disrupting chemicals are exogenous chemicals introduced into biological systems that may cause a derailment of the endocrine system causing the organism to have various hormone related health problems. Exogenous chemicals are chemicals that are foreign to our body, or chemicals that our body are not familiar with, also termed as Xenobiotics. Examples of such chemicals are drugs, pesticides, food colouring, artificial flavours, artificial fragrances and many more
- The EDC exerts their effects in minute quantities and they act by receptor-mediated mechanism. Hormones also act by binding to their specific receptors in the body. Most chemicals that enters our body will exert its effects after it binds to a specific site called receptors. These receptors are like the lock while the chemical is like the key in a lock and key system. When it binds together, it will trigger a cascade of mechanism which will act on the body in a positive or negative manner which then can results in positive or negative reactions to the body. Sometimes if these compounds blocks the receptor, our body will no be able to function normally.
- There is a lot of scientific evidence showing that some substances can mess with the endocrine system and cause health problems in humans and animals.
- In a simple way, we can say that Endocrine disrupting chemicals are foreign chemicals that can mess up the endocrine system and cause hormone-related health problems.
- EDCs work in very small amounts and affect the body by interacting with specific receptors. Most of our Hormones work by attaching to their specific receptors. Effects are expressed zfter the interaction of specific hormones with the specific receptors.
How these foreign compounds or xenobiotics interact with pout body.
MIMICS
These chemicals acts like the actial hormone in animal body. It also gives the similar effect on our body.
Eg. Diethylstilbesterol (DES), Some Phytoestrogens found in some plants.
BLOCKERS
These are chemical substance that binds to the same protein receptor as a real hormone but does not produce any action . This will make our real hormones unable to function because the receptors are blocked.
Eg. DDE- metabolic breakdown product of pesticide DDT.
TRIGGERS
Chemical that interferes by attaching to the protein receptor but then triggers an abnormal response or action in the cells. This is very dangerous as it may trigger any form of expression which are sometimes unpredictable.
Eg. Dioxin triggers action of thyroid hormone
Some issues on EDC
- Low-dose chemical exposure and ‘cocktail effect’ They work in very trace amount which are sometimes cannot even be measured accurately. They are some chemicals which work in combination of other chemicals and makes the effects greater when in combined form.
- Inverted log dose response. Sometimes these compounds word differently in different concentration in the body, sometimes it behaves peculiarly which has greater effect in lower dose.
