The Myth Of The Placental Barrier | Fit Pregnancy

The Myth Of The Placental Barrier





“Even people who pursue green lifestyles and organic diets have toxic chemicals in their blood,” says ecologist Sandra Steingraber, whose book Having Faith (Berkley Trade) chronicles the effects of pollution on fetal development. “When pregnant, our bodies become an interior ecosystem that exists in communion with the exterior ecosystem we inhabit. Whatever is in our food, air, water or house dust gets inside us.” Thinking about industrial chemicals might make you want to spend your pregnancy holed up in a jungle in Borneo, but there’s no guarantee you’d find safe haven even there. Instead, make the greenest choices possible by selecting natural materials and recognizable substances over man-made materials and unpronounceable ingredients. Here are tips for screening out those pollutants the placenta can’t.

Ban chemicals in your kitchen. Because many pesticides are neurotoxins and endocrine disruptors, choose organic foods whenever possible. Drink filtered tap water rather than water from plastic bottles. Use glass or ceramic containers to store and microwave leftovers. Limit the amount of canned foods you eat; the cans often contain BPA. Skip the big fish that are high in mercury, such as swordfish and tuna; avoid nonstick pans; and wash your hands before cooking and eating to remove the chemicals found in household dust.

Follow your nose. The sense of smell often kicks into overdrive during pregnancy. Use your supersonic sniffer to avoid harsh-smelling paints, pesticides, solvents and cleaning products. If it smells noxious, it probably is. Skip products designed to mask odors with their own chemical fragrances, such as air fresheners, perfumes, even shampoos. Chemical scents are often coupled with potent neurotoxins, endocrine disruptors, phthalates, volatile organic compounds and asthma-triggering allergens. Find out about your personal products at

Work to make the world safer. Since the placental barrier can’t do it, be part of the human barrier working to screen out toxins. No one person can steer clear of all pollutants, but the voice of mothers speaking together is one reason we now have BPA-free baby bottles and phthalate-free teethers. If the thought of toxins in your newborn’s blood brings your own blood to a boil, write a letter, sign a petition or join a group working for an environment in which you can raise your child safely. “This is a human rights issue, not a lifestyle issue,” says Steingraber. “The message coming from pregnant women should be: Any chemical that is known to be toxic and is found in umbilical cord blood has no place in our economy.”


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