Article #8 12/10/12
Jane Kay. Environmental Health News. "Should Doctors Warn Pregnant Women about Environmental Risks?" Scientific American.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=should-doctors-warn-pregnant-women-about-environmental-risks
Topic: Environmental Health
This article is about how many obstetricians and gynecologists do not warn their patients about dangerous and harmful chemicals that are found in food, consumer products such as cosmetics and cleaners and pesticides. Doctors argue that their priority is to protect women from immediate dangers such as what happens before labor and they do not want to cause extra stress by talking about these other dangers. Many doctors discuss the basics such as smoking, drinking, diet, weight gain, dangers in the workplace and second-hand smoke. But a smaller percentage talk about pesticides, air pollution, mercury, gasoline/paint/solvent fumes. Doctors find it difficult to discuss mercury because fish is a good protein source for women and babies but too much of it isn't. Women that are middle to upper class ask more questions about environmental chemicals while low income patients don't.
This article was very interesting because I didn't know that so many doctors didn't discuss things like pesticides, air pollution, mercury and gasoline fumes because they are just as dangerous and important if not more as smoking, drinking and diet. It was also sad to read that women that are lower-income don't ask about environmental issues yet according to the article they are the ones that are the most exposed to toxic chemicals.
Topic: Environmental Health
This article is about how many obstetricians and gynecologists do not warn their patients about dangerous and harmful chemicals that are found in food, consumer products such as cosmetics and cleaners and pesticides. Doctors argue that their priority is to protect women from immediate dangers such as what happens before labor and they do not want to cause extra stress by talking about these other dangers. Many doctors discuss the basics such as smoking, drinking, diet, weight gain, dangers in the workplace and second-hand smoke. But a smaller percentage talk about pesticides, air pollution, mercury, gasoline/paint/solvent fumes. Doctors find it difficult to discuss mercury because fish is a good protein source for women and babies but too much of it isn't. Women that are middle to upper class ask more questions about environmental chemicals while low income patients don't.
This article was very interesting because I didn't know that so many doctors didn't discuss things like pesticides, air pollution, mercury and gasoline fumes because they are just as dangerous and important if not more as smoking, drinking and diet. It was also sad to read that women that are lower-income don't ask about environmental issues yet according to the article they are the ones that are the most exposed to toxic chemicals.