Some Obscurish facts
#517
Dolphins are turning up these days with up to 2,000 (two thousand) parts per million of PCBs (a class of about 100 toxic chemicals formed by many industrial processes - they are very rare in nature) - 40 times the amount needed to classify their flesh as toxic waste, and 400 times the level deemed 'safe' in humans. PCBs and other oil-soluble chemicals build up in the fat of living animals (including us!!) over a lifetime of exposure, and cause health problems such as cancer and toxic effects to a variety of organs including the brain and liver. Inuit who live a 'traditional' lifestyle, eating large quantities of fat from marine mammals, have PCB concentrations in their bodies of 10 to 15 parts per million, while most people in North America and Europe have levels of less than 2 parts per million. People living beside toxic waste dumps can have over 30 ppm of the stuff cruising around in their blood.
Dolphins are turning up these days with up to 2,000 (two thousand) parts per million of PCBs (a class of about 100 toxic chemicals formed by many industrial processes - they are very rare in nature) - 40 times the amount needed to classify their flesh as toxic waste, and 400 times the level deemed 'safe' in humans. PCBs and other oil-soluble chemicals build up in the fat of living animals (including us!!) over a lifetime of exposure, and cause health problems such as cancer and toxic effects to a variety of organs including the brain and liver. Inuit who live a 'traditional' lifestyle, eating large quantities of fat from marine mammals, have PCB concentrations in their bodies of 10 to 15 parts per million, while most people in North America and Europe have levels of less than 2 parts per million. People living beside toxic waste dumps can have over 30 ppm of the stuff cruising around in their blood.