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more_legal_areas dioxinDioxin is a general term used to describe a group of hundreds of chemicals that are highly present in the environment. It is likely that everyone has had some level of dioxin exposure, as it exists in all populations.
One of the most toxic compounds in the dioxin category, one that is most often referred to by the word dioxin, is 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, or TCDD. This toxic compound has been found in numerous places throughout the world.
Dioxin is not deliberately produced; rather it contaminates pesticides and herbicides. It can also be formed through the burning of chlorine-based chemical compounds. It usually enters the environment through waste-burning incinerators. Paper mills and other industrial plants that burn chlorinated chemicals or produce plastics often pollute the air with dioxins, and people who burn waste in backyard barrels may also contribute to toxic air in the environment.
Dioxin exposure can occur through breathing in particles of the compound once it enters the air. More dangerous, however, is exposure to dioxin through diet. More than 90 percent of all dioxin exposure comes from ingested food.
Once dioxin enters the environment, it is absorbed into water and earth and then makes its way through the food chain. Dioxin can be found in beef, dairy products, milk, chicken, pork, fish and eggs. Because it is most concentrated in fish, people who eat a lot of fish - especially fatty fish - have a higher risk of exposure to dioxin. Nursing infants are also in danger of ingesting dioxin in their mother''s breast milk.
Although the levels of dioxin in food may be low, they are not quick to exit the body after ingestion, thereby accumulating in the fat tissue. The dioxins will build up and remain in the body long enough to cause serious health problems. It takes roughly seven years for dioxins to pass through the body. During that time, it is likely that more and more has been ingested, thus perpetuating the damage caused by exposure.
Several recent studies have found that there is no safe level of dioxin exposure: Any amount of dioxin exposure presents a risk of serious side effects. Among the health risks associated with dioxin exposure are cancer, immune system disorders and problems with the reproductive organs.
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