Chemical widely used in antibacterial hand soaps may impair muscle function

Triclosan is commonly found in antibacterial personal-care products such as hand soaps as well as deodorants, mouthwashes, toothpaste, bedding, clothes, carpets, toys and trash bags.

This may be making us all tired and weak!!

I think this may be very important...
Is there anyone who does not know someone who uses an energy drink?
Could it be that this chemical is causing the tiredness that seems to be a growing problem even in the young population? Is it making us weak, want to exercise less and be tired all the time?

When I was young I was never tired and we never used energy drinks or caffeine until much later in life, now kids seem to actually need to consume colas and 5 hour energy and other products to get through the day!

Just about everyone I know now uses antibacterial products and they are heavily used in all businesses from Walmarts to restaurants. They are used in our kitchens at home and our bathrooms and showers. it is in some toothpaste to prevent Gingivitis.


From the article:
Published: Monday, August 13, 2012 - 19:32 in Health & Medicine

esciencenews.com...

The investigators performed several experiments to evaluate the effects of triclosan on muscle activity, using doses similar to those that people and animals may be exposed to during everyday life.

"The team also found that triclosan impairs heart and skeletal muscle contractility in living animals. Anesthetized mice had up to a 25-percent reduction in heart function measures within 20 minutes of exposure to the chemical." "The effects of triclosan on cardiac function were really dramatic," said Nipavan Chiamvimonvat, professor of cardiovascular medicine at UC Davis and a study co-author. "Although triclosan is not regulated as a drug, this compound acts like a potent cardiac depressant in our models."

"You can imagine in animals that depend so totally on muscle activity that even a 10-percent reduction in ability can make a real difference in their survival."


more than 1 million pounds of triclosan are produced annually in the United States, and that the chemical is detectable in waterways and aquatic organisms ranging from algae to fish to dolphins, as well as in human urine, blood and breast milk.

It also seems it may have a detrimental effect on reproduction hormones and brain cell activity.

Source:
esciencenews.com...

Interesting. The article doesn't say if it can be absorbed through the skin. I wonder if that"s what's in the hand sanitizers I see everywhere.

Originally posted by N3k9Ni
Interesting. The article doesn't say if it can be absorbed through the skin. I wonder if that"s what's in the hand sanitizers I see everywhere.

I think it is some, but I checked the one I use for when we leave stores I keep in the car and it is not in it. It sounds like we are really polluting ourselves with things that not only make us feel unwell, tired and weak, but goes into the water, who knows what it does to the frogs! it did show in the tests that fish swim slower when they have been exposed!

reply to post by Char-Lee


I found this pdf file that is very informative.

www.beyondpesticides.org...

The Ubiquitous Triclosan
A common antibacterial agent exposed
By Aviva Glaser

Chemical Name: 2,4,4’-Trichloro-2’-hydroxydiphenyl ether. CAS# 3380-34-5. Other names: Microban, Irgasan DP-300, Lexol 300, Ster-Zac, Cloxifenolum, Biofresh etc.1

antimicrobial agents in consumer products…”2 Triclosan possesses mostly antibacterial properties, but also some anti-fungal and antiviral properties. It is marketed under the trade name Microban® when used in plastics and clothing, and Biofresh® when used in acrylic fibers. Triclosan is most often used to kill bacteria on the skin and other surfaces, although it sometimes is used to preserve the product against deterioration due to microbes.3 Antibacterials are similar to antibiotics in that they both inhibit bacterial growth. But while the purpose of antibiotics is to cure disease, the purpose of antibacterials are to prevent transmission of disease-causing micro-organisms.4

Triclosan has been used for over 30 years. Its uses were originally confined mostly to health care settings,first introduced in the health care industry in a surgical scrub in 1972. Over the last decade, there has been a rapid increase in the use of triclosan-containing products.5 A marketplace study in 2000 by Eli Perencevich, M.D. and colleagues found that over 75% of liquid soaps and nearly 30% of bar soaps (45% of all the soaps on the market) contained some type of antibacterial agent. Triclosan was the most common agent found – nearly half of all commercial soaps contained triclosan.6

reply to post by azureskys


Thanks...very interesting!

However, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, other than its use in some toothpastes to prevent gingivitis, there is no evidence that triclosan provides other health benefits or that antibacterial soaps and body washes are more effective than regular soap and water.

Oh. Well, crap. Guess I'm going back to bar soap then. I like it better anyway and I'd rather not deteriorate anymore than I already have in the last few years.

Experts also express concern about the possibility of resistant bacterial strains developing with the overuse of antibacterial products.

We seem to be pretty good at making the nasties even more powerful.

I would be interested to know how much they gave the mice and the minnows. If it's some ridiculous quantity like 8 gallons per mouse I'm not going to be very worried. If it's an amount that would be comparable to what a normal human would use (scaled down for mouse size) then yikes.

But don't worry guys it's not like most people have carpet, or dish soap, or clothes bedding and toothpaste. Only fancy folks should be worried.

Can't tell you what station I saw it on today but a Scientist stated the
amount that the test subjects were given appears to wear off in about an hour.

Originally posted by Domo1

However, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, other than its use in some toothpastes to prevent gingivitis, there is no evidence that triclosan provides other health benefits or that antibacterial soaps and body washes are more effective than regular soap and water.

Oh. Well, crap. Guess I'm going back to bar soap then. I like it better anyway and I'd rather not deteriorate anymore than I already have in the last few years.

Experts also express concern about the possibility of resistant bacterial strains developing with the overuse of antibacterial products.

We seem to be pretty good at making the nasties even more powerful.

I would be interested to know how much they gave the mice and the minnows. If it's some ridiculous quantity like 8 gallons per mouse I'm not going to be very worried. If it's an amount that would be comparable to what a normal human would use (scaled down for mouse size) then yikes.

But don't worry guys it's not like most people have carpet, or dish soap, or clothes bedding and toothpaste. Only fancy folks should be worried.

edit on 16-8-2012 by Domo1 because: (no reason given)

Well they don't say the actual amount here but this...

Chiamvimonvat cautioned that translating results from animal models to humans is a large step and would require further study. However, the fact that the effects were so striking in several animal models under different experimental conditions provides strong evidence that triclosan could have effects on animal and human health at current levels of exposure.

Anything that makes us weaker, our muscle perform slower and weaker and makes the heart muscle weak sounds pretty bad!

"We have shown that triclosan potently impairs muscle functions by interfering with signaling between two proteins that are of fundamental importance to life," said Pessah. "

I hate how these things are building up in the water.

reply to post by azureskys


Since they now have only GMO foods with built in pesticides already inside them, pretty soon all life should shrivel up and die as we walk past! Our bodies are becomeing the worlds biggest pool of pollutants.

I have refused to use the anti-bacterial hand soaps ever since they started being hyped. It is not a good idea to make your environment too sterile, and I always feared these soaps and products would have an effect on us that we were not anticipating.