After World War II, when the technology used for chemical warfare spurred the development of synthetic chemicals in America, production and manufacturing soared. Not only did these synthetic chemicals allow for faster production, but the American economy was powerful after an increase in jobs, efficiency, and consumerism. Essentially, an industrial complex formed around these once militarized chemicals and they were put into most products we interact with today.

During this time, single-use plastic and metallic products became popular; they were cheap, and since the number of single-parent households was increasing due to high divorce rates, many families depended on this increase in waste to function as a household. 

Since the 1950s, though, this rise in consumerism has not stopped. Americans continue to use disposable products manufactured with harmful toxins, but this culture in America has devastating consequences.

It has to stop. 

There are many environmental toxins in products in America that go unregulated, which can influence both our mental and physical health in ways we are just beginning to understand. 

One commonly found toxin is PolyVinyl chloride (PVC), which can be easily identified by the strong plastic smell encountered when you open a package or experience that “new car smell.” This smell is caused by PVC’s high concentration of “phthalates, which have been linked to reproductive effects, and varying concentrations of organotins, which are compounds based on tin and hydrocarbons (LATimes). 

New car smell is a VOC (volatile organic compound). Now, VOC’s are the extremely harmful fumes given off by certain man-made products, like paint and plastic. The term “organic” doesn’t mean the compound came from the earth, but that it has the chemistry of carbon compounds – which means it can enter the body and disrupt natural functions more easily than non-organic compounds. 

To make PVC more pliable and usable, neurotoxins like lead and mercury are added during production. To make matters worse, a lot of these additives don’t bond to the PVC at the molecular level. They slowly leak out, causing the strong and harmful smell. 

These neurotoxins affect small children and babies most adversely, as their nervous systems are still developing, and the impediment of this can lead to an array of health issues. 

PVC also harms the environment in every stage of its existence- from manufacturing to consumption to disposal. During production, chlorine gas is used to produce ethylene dichloride, to make chloride monomer, which is converted to PVC (chej.org). 

Because manufacturing factories are often located in developing countries that lack regulation, these poisons often leak into the surrounding ecosystems, causing cancer and harm to the reproductive systems of impacted people and environments. 

When PVC is burned for disposal, dioxin is released, which is one of the most toxic and persistent pollutants we know of. When PVC is recycled, its aforementioned toxic additives leach into the nearby soil and water, which only perpetuate the problem. 

Though it is all too common in American products, there is no benefit to using PVC other than the short-lived satisfaction we get from using plastic products. 

PVC is just one harmful substance prevalent in the products we use that has a lasting impact on our health, the environment, and the health of the manufacturers who have to work in contact with these poisons. Causing dozens of cancers and diseases, lead, mercury, and other toxins in PVCs should be avoided by the American consumer, but for many reasons, they aren’t. 

For one, many consumers do not know that they should be avoiding PVC and assume if a product is available for public purchase, then it is safe. To avoid buying products with PVC, look for the recycle image with a three in the center, and reduce the toxins you enter into your body and home. These products have unforeseen long and short-term effects on our bodies, causing physical effects the same way stress does.

To reduce this widespread issue, the only real solution is to stop using products that contain harmful toxins, because there is no safe way to manufacture, use, or dispose of them. 

P.S.- To learn more about this topic, I highly recommend the book The Story of Stuff: The Impact of Overconsumption on the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health- And How We Can Make It Better by Annie Leonard. This book opened my eyes to how my activities and lifestyle impacts the Earth and other humans.

Also, if you want to see how the toxins in our products have affected your own health, calculate your Body Burden to see the levels of harmful toxins in your body: http://www.ewg.org/enviroblog/2008/10/whats-your-personal-body-burden