From Dan Gollub
Olathe, Kansas
The increased levels of dioxin in the environment are a consequence of
recycling and waste incineration, notes Fred Pearce
(This Week, 4 October, p 21).
This contamination is partly responsible for nursing mothers passing dioxin
to their babies via breast milk.
The hormone prolactin can induce lactation. So it seems probable that giving
the hormone to women who later intend to nurse children, then collecting their
milk and discarding it, could significantly reduce levels of the toxic material
in their body tissues, and would safeguard nursing infants.
The level of chlorinated compounds such as dioxin is highest in the breast
milk for the first child and lower for subsequent children. So inducing
lactation before the mother nurses that first child might prove helpful. Are
there any harmful side effects in inducing lactation in a woman before she
becomes pregnant?
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Indeed, if induced lactation is an effective way to remove toxins from bodily
tissues, would trying the treatment in everyone past puberty cause problems?
Would giving prolactin to men cause them to lactate? And would collecting and
discarding their milk reduce the levels of toxic substances in their bodies?
