Half of common household detergents in Taiwan contain hazardous endocrine disrupters and most of them end up in the country's rivers, researchers of the National Science Council (NSC) said yesterday.
Most endocrine disrupters, also known as "environmental hormones," are released from detergents.
These disrupters have polluted the water in some rivers because of lax regulations set for the quality of sewage effluent.
Endocrine disrupters are man-made chemicals which mimic those of the body's hormonal system and potentially interfere with human and animal reproduction or development.
Declining sperm counts
Western scientific studies have shown that environmental hormones may adversely affect sexual development, causing a decline in sperm counts and semen volume in men.
Ding Wang-hsien (丁望賢), an analytical chemist at National Central University, analyzed 90 common household chemical products, including laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent, toilet cleaner, car cleaner and glass cleaner.
Results showed that 42 percent of laundry detergents, 57 percent of dishwashing detergents and 48 percent of toilet cleaners contain nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEO), which break down into a group of toxic and persistent byproducts, such as nonylphenol (NP).
These metabolic products have been linked to altered hormonal systems in fish and other aquatic creatures.
Among 90 samples, Ding said, detergents specially formulated to remove stains from socks contain the highest concentrations of NPEO.
In addition, Ding said he was worried about the generic dish-washing detergents used at many restaurants.
"These generic detergents used primarily at restaurants contain higher concentrations of NPEO than brand-name products," Ding explained yesterday at a press conference.
Ding said that household sewage had seriously contaminated rivers in Taiwan, adding that only 7 percent of household waste water receives treatment before being discharged.
Ding said that NP concentrations in 19 major rivers exceeded the 0.33 micrograms-per-liter standard set by the EU.
In Taiwan, the highest concentration of NP in a sample was 5.1 micrograms per liter.
"I call for a ban on using NPEO in detergent manufacturing because their metabolites, confirmed as endocrine disrupters, will effect humans through the food chain," Ding said.
Swiss ban
Ding said that the use of NPEO as nonionic surfactants, or chemical agents that agitate surfaces, in laundry detergents was banned by the Swiss Ordinance for Environmental Pollutants in 1986, after nonylphenol polyethoxylates and major metabolic products were intensively investigated in sewage effluent, sewage sludge and in ambient waters in Switzerland.
In 2000, a ban on industrial use was announced in Switzerland.
In Japan and the US, Ding said, scientists have discussed a ban on adding NPEO to chemical products.
Ding said the threat posed by endocrine disrupters currently lurks at the fringe of public awareness in Taiwan.
"The invisible devastation deserves more attention from the government," Ding said, adding that a Cabinet-level inter-department discussion, which included environmental, health and agricultural agencies, was necessary to trace and regulate endocrine disrupters.
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