Toxic Overload in Toddlers: Learn the Truth About Every Day Toxins
Who wants to hear that their sweet little toddler is peeing out toxins and a lot of them? Likely no one is excited about that news unless the parent thinks “at least it is coming out”. Even with that mindset, if the toxin is coming out, it had to go through their bodies, potentially causing harm on its way. This study should lead you to ask how much can one little body tolerate before we should worry and stop the madness.
Researchers across multiple US institutions tested 2 to 4-year-olds for 111 different chemicals known to be common in our environment. Where able, they also tested pregnant moms for the same chemicals prior to delivery. They found some crazy stats. Quoting bulletpoints from Science Daily’s summary:
- “96 chemicals were detected in at least five children.”
- “48 chemicals were found in over half of the children.”
- “34 chemicals were detected in more than 90% of children — including nine chemicals not currently tracked in national health surveys like the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).”
In what reality does anyone believe this is a good thing? These are the years when children develop from head to toe, from toenail to brain cell. The brain wiring hardwired during these years- not to mention the hormonal and metabolic pattens established- will affect them for decades to come. Many of these 111 chemicals (and others not tested) are known to leave lasting adverse effects when the exposure is too high. In some cases, the levels in the toddler’s urine were even higher than those in mom’s pregnancy urine, indicating the main exposure comes from the post-natal period.
This list of chemicals are similar to what we look for in our chronically ill pediatric patients. Those patients suffer from autism spectrum disorders, PANS & PANDAS, food allergies, migraines, developmental delays, seizures, and more. Given the frequency of which we find these toxins in these children and the studies linking such toxins to many significant health conditions, we know that we are justified in both our testing and our public health concerns.
As we help our patients look for the sources of the chemicals that show up in their urine, we review their daily habits and lifestyles. Younger children put a lot of things in their mouths, including their hands, and thus contact too many of these chemicals. Phthalates and flame retardants, for instance, can be found in various plastic toys. Parabens end up on their skin from a variety of personal care products. The list could go on for a while.
For our patients, knowledge of exposure is the first step. From there, identification of sources comes next. Then the challenge of removing those exposures starts. Whether we are caring for a 2-year-old or a 40-year-old, lifestyle choices regarding food, household maintenance, personal care products, and more determine whether those chemicals continue to build up in their bodies to the point of illness.
Beyond those consumer choices, hand washing, HVAC HEPA filters or air purifiers, and regular dusting will lower exposure levels. Helping our patients and our audience live healthier, more abundant lives requires knowledge, wisdom, encouragement and vigilance. Besides caring for such toxin-exposed patients in our clinic, we are looking forward to an upcoming class series on Healthy Living so everyone can prevent the toxin buildup before symptoms arise.
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Original Article:
Jiwon Oh, Jessie P. Buckley, Kurunthachalam Kannan, Edo Pellizzari, Rachel L. Miller, Theresa M. Bastain, Anne L. Dunlop, Christian Douglas, Frank D. Gilliland, Julie B. Herbstman, Catherine Karr, Christina A. Porucznik, Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Rachel Morello-Frosch, Sheela Sathyanarayana, Rebecca J. Schmidt, Tracey J. Woodruff, Deborah H. Bennett. Exposures to Contemporary and Emerging Chemicals among Children Aged 2 to 4 Years in the United States Environmental Influences on the Child Health Outcome (ECHO) Cohort. Environmental Science & Technology, 2025; DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c13605
Thanks to Science Daily:
University of California – Davis Health. “Researchers tested 200 toddlers — 96 chemicals were lurking in their bodies.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 2 July 2025. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250701234739.htm>.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
