Just when you thought PETA couldn’t get any more ridiculous!
August 30, 2013 12:27 PM
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Eating chicken parts – or, more specifically, chicken wings – could shrink your baby’s man parts.
At least, that’s what PETA is alleging in advance of the National Buffalo Wing Festival.
According to a letter from PETA to Drew Cerza, the founder of the festival, “The latest scientific evidence shows that the sons of pregnant women who consume chicken are more likely to have smaller penises because of a chemical found in the birds’ flesh.”
“Findings published by the Study for Future Families showed that eating poultry during pregnancy may lead to smaller penis size in male infants,” the letter, from PETA’s Lindsay Rajt, alleges.
So, in a city where buffalo wings are a gameday must and a wing-eating competition draws in thousands every year, we wanted to know: Just how true is PETA’s latest claim?
According to Women’s Health Magazine, the answer is not very. The magazine says that the chemical PETA is referring to is phthalate, and while research does show it causes shorter penises in boys born to moms with the highest level of phthalate exposure, poultry isn’t even a top ranking offender on the list of foods containing the chemical.
Furthermore, Women’s Health reports that phthalates are in a lot of things we use every day, from plastic containers and personal care products to spices and many foods. Your best bet for limiting your exposure to them during pregnancy is to avoid using plastic containers or consuming very processed foods.
In conclusion, you can probably relax. Your little buffalo wing habit won’t make anything else… well, little.
Calvin’s “Little” Helper: Never heard of “phthalate”? Neither did I. Here’s a couple of blurbs from what I found on the Net about phthalate…
- From Wikipedia: … Phthalates (pronounced /ˈθæˌleɪts/,THA-layts [1]), or phthalate esters, are esters of phthalic acid and are mainly used as plasticizers (substances added to plastics to increase their flexibility, transparency, durability, and longevity). They are used primarily to soften polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Phthalates are being phased out of many products in the United States, Canada, and European Union over health concerns. In 2010, the market was still dominated by phthalate plasticizers, however, due to legal provisions and growing environmental awareness, producers are increasingly forced to use non-phthalate plasticizers.[2] Read more: Phthalate – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Our Stolen Future: What are phthalates and why are there …Phthalate linked to preterm birth Phthalates levels in children Phthalates linked to sperm damage Phthalates and reduced sperm count ...www.ourstolenfuture.org/… What are phthalates? How are they used? Phthalates are a class of widely used industrial compounds known technically as dialkyl or alkyl aryl esters of 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid. There are many phthalates with many uses, and just as many toxicological properties. Phthalates crept into widespread use over the last several decades because of their many beneficial chemical properties. Now they are ubiquitous, not just in the products in which they are intentionally used, but also as contaminants in just about anything. About a billion pounds per year are produced worldwide. Intentional uses of phthalates include softeners of plastics, oily substances in perfumes, additives to hairsprays, lubricants and wood finishers. That new car smell, which becomes especially pungent after the car has been sitting in the sun for a few hours, is partly the pungent odor of phthalates volatilizing from a hot plastic dashboard. In the evening’s cool they then condense out of the inside air of the car to form an oily coating on the inside of the windshield.
Read more: http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/NEWSCIENCE/oncompounds/phthalates/phthalates.htm
Those PETA whackos will say anything to get you to quit eating food that actually tastes good!
Always at your service, dear readers of Watchwoman, I’m pleased to help in any little way I can.
For wings, football and the American way!
Donna Calvin – September 4, 2013
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