What Experts Are Saying

“It is doubtful whether a national regulation for perchlorate in drinking water would provide significant measurable benefits versus the costs of compliance. It would probably be more beneficial and less costly if programs were initiated assuring pregnant women received sufficient iodine supplementation, as well as examining opportunities for increasing iodine dietary consumption for the general population.”

Dr. Joseph Cotruvo
Former director of the U.S. EPA Drinking Water Standards Division
Commentary in Water Technology

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“Consumers should not view the low levels of perchlorate in the foods tested as an indicator of the “risk” of eating certain foods, particularly when many of the foods are important components of a nutritious and balanced diet. Some of these food items are also important sources of iodine. Until more is known concerning perchlorate’s occurrence in foods, FDA continues to recommend that consumers eat a balanced diet, choosing a variety of foods that are low in trans-fat and saturated fat, and rich in high-fiber grains, fruits and vegetables.”

Robert E. Bracket, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition – U.S. FDA
Testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials, April 25, 2007.

“There is no compelling reason to believe perchlorate would cause thyroid cancer in humans, particularly at currently reported levels of exposure.”

Gary Williams, MD
Professor of Environmental Pathology and Toxicology
Department of Pathology, New York Medical College

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“EPA’s perchlorate Reference Dose (24.5 ppb in water) is conservative and protective of public health, and further reducing the perchlorate exposure below the RfD does not effectively lower risk.”

U.S. EPA Office of the Inspector General
Scientific Analyis of Perchlorate – 2010 (Report No. 10-P-0101)

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“The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) concluded that based on the understanding of the biology of human and rodent thyroid tumors, it is unlikely that perchlorate poses a risk of thyroid cancer in humans. Perchlorates have not been classified for carcinogenic effects by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) or the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). The EPA has determined that perchlorate is not likely to pose a risk of thyroid cancer in humans, at least at doses below those necessary to alter thyroid hormone homeostasis, based on the hormonally-mediated mode of action in rodent studies and species differences in thyroid function.”

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) 
Public Health Statement for Perchlorates

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“The committee emphasizes that inhibition of iodine uptake by the thyroid gland is the only consistently documented effect of perchlorate exposure in humans…  Inhibition of iodine uptake by the thyroid clearly is not an adverse effect; however if it does not occur, there is no progression to adverse effects… The continuum of possible effects of iodine uptake inhibition caused by perchlorate exposure is only proposed and has not been demonstrated in humans exposed to perchlorate…”

National Research Council Committee to Assess the Health Implications of Perchlorate Ingestion

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