Can this happen to humans too?

Fish near treatment plants found with male-female tissue
Sunday October 03, 2004
DENVER (AP) Fish with both male and female sex tissue have been discovered near wastewater treatment plants on the South Platte River and Boulder Creek.

Scientist are trying to determine if chemicals that distrupt hormones, such as estrogen, are responsible for the gender-bending fish phenomenon.

news4colorado.com...

``This is the first thing that I've seen as a scientist that really scared me,'' said Woodling, 58, a retired fisheries biologist with the Colorado Division of Wildlife now working with the University of Colorado.
Scientist haven't pinpointed which chemicals being emitted from the plant might be causing the deformities. However, chemicals known as endocrine disrupters which, mimic or disrupt hormones, especially estrogen, are a leading suspect.

All the contaminants in the water and air, have to cause problems somewhere, and we all know what happens when certain chemical mix. The enviroment is so full of chemicals and pollutants that some kind of major problem may pop up somewhere, this is probably just the begining of weird mutant changes that will happen.

Yes. This can and DOES happen to humans too.

Hermaphrodites have both male and female sex organs in part or whole.
There are also chimeras, which have two different sets of genes of which some can be male and some can be female. (or male-male, female/female)

Toxin could in theory cause this is a fetus was exposed to them durring development.

Many scientist believe that young girls are starting their menstrual cycle and developing too early (my niece at 9) due to the chemicals and hormones feed our food supply............yes, these things can happen, it's very scary! The deceased are not even decaying as they should due to the amount of preservatives we are eating!!

Most true human hermaphrodites have sex reassignment surgery consented (by their parents) and surgically performed shortly after birth.

However, invasive procedures are often more damaging and disfiguring, such as in the case where a person is born with external male organs but fused female reproductive organs are located inside the anus. In these cases it is more likely that the individual will be raised as a male & taught compensatory strategies. In other words, he is taught how to "hide it". Interestingly, 99% of true hermaphrodites do not have the capacity to have children (despite what you may see in the tabloids).

MK

What is a chimera?
I have heard of Hermaphrodites, but I always thought it was some kind of birth defect caused by twin fusing ofr something along those lines. Does science know how they are created? I have also heard that certain types of frogs and earthworm can be both male and female at the same time.

Lady V my daughter was also 9 so was my niece, we are not a family that eats a lot of processed foods. I have always wondered about all the hormones in milk!

Originally posted by jeeze louise
What is a chimera?

A Chimera is when two seperate embryo, with different DNA, meld into one and grow as a single person. Additionly this may be when a woman's cycle doesn't turn off after the first conception and a fertilzed egg melds with the 4 week old embryo/fetus.

Most chimeras never know they are chimeras. The ones that have been caught are normally due to genetic testing for unrelated reasons that turn up 2 sets of DNA. Some chimera show patches of different skin tones, these are the easiest to spot outside of testing the genes from various cells.

This shouldn't have been surprise to anyone. We spew so much chemicals to nature without bothering to check what they cause, or what is total effect of those.

Originally posted by LadyV
Many scientist believe that young girls are starting their menstrual cycle and developing too early (my niece at 9) due to the chemicals and hormones feed our food supply............yes, these things can happen, it's very scary! The deceased are not even decaying as they should due to the amount of preservatives we are eating!!

Especially food industry's doings are dubious, they put so much chemicals to food but I haven' seen any research done what's total effect.

Also one thing that I don't like at all is using hormones to speed up growing of cattle.
Also mad cows disease/BSE is greatly consequence of this capitalism which requires profits over anything other. (grass is cows food, not grinded animals)

"The economic anarchy of capitalist society as it exists today is, in my opinion, the real source of the evil."
-Albert Einstein

[edit on 8-10-2004 by E_T]