Fall 2019 PSY 101 Assignment: Chemicals' Impact on Women & Communities

This essay, written for a Psychology 101 course, investigates the effects of chemical exposure on women and communities of color, connecting this issue to the neuroscience perspective. It begins by explaining how the nervous and endocrine systems respond to chemicals, detailing the roles of neurons, neurotransmitters, and hormones. The essay then focuses on specific toxins like Bisphenol A and pesticides, linking them to health risks, particularly breast cancer. It also addresses the concept of environmental racism, highlighting how communities of color are disproportionately affected by exposure to hazardous environments. The author suggests measures to mitigate toxin exposure, emphasizing environmental conservation and the use of natural products, and includes references to support the arguments made.

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The Impact of Chemicals on Women and Communities of Color
We are going to look into the issue of how chemicals have affected the lives of people
who are exposed to them. In order for us to know how they affect women and communities of
color; we must understand how the body responds once its exposed to the chemicals. Information
is transmitted throughout the body with the help of neurons. Neurons are cells which are
electrically activated or stimulated so as to process and transmit information through electrical
and chemical signals. The neuron transmits information, once the body is stimulated. The
neurons get activated once you touch something or exposed to environment through
electrochemical activity. When the neurons are at rest, they possess the resting potential. This
potential enables the neurons to get ready to transmit information from all other body organs into
the brain (Ruiz et al. 203-205). This process takes place along and between cells. The
information passes from the brain to the rest of the body through neurons that are arranged as a
network. This process is referred to as action potential. Agonists are chemicals that have a
similar biological effect when they come in contact with the hormones and the neurotransmitters.
They usually change the shape of the transmembrane protein that is responsible for intracellular
activities. Antagonists on the other hand go against the natural biological effect. They hinder the
natural communications of the hormones and the neurotransmitters and also inhibit the enzyme
activity.

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The major parts of a neuron include the cell body, axon and dendrites. The cell body
forms the core of the neuron. Its main function when a signal is transmitted is to carry genetic
attributes, provide energy for normal neuron functioning as well as maintaining the structure of
the neuron. The axon is a long structure that conducts electrical impulses with the help of a fatty
sheath, referred to as the myelin sheath. The dendrites resemble fibrous roots. Their function is to
receive and process electrical signals from neighboring axons. The process whereby a
neurotransmitter is reabsorbed by its transporter is called the re-uptake process. The
neurotransmitter transporter is found along the plasma membrane of the axon’s terminal.
The endocrine system has glands that secrete and produce hormones which control the
activities of the cells or the organs. The endocrines control the growth and development as well
as reproduction. When the endocrine system is inhibited by foreign chemicals, there occurs a
hormonal imbalance and this greatly affects the body and its functioning (Finn et. Al, 400).
There have been great implications which have risen over time due to the chemicals that we are
exposing our bodies to. The chemicals are the major causes of diseases that are being
experienced in our society. Our bodies have been affected massively by some of these chemicals
which have inhibited the natural biological activities of the body.
The endocrine system and the nervous system work differently in that the endocrine
system utilizes signals referred to as chemical signals. These signals come from hormones which
are produced by respective hormonal glands. On the other hand, the nervous system uses signals,
referred to as electrical signals. These signals are also referred to as electrical impulses.
However, the two systems are similar in the way they work in that they both control the way our
bodies work, by transmitting impulses. The major glands of the endocrine system include the
hypothalamus, which regulates body temperature and metabolism as well as the release and

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suppression of hormones released in the pituitary glands. The second major endocrine gland is
the pituitary gland which releases hormones that control major roles of other hormones of the
system. The thyroid gland is responsible for producing the thyroid hormone which regulates the
body’s metabolism. Other major glands include the parathyroid glands and the adrenal glands.
There are some toxins that have been greatly linked with the cause of breast cancer in
women. Some of those toxins are found in most of the beauty products they use (Bennett et al.
A120). Additionally, Smoking has been greatly associated with breast cancer (Gray 94).
Bisphenol A is a chemical found in many plastics and a variety of their products that normally
affect the endocrine system and hormones (Ruiz et al. 120). Research shows that it increases the
risk of breast cancer. Pesticides have also been proven to have some similar properties to
estrogen, which has been proven to cause cancer cells to multiply at a very high rate thus
increasing risk of breast cancer. There are preservatives that have also been linked to breast
cancer. They are found in the cosmetics and skin care products that most women use every day
and this increases the risk of having breast cancer (Stiel et al. 598-601). The toxins may get into
the body through the air and the skin (Wang et al. 906, 910-914, 925, 928-929). Several
measures have been put in place, to ensure minimal entry of toxins into the body. The
government has come up with a policy that encourages people to conserve the environment.
There has been a law that prohibit smoking in public and this is helping to reduce the risk of
breast cancer. We should also reduce the rate at which we are using synthetic skin care products
and adopt the use of natural products on our skin. We should also try to avoid plastics as much as
possible and also dispose them in appropriately. In so doing, we shall reduce the toxin in the
environment.

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Communities of color, suffer most from exposure to environmental toxins due to
environmental racism. This is an aspect where, people discriminated due to race are placed by
laws and policies in hazardous environments, where there are cancerous agents and other
disease-causing elements. This is essentially true, from studies done in the United States
measuring the exposure rates to different pollutants in non-Hispanic whites, Hispanics and
African Americans.

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References
Bennett, Deborah, et al. "Project TENDR: targeting environmental neuro-developmental risks
the TENDR consensus statement." Environmental health perspectives 124.7 (2016):
A118-A122.
Finn, Symma, and Gwen Collman. "The pivotal role of the social sciences in environmental
health sciences research." NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and
Occupational Health Policy 26.3 (2016): 389-411.
Gray, Janet M., et al. "State of the evidence 2017: an update on the connection between breast
cancer and the environment." Environmental Health 16.1 (2017): 94.
Ruiz, Daniel, et al. "Disparities in environmental exposures to endocrine-disrupting chemicals
and diabetes risk in vulnerable populations." Diabetes care 41.1 (2018): 193-205.
Stiel, Laura, et al. "A review of hair product use on breast cancer risk in African American
women." Cancer medicine 5.3 (2016): 597-604.
Wang, Aolin, et al. "Environmental influences on reproductive health: the importance of
chemical exposures." Fertility and sterility 106.4 (2016): 905-929.