Birth Control and the Law of Unintended Consequences

I've gotta say, this creeps me out. If you've got a weak stomach, you might not want to read it.


This article takes a look at the feminization of the hornyhead turbot (no, I didn't make up that name), a fish off the coast of southern California. It seems that estrogen, both natural and artificial (from birth control), is entering males of this species through the food chain and causing them to develop female characteristics. Some of the males have actually grown small eggs in their testes.

The hornyhead turbot isn't consumed by humans. Scientists are now looking at seafood species, including the pacific sand dab -- one of my favorite fish when I was a poor grad student, to see if they contain concentrations of estrogen, which might pose a danger to humans.

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http://news.mensactivism.org/articles/05/12/02/0255227.shtml

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