Babies and young children may be at risk of developing cancer through exposure to pesticides on food, scientists warned today.
Low levels of chemicals found in pesticides and plastics are more influential in causing cancer than previously thought, University of Liverpool experts said.
They claim the chemicals pass to humans from eating meat and dairy products and can also be transferred from a mother to her baby via breast milk. Cancer experts are calling for a reduction in human exposure to chemicals such as pesticides in light of the findings.
Jamie Page, chairman of the Cancer Prevention and Education Society, said: "This research is very important and suggests that there are links between chemicals and cancer.
"It is our opinion that if progress is to be made in the fight against cancer, far more attention and effort must be made to reduce human exposure to harmful chemicals."
Professor Vyvyan Howard and John Newby, from Liverpool University's Department of Human Anatomy and Cell Biology, claim their research contradicts past studies into the links between chemicals in pesticides and cancer.
Most previous investigations concluded that these chemicals - called organochlorines - occurred at concentrations too low to be considered a major factor in cancerous diseases.
The research has found that exposure even to small amounts of these chemicals may result in an increased risk of developing cancer - particularly for infants and young adults.
Prof Howard said synthetic pesticides could also be a major factor in causing breast, testicular and prostate cancers.
"Preventative measures for these types of cancer have focused on educating the public about the danger of tobacco smoke, improving diet and promoting physical activity.
"We should now, however, be focusing on trying to reduce exposure to problematic chemicals."
The research is published in the Taylor & Francis Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine.
PA