As a whole, people within the United States of America are pretty protective of children. Not only our the ones in our families, but children in general. While the history of the US certainly shows that in early times, children were used heavily during the development of this country to get things done, sometimes to an extreme. Luckily, thanks to legislation, we have child labor laws. We would like to think of those days as long behind us.
With all that being said, it is rather un-settling to find out that two prestigious universities, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and University of Southern California (USC), along with the EPA conducted studies on multiple children using chemicals thought to cause cancer. Yes, take a second and read that sentence again. Testing done on children using chemicals that might cause cancer.
The studies were conducted from 2003 to 2010. USC and UCLA sprayed a liquid containing diesel exhaust up the noses of children as young as ten years old. During these years, the EPA classified diesel exhaust as a potential carcinogen.
According to this article published by The Independent, the study was discovered by the Energy and Environmental Legal Institute through the Freedom of Information Act. In addition to the EPA information, UCLA’s portion of the test is, also, public record here.
While these tests were not conducted to see if the children exposed would get Lung Cancer, the chemicals used were still known to cause cancer. The reasoning behind these tests, was to determine the effects of pollutants on children.
For more information on this, visit The Independent. Weigh in with your opinions here on these kind of studies involving children.