“The huge rise of autism in Britain is linked to old iPod batteries, mobile phones and other products of the electronic age, a leading scientist claimed this weekend,” The Express On Sunday reports via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge.
The Express On Sunday reports, “Autistic children have been shown to have problems getting rid of toxic metals – and those metals are increasingly polluting the environment, says Dr Richard Lathe. ‘Think of iPod batteries, computers, television sets and mobile phones – thousands of them tossed aside without any thought to their proper disposal,’ says the molecular biologist, who specialises in research into autism and other brain disorders.”
“In the wake of this week’s reports that autism has shot up to a record high of one per cent of the population, Dr Lathe is about to publish his own shock results from a study of hundreds of children in France,” The Express On Sunday reports. “More than half those who were autistic were found to have a marker of heavy metal in their urine, he says. ‘Couple this with a study published last month showing a correlation between mercury release into the environment and autism rates in Texas, and yet another study showing that autistic children have a problem getting rid of mercury through their hair, and you have a substantial body of evidence.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: In related news, a man tipped over while canoeing this past Saturday on the Hudson River. The man swam safely to shore, but the canoe sank and was lost. The man has been an Apple iPod owner since 2004.
Did you know that Apple rechargeable batteries actually provide a better solution for both your pocketbook and the planet? If your iPod were powered by 4-AA Alkaline batteries and you used just one pack per week (conservative estimate), after two years you would have spent over $200 and piled up 400 dead, potentially autism-causing batteries.
MacDailyNews Note: FYI for iPod Owners: Your one year warranty includes replacement coverage for a defective battery. You can extend your coverage to two years with AppleCare Protection Plan. During the second year, Apple will replace the battery if it drops below 50% of its original capacity. If it is out of warranty, Apple offers a battery replacement for $59, plus $6.95 shipping. Apple disposes your battery in an environmentally-friendly manner. More info here.
Will ENOUGH of this kind of crapola EVER be ENOUGH?
“Mommy, make them stop!”
MacDailyNews are idiots! A man sinking his canoe has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with owning an Apple iPod!!!
ahahah brandon your an idiot…
Autism is caused by mercury in vaccines and other stuff in vaccines
Don’t get yourself vaccinated!
This is a problem that pre dates the iPod, but using the iPod name is simply a lure. Sadly, we are responsible for quite a few of the deseases our children endure, suffer and die from.
brandon,
Lemme guess, you use your iPod with a Windows PC, right?
Feldstein,
ROTFLMFAO! Ouch!
While the headline and the first sentence of the article are sensationalist, and the rest is unproven, at least one heavy metel has definately been shown to cause emotional and mental problems, particularly in children. Lead, anyone?
iPods are killers… children are autistic, canoes are sinking! Aaaahhh!
May be the scientist need to look at where the batteries are coming from. People complain about user not being able to replace the batteries on iPod and now some people are starting to complain iPod batteries being replaced by unqualified people. Apple cannot win on this one.
BTW, how many people are throwing their Dell laptop computer batteries into landfills?
MY GOD! Once again Apple are the fscking shining light of the world! APPLE ARE NOT THE BENEVOLENT COMPANY YOU THINK! THEY MAKE GREAT PRODUCTS – THEY ARE A FSCKING COMPANY! FOR THE LORDS SAKE, GET A DAMNED LIFE!
That is an EXTREMELY dangerous urban legend that has been investigated and debunked by several major studies. These were conducted by leading independent physicians and researchers. If you care about your children, get them vaccinated.
Jake
NEXT: iPod causes Acne in teenagers!
If iPods would just make kids unable to reproduce until they were 21 we’d have a really useful item.
Our friendship with this cow that lives across the hall, went south just around the time our family got our first iPod.
Coincidence?
I think not.
LOL
Where is the Paradise the world promised me and my children?
There’s risk everywhere! Things aren’t perfect! There’s still poverty! I get hangnails if I don’t work on my manicure!
Woe is me! Mea culpa, mea culpa!
What’s a little lead or nickle going to hurt anyone.
I think that the gist of this article is simply:
Recycle your hi-tech devices.
We’ve known for a while that batteries and other devices with heavy metals pose a danger to the environment – specifically polluting underground sources of water. Bottom line: Recycle.
Remember that “iPod” and “Pod” have become household terms that no longer, or strictly, represent the product from which the terms originally came.
As for heavy metals, make no mistake, all of the research points emphatically to the connection between them and faulty human mental faculties. Make no mistake about this either – No human being can, in any way shape or form, metabolize heavy metals. All human beings have a nearly impossible task of elliminating toxic metals from their systems once ingested, not just autistic children. The article opens with a statement that implies this is a problem with just autistic children. Obviously developmental issues are a major concern with children, but if an adult gets a good accumulation of nickle-metal-hydride in their system, they will be a very sick, and most likely, permanently sick puppy.
From this perspective I’m glad to pay Apple the extra $$ for a custom battery because it helps the company manage the more toxic of its products wastes in a more tangible way.
– MacDailyNews are idiots! A man sinking his canoe has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with owning an Apple iPod!!! –
Maybe Brandon IS the scientist.
In other news, the Israeli army has attacked Lebanon again today after a member of Hezbollah was found to have stolen the iPod of an Israeli child.
Apparently all world strife and conflict is iPod related. People will believe this crap and yet fail to see that there is actually a global warming crisis.
selective hearing i guess.
Not a mere uban legend, but needs further HONEST research.
That’s not likely to happen in he USA though. For example: the Homeland Security Act includes a rider immunizing Eli Lilly from liability for any damage caused by thimerosal containing vaccines (TCV).
Considering the risks to children, better to err on the side of further research, no?
References:
EvidenceOfHarm.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Kirby
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That said: RECYCLE your iPod at an Apple Store and get 10% off a new model.
Fast Forward to June 2007:
There has been a rise in masterbation in Britain, mostly due to Apple video iPods. The iPods must be the blame.
Alex – try the decaf.
“If iPods would just make kids unable to reproduce until they were 21 we’d have a really useful item.”
Or perhaps if it would prevent people like the poster named ‘alex’ from reproducing at all, then maybe the gene pool would improve.
brandon, you need to learn to use the available Emoticons as some of the people using this forum wouldn’t know sarcasm (or any other subtly form of humor) unless it included a prat-fall.
Back on-topic: I’m sure iPod usage – or, more precisely disposal – is at least slightly to blame for at least a few of those additional cases of autism. That said, where does this “Doctor” Latham chap come off identifying the iPod by name when there are several brands of cell phones whose disposal are a greater contributor?
=> there are more cell phones than iPods
=> many more cell phones are disposed of daily than are iPods
=> cell phones have been around longer than iPods
Given any, much less all, of the above, Latham was irresponsible in singling out the iPod for top billing. It’s a Brit thing, tearing down #1 – just because. Odds are Latham uses – and has disposed of – cell phones but neither uses nor approves of iPods.