Chlordecone / Merex / Kepone
Personal Chlordecone Exposure Sensor Certified laboratory analysis Interpreted report
Chlordecone is an insecticide and a persistent organic pollutant (POP) used in the West Indies. This screening kit allows you to measure your personal exposure to this endocrine disruptor toxicant that is still present in the daily life of the populations of the Caribbean islands.
Chlordecone was marketed under the names Kepone in the USA, Merex in the English-speaking countries and Képone or Curlone in France.
Due to its toxicity, bioaccumulation and persistence, it is classified as a persistent organic pollutant (POP) by the Stockholm Convention.
Chlordecone is an endocrine disruptor that acts on the body at low doses of exposure.
Strong links have been established between chlordecone exposure and prostate cancer.
Large quantities were used in the banana plantations of the West Indies at least until 1993 when it was used to control the banana weevil.
Because of its persistence, people can be exposed to chlordecone pollution even though the product has been banned for many years.
Soils can remain contaminated for a very long time and as a result the population of the West Indies may continue to be exposed for a long time to come.
People working in banana plantations were directly exposed to high doses until the insecticide was banned in 1993. Due to the persistence of chlordecone, the soil is still contaminated and still exposes people who frequent the environment of contaminated places.
The population of the West Indies is also exposed through the consumption of locally produced food and water.
The Personal Pollution Sampler (PPS) is a bracelet that must be worn for 7 days.
You return the sensor to the laboratory and our expert team analyses it with state-of-the-art technology for traces of pollution in the environment.
The results are presented in a detailed report and interpreted with reference values.
Why measure your exposure to chlordecone?
Chlordecone is an endocrine disruptor that acts on hormones, the body's chemical messengers.
Hormones are chemical molecules produced by the endocrine glands such as the thyroid, the adrenal gland, the ovaries, the testicles...
Hormones are present in very small quantities in the body and are active at very low doses to transmit very precise messages to our cells.
Chemicals that alter the production, transport and action of natural hormones are particularly harmful to humans.
It is because they alter hormone function that endocrine disruptors have an impact on health.
Our sensitivity to endocrine disruptors varies throughout our lives and the body is particularly vulnerable during certain periods such as embryonic and foetal development, the early years and puberty.
They are now recognised as contributing to chronic diseases such as:
- hormone-dependent cancers (ovaries, testicles, thyroid, breasts, etc.)
- reproductive disorders and infertility
- genital malformations
- precocious puberty
- attention disorders
For these reasons, it is essential to limit exposure to endocrine disruptors. The first thing to do is to measure your exposure in order to identify the sources of pollution and act effectively.
How to measure your exposure to chlordecone?
Chlordecone can be present in our environment and the air we breathe.
To measure your personal exposure, nothing is easier than wearing a bracelet.
The ambient pollution will be captured by the PPS bracelet throughout the day.
A period of 7 days is representative enough of our lifestyle to allow a fine evaluation of the exposure to Chlordecone.
It is the analysis of the PPS bracelet in the laboratory that allows the pollution level to be measured.
The results are presented in a detailed report and compared with reference values to position your result in relation to the general population.
What pollutants are tested for in the PPS Chlordecone kit?
This kit only focuses on Chlordecone (CAS No. 143-50-0)
Why use a PPS Chlordecone test?
- To know one's personal exposure level to chlordecone.
- To participate to the improvement of the knowledge on chlordecone exposure of the West Indies population
- Contribute to the mapping of exposure levels in order to identify the areas of greatest concern
- To help build a reference system with the definition of statistical values for a precise evaluation of the level of exposure
What are the benefits of using a PPS Chlordecone kit?
- Simplicity of use: nothing more simple than wearing a bracelet!
- Highly accurate measurement results
- Reliability of a certified French laboratory using state-of-the-art technology
- Complete and anonymous analysis report
Your analysis report :
- Available within 10 working days
- Presents the quantity of chlordecone captured by the PPS bracelet in ng. This quantity is compared with reference values
What does the PPS Chlordecone kit include?
- A PPS bracelet
- The analysis of your sample in a certified French laboratory
- The interpretation of your results by biomonitoring experts
- A complete and personalised analysis report
- A precise instruction manual to guide you step by step in the realization of your sample and a sampling sheet for the interpretation of the results
- Prepaid return of your sample to the laboratory
How to use your PPS Chlordecone kit?
This measurement kit is very easy to use.
The PPS bracelet must be worn on the wrist during 7 days.
Once the 7 days period is over, the PPS bracelet and the sampling form are returned to the laboratory with the prepaid return envelope.
How many tests do I need?
A PPS chlordecone test kit allows to measure the exposure of a person.