How Environmental Damage Is Shaping Human Health

Credit Jan Kopriva

Today, society is rightly concerned about the rising prevalence of autism among children worldwide. Affecting up to 1 per cent of children, it has a profound impact on families. Neuroinflammation and environmental origins are increasingly implicated—but what causes them?

Let us take a broader view. Depression among adolescents is widespread, yet it remains difficult to clearly separate social causes from neurological ones. Even in China, scientists have demonstrated a link between pollution, asthma and depression among young people.

Genetic factors, while not excluded, cannot explain everything, as they do not change rapidly enough to account for such a swift rise across populations. Likewise, when neurodegenerative diseases among older people—and even younger adults—are included, the number of those affected becomes staggering. Environmentally linked cancers now affect at least one in three people worldwide.

All these diseases and conditions are chronic and slow-developing. Modern medicine largely alleviates symptoms, while their root causes continue to produce extremely serious consequences for society. Looking at the biosphere as a whole—species extinction, abnormalities and climate disruption—we gain greater certainty about the role of human activity. This is not the result of individual ill will or bad luck, but the outcome of a deeply flawed system.

An increasing number of specialists believe a paradigm shift is needed. Recently, forty-three researchers from five continents co-authored an article in Environmental Sciences Europe detailing malpractice in the authorisation of toxic substances, particularly pesticides and plasticisers.

Historical archives from Monsanto-Bayer have revealed how doubt was deliberately maintained through dishonest practices to keep society unaware, falsely believing that approved products were properly assessed. These revelations, made possible through the US justice system, led to fraud convictions benefiting more than 100,000 cancer patients.

The issue is closely related to disabilities, which remain largely neglected. According to a recent French parliamentary report, 50,000 pupils are currently without appropriate support, up from 36,000 in 2024. Many are autistic children suffering from gastrointestinal microbiota disorders, a leading cause of medical consultations. This highlights the damage caused by ultra-processed foods, which worsen food intolerances. We now understand how the nervous system surrounding the intestine—the “second brain”—connected to the primary one, can malfunction.

Let us do, humbly, what we can where we are—like Pierre Rabhi’s hummingbird parable, in which a bird tries to extinguish a forest fire with drops of water: “At least I will have tried.” This is the spirit of the association LEX Les Enfants Extraordinaires in Barjac, France. It supports young people with disabilities who lack institutional care, offering social inclusion alongside older residents. Organic gardening and cooking workshops operate without pesticides or pollutants, relying on short supply chains. Equine-assisted activities, animal-assisted therapy and wheelchair repairs allow participants to regain purpose and joy.

Individually, these diseases are often attributed to bad luck or social factors. Yet epigenetic and transgenerational—therefore environmental—inheritance must be considered. Persistent fossil-based pollutants affect life from the fetal stage onward, as studies show they cross the placenta. Some widely used pesticides, including Roundup, are implicated in corporate fraud cases. These substances accumulate in the environment and affect all forms of life.

Pollutants embed themselves in living tissues and are deliberately dispersed. Laden with heavy metals derived from carcinogenic and neurotoxic petroleum residues, they damage biological systems. Endocrine disruptors have also been shown to be neurotoxic, gradually clogging and disrupting brain and nervous system function.

Solutions exist. Agroecological farming can feed the world, as demonstrated by international reports led by Olivier De Schutter. This requires reducing intensive livestock farming, which saturates ultra-processed food systems with pollutants. Such systems are unnecessary; today, more livestock suffer worldwide than children.

Agroecological practices can regenerate resilient ecosystems and are already being implemented globally. Yet they are stifled by legislative gridlock driven by lobbying to preserve outdated post-war models. These models are flawed, built on neglect and the omission of environmental costs. Still, progress is possible.

Gilles-Éric Séralini is a former professor of toxicology and molecular biology at the University of Caen Normandy. Along with associate researcher Gérald Jungers, he is a member of the “Risks, Quality and Sustainable Environment” research cluster.

Jérôme Douzelet is the founder and coordinator of the association LEX Les Enfants Extraordinaires in Barjac, where Séralini serves as president.