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FIGO, UCSF and HEAL share 10 tips to avoid toxic chemicals during and after pregnancy

English

The Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), the University of California – San Francisco (UCSF) and the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) have launched  easy-to-use infographics for obstetricians, gynecologists and health groups to create awareness around toxic chemicals and pregnancy in a one-week social media campaign.

Exposure to toxic chemicals before, during and after pregnancy jeopardizes women’s health. The infographics launched today (in English, French, German and Spanish) illustrates 10 tips that women can use for individual lifestyle and routine changes in efforts to avoid health-harming substances, as well as advice for policymakers.

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Additionally, FIGO, UCSF and HEAL are calling on health professionals and policymakers to take societal action on a much wider scale, by:

  • Advocating for policies to prevent exposure to toxic environmental chemicals
  • Working to ensure a healthy food system for all
  • Making environmental health part of health care
  • Championing environmental justice

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This infographic is the second in a new series on environmental health and pregnancy. Its predecessor illustrates how climate change puts pregnant women at greater risk, and was launched in April of this year in 9 different languages (English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Polish, Bosnian and Serbian).

German

Giftige Chemikalien & Schwangerschaft

10 Möglichkeiten zur Vermeidung von Giftstoffen während und nach der Schwangerschaft.

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French

Substances Toxiques & Grossesse

10 Façons d’éviter les substances toxiques pendant et après la grossesse :

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Spanish

Tóxicos & Embarazo

10 formas de evitar los tóxicos durante y después del embarazo:

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Notes:

The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) is the only organization that brings together professional societies of obstetricians and gynecologists on a global level. Figo is dedicated to the improvement of women’s health and rights and to the reduction of disparities in healthcare available to women and newborns, as well as to advancing the science and practice of obstetrics and gynecology.

The UCSF Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment’s mission is to create a healthier environment for human reproduction and development through advancing scientific inquiry, clinical care and health policies that prevent exposures to harmful chemicals in our environment.

The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) is the leading not-for-profit organisation addressing how the environment affects human health in the European Union (EU) and beyond. HEAL works to shape laws and policies that promote planetary and human health and protect those most affected by pollution, and raise awareness on the benefits of environmental action for health.

 

We warmly thank our member organisation Fundación Alborada for their support in translating these materials into Spanish.

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