Patterns of illness in American children have changed dramatically in the past century. Asthma, learning disabilities, allergies, obesity and leukemia have replaced polio, smallpox and measles as the most highly prevalent and most feared of childhood diseases. Toxins in our homes, at schools, in the air we breathe, and in the products we use every day have been implicated as causes of some of these diseases. And these diseases are on the rise.

• Asthma rates have more than doubled in the past three decades. Asthma is now the leading cause of emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and school absenteeism.
• One of every six American children has a developmental disorder such as ADHD, dyslexia, and mental retardation.
• One in every 150 American children is now diagnosed with autism.
• Primary brain cancer increased by nearly 40% and leukemia increased by over 60% among children 14 years and younger from 1975 to 2004.
• Childhood obesity has quadrupled in the past ten years.
• Type 2 diabetes, previously unknown among children, is becoming epidemic.