Lowering Your Risk

I don't know how much of this is true but it makes sense, since it seems like all these products and things in the environment are possible carcinogens, but this was in a newsletter I received recently:

7 Ways to Lower Your Cancer Risk What does cancer have to do with eco-conscious living? A lot. More and more research is uncovering the links between environmental stressors and the harm they do to our bodies. It seems logical then to take as many preventative steps as possible. Weeding away the un-natural products and behaviors that our so-very-natural human systems have a hard time handling is the best place to start. In our four-part anti-cancer lifestyle series, expert Dr. David Servan-Schreiber ... himself a brain cancer survivor ... shares his tips for living a long, healthy life.

Avoid the following common household products:

• Percholoeethylene/Tetrachloro-ethylene, found in dry cleaning. Garments should be aired out for several hours before wearing.


• Cleaning products such as liquid detergents, disinfectants, and toilet bowl sanitizers that contain alkylphenols (nonoxynol, octoxynol, nonylphenol, actylphenol)


• Deodorants and antiperspirants containing aluminum.


• Cosmetics, shampoos, lotions, gels, hair color, nail polish, perfumes and sunscreen containing estrogens or placental products, or those with parabens or phthalttes.


• Chemical household pesticides and insecticides.


• Heating foods or liquids in plastic containers made with PVCs, polystyrene, or Styrofoam.


• Preparing food in scratched Teflon pans.

Clean Freak

Is anyone out there still using bleach and lysol and any other standard store bought cleaners? Here is some things to think about my friends, is your health and your kids health or your toilet bowl more important.....
• Women who work at home have a 54% higher death rate from cancer than those who work away from home. The 15-year study concluded it was as a direct result of the much higher exposure rate to toxic chemicals in common household products!
-Toronto Indoor Air Conference 1990

•The toxic chemicals in household cleaners are three times more likely to cause cancer than air pollution.
- Environmental Protection Agency report in 1985

•Of chemicals commonly found in homes, 150 have been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer, and psychological abnormalities.
-Consumer Product Safety Commission

•Within 26 seconds after exposure to chemicals such as cleaning products , traces of these chemicals can be found in every organ in the body.

•The Average American Uses about 25 Gallons of toxic, hazardous chemical products per year in their home... A major portion of these can be found in household cleaning products.
-"Prosperity Without Pollution," by Joel S. Hirschorn and Kirsten V. Oldenburg, 1991

•According to the National Research Council, no toxic information is available for more than 80% of the chemicals in everyday-use products. Only 1% of toxins are required to be listed on labels, because companies classify their formulas as "trade secrets."
-Lorie Dwornick, researcher, educator and activist, 2002

•In the past 50 years more than 75,000 chemicals have been introduced into the environment. Today 300 synthetic chemicals are found in the bodies of humans. Even newborn babies have synthetic chemicals passed on from their mothers.
-REACH (Registration, Evaluation, and Authorization of Chemicals, a European Union program)

•In homes where aerosol sprays and air fresheners were used frequently, mothers experienced 25 percent more headaches and were 19 percent more likely to suffer from depression. Additionally, infants under six months of age had 30 percent more ear infections and 22 percent higher incidence of diarrhea.
-According to a Study Published in the magazine, NEW SCIENTIST, 1999

•Cancer rates have increased since 1901 from only 1 in 8,000 Americans, to 1 in 3 today! By the year 2010, this disease will afflict 1 of every 2 individuals!
-American Cancer Society

•Cancer rates have continued to increase every year since 1970. Brain cancer in children is up 40% in 20 years. Toxic chemicals are largely to blame.
-NY Times, September 29, 1997

More than 1.4 million Americans exposed to household chemicals were referred to poison control centers in 2001. Of these, 824,000 were children under 6 years.

A New York sanitation worker was killed in 1998 when a hazardous liquid in household trash sprayed his face and clothes.

At any given time, there is 3.36 million tons of household hazardous waste to contend with in our country.

-Chec's HealtheHouse,
the resource for Environmental Health Risks
Affecting Your Children

In 1990, more than 4,000 toddlers under age four were admitted to hospital emergency rooms as a result of household cleaner-related injuries. That same year, three-fourths of the 18,000 pesticide-related hospital emergency room admissions were children.

Over 80 percent of adults and 90 percent of children in the United States have residues of one or more harmful pesticides in their bodies.

Petrochemical cleaning products in the home are easily absorbed into the skin. Once absorbed, the toxins travel to the blood stream and are deposited in the fatty tissues where they may exist indefinitely.

-"In Harm's Way," a study by "The Clean Water Fund" and "Physicians for Social Responsibility"
May 11, 2000

More than 7 million accidental poisonings occur each year, with more than 75% involving children under age 6!
-The Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons

According to the U.S. Poison Control Centers, "A child is accidentally poisoned every 30 seconds at home..."

Unregulated air pollution has caused one in six children in the Central Valley of California to suffer from asthma. More than 5000 children in the San Joaquin Valley Air District are hospitalized each year for asthma. The death rate from respiratory diseases in the Imperial Valley -- at times more than double that of the rest of the state. Up to 2.2 million Californians suffer from asthma.
-California's State Department of Health Services

Seriously! How crazy is that!? And don't forget you can't just dump those cleaners down a drain you have to dispose of them at a hazardous waste facility! Or some towns have special days when they will take hazardous waste, I'll get you the link to that next post, for now the kids are up, gotta go!

Yes more stuff about BPA in plastics!

I am posting an e-newsletter I received that I think anyone who hasn't checked what kind of plastic cups and/or bottle your child is drinking out of(and yourself for that matter)should read, really couldn't say it better myself so I'm not even gonna try....

Dear Friends,

Just days before the California legislature will be considering passing a ban on the toxic chemical BPA in some children's products, the FDA has announced BPA is safe for human consumption. Although there are over 100 published reports by government scientists and independent research labs documenting the risks of BPA (particularly for infants and children), the FDA has relied solely on two chemical-industry funded studies that concluded BPA poses no risk to human health. At this point I would say it is entirely clear the FDA is more committed to protecting the interests of industry rather than ensuring the safety of the public.

It is important to note that the National Toxicology Program, an arm of National Institutes of Health, has produced studies that differ in their results from those that the FDA has chosen to accept. So what the FDA has chosen to do is ignore reports from within its own system in favor of those funded by special interests. A public meeting has been scheduled for September 16 to discuss issues arising from the preliminary report issued by the NIH, which expresses concern over the dangers of BPA, especially in relation to infants and children. One thing to keep in mind - and this is consistently misreported by the media - no one is saying that BPA is safe. Everyone acknowledges that it is a dangerous toxicant. The only argument is over the level required to inflict major and irreparable damage.

Please read the articles below to get a brief overview on this issue, particularly the Washington Post article titled "Studies on Chemical In Plastics Questioned: Congress Examines Role Of Industry in Regulation." This is essential reading. It is imperative that as representatives of Green to Grow you are able to answer questions such as: "But the FDA has declared BPA is safe; why should we carry a BPA-free alternative? Why should anyone care about this issue now?"

Last, two statistics for your consideration: More than 6 billion pounds of bisphenol A are produced in the U.S. each year by Dow Chemical, BASF, Bayer AG and other manufacturers. Studies indicate that 95% of us have detectable levels of BPA in our systems.

Thanks for your time and commitment to educating people about this issue. Clearly we can't rely on our government to do the right thing. It will be up to companies like Green to Grow, and those who support us, to keep the issue visible.

All the best,

Michael Ritterbrown
Shelley Aronoff
Green to Grow



Studies on Chemical In Plastics Questioned
Congress Examines Role Of Industry in Regulation
By Lyndsey Layton
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 27, 2008; A01
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/26/AR2008042602126_pf.html

FDA Decision Over BPA Meant to Influence California Lawmakers?
http://www.ewg.org/node/27022
Environmental Working Group News Release, August 15, 2008
EWG is a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC that uses the power of information to protect human health and the environment.

FDA Says Chemical Found in Plastic Bottles is Safe
Associated Press, Matthew Perrone, August 15, 2008
http://www.ewg.org/node/27023

Parents Buying Guide

Here is another parents buying guide for products.
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/special/parentsguide/

I haven't been able to find much on no-tear formulas using anesthetizing ingredients. Somebody from J&J wrote in 2002 that it was just a vicious rumor by competitors and proceeded to list the ingredient list, which consisted of PEG's and Fragrance and a couple other things on the no-no list. But hey it's gentle right? Arbonne mentions it as well, so I'll try and do some more research. In the mean time if you really want to freak yourself out, read the following article...

http://healthychild.org/resources/article/do_you_know_whats_in_your_babys_mattress/

Ingredients List

Here is another link for an ingredient list to print out and put in your wallet or purse when buying products. You don't have to memorize them all, and after awhile of reading labels, you will recognize the stuff you don't want in there right away.

http://thegreenguide.com/doc/94/goodbadugly

They also have some buying guides for other products and household items, it's a good place to start your research when shopping, even for shoes :)

http://www.thegreenguide.com/products/

I'm Back!!!!

Hi everyone, yes I decided to take a summer hiatus, I'm sure everyone knows how busy things get so I don't even have to explain. But it's time to get going again, and I kicked things off with a little green party on Friday night. I think it was a big eye opener for some of you to find out what's in all those products you use everyday on yourself and on your kids. I know it's overwhelming and it seems daunting and expensive to go green, but remember it's all about baby steps and smart choices, and there is always a way to do it within your budget. I just want to thank everyone for participating Friday and here are some of the websites we discussed.

Lynne's website which has all the products(and the website I designed;))
littlegreenbooties.com

The Environmental Working Group site, which Dr. Otilia Naranjo talked about, and also the best and worst offenders as far as pesticides on food list. On the right hand bottom side is a cool little thing called more tools and resources that links you to most of the sites we talked about and some other too.
http://www.ewg.org/
http://www.foodnews.org/walletguide.php

Also the product ratings website
www.cosmeticsdatabase.com

Also thank you to Lindsey for the fab Arbonne presentation and footsoak and scrub, seriously was that not the best?
Arbonne.com
I think some of you seemed a bit overwhelmed with all the info, so I'm not gonna add any more...yet. But if you have any questions or concerns or want to know more, just let me know. Oh and there is also a "Little Things You Can Do to Go Green" night at the Ela Library this Wed Sept. 10th at 7pm and the woman who is doing the presentation is the owner of All Ways Healthy in Lake Zurich which I think is one of the best health food stores ever and they carry one of the largest selection of green products (ie-the natural deodorant that I think works best)
I know it's kind of a bad time but I'll see if I can get some notes.

Also if you are interested in trying to put together another Talkin' Green night, maybe next month, let me know and I'll get things going.