HEALTH IMPACTS OF WASTE & POLLUTION...Is the human race 'devolving'?

As many pollutants pass from generation to generation, there is growing evidence that human health is, and evolution may be, negatively effected by a polluted environment. Due to the widespread presence of toxic chemicals in the environment and in many of the products we use, the average adult has at least 250 chemicals stored in their body fat. Mothers pass along many of the toxics in their body to their babies at two critical stages of a child's development, when the child is still in the womb and during breast feeding. Source: Dr. Theo Colborn, Our Stolen Future,1997

Most Americans do not realize that the government does not test most chemicals for harmful health effects, instead leaving it to producers to provide test results. Nor does the government often consider the "cumulative impact" of these chemicals (or contaminated air, water, and soil) on public health and the environment, particularly when permitting a polluting facility in a neighborhood. Health conscious Americans don't realize that plastic containers can leach harmful chemicals into their bottled water. Consumers who purchase organic foods aren't aware that fluoridated water or plastic containers or plastic lined cans may contaminate their organic product.

It is unfortunate that the typical "health" reporter focuses on detection and cures for illness and disease, rather than reporting on causes, because only public awareness and pressure will change current government practices. 

ZWA RELATED LINKS:

• ZWA's Landfills
• ZWA's Incinerators
• ZWA's FLUORIDE
• ZWA's Specific Wastes and Toxics
• ZWA Reports: Toxics & Violence in Children
• ZWA REPORTS: Are Plastic Products Causing Breast Cancer Epidemic?

MEDICAL & HEALTH PROFESSIONALS:

• Health World Online - Professional Referral Network
• American Academy of Environmental Medicine
• American Holistic Medical Association
• Holistic Dental Association
• American Holistic Health Association
• Directories of National/International Practitioners

OTHER HEALTH WEBSITES:

Good online publication - RedFlagsWeekly 

• Global Recognition Campaign for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and Chemical Injury
• Health Care Without Harm is a collaborative campaign for environmentally responsible health care.
• Children's Environmental Health Network
• Prevent Cancer & The Cancer Prevention Coalition (CPC), which opened its national office in Chicago in July 1994, is a unique nationwide coalition of leading independent experts in cancer prevention and public health, together with citizen activists and representatives of organized labor, public interest environmental and women^'s health groups. 
• The Pesticide Education Center (PEC), founded by Dr. Marion Moses
• Breast Cancer Action - BCA focuses on environmental causes
• National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides began in 1981 as a non-profit membership organization that was formed to serve as a national network committed to pesticide safety and the adoption of alternative pest management strategies which reduce or eliminate a dependency on toxic chemicals.
• Pesticide Action Network (PAN)
• MC Survivors: A Resource Web Site for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and Environmental Illness
• Chem-Tox.com/ This index provides links to research finding health disorders resulting from exposure to common chemicals and pesticides. Illnesses now identified  include brain cancer, neuroblastoma, neurological disorders, immune system dysfunction, asthma, allergies, infertility, miscarriage, learning disabilities, mental retardation, hyperactivity and child behavior and attention disorders.
• Gary Null's Natural Living
• CONSUMER LAW PAGE: Articles, information, and referrals for individuals, injured workers, consumers and owners of small businesses who have suffered personal injuries, property damage or financial losses caused by negligent misconduct, toxic chemicals, defective products, or fraud.
• HEALTH-TRACK - Easy access to data from the National Cancer Institute on mortality rates for cancers known or suspected to have environmental causes. Also provides data from the Environmental Protection Agency on hazardous air pollutants and chemical releases of known or probable carcinogens, although the map doesn't directly link cancer deaths with toxic releases. And it doesn't show disease rates or exposures.
• MESOTHELIOMA WEB -

  "For those diagnosed with mesothelioma, an asbestos-related cancer of the lining of the lung (pleura) or the lining of the abdominal cavity (peritoneum), finding a credible source of information about the disease itself and the medical options available, is of the highest priority. After years of research and synthesis of information, we have assembled a web site and packet for patients and their loved ones. We hope you find this web site helpful."

  "For more than 50 years, products containing asbestos remained unregulated, and the manufacturers of those products continued to prosper, knowing full well that many of the millions of workers who came into contact with their products would ultimately suffer as the result of their actions."

MILITARY HEALTH WEBSITES:

• The American Gulf War Veterens Association
  • Anthrax Vaccine Objections and Issues / Vaccine's possible perils listed in military papers Documents obtained by The San Diego Union-Tribune show that Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera agreed in September 1998 to accept the burden of potential liability claims made against the vaccine manufacturer by service members.
• Gulf War Veteran Resource Pages  
• The Gulf War Veterans Resource Links   
• Gulf War Syndrome Resources
• Agent Orange: The Legacy of Vietnam
• Gary Null's Vaccination Action File

GOVERNMENT HEALTH INFORMATION:

SEE: The Environmental Health Information Service - Publications - Some are free, and others are subscription, only.

SEARCH FOR INFORMATION AND PUBLICATIONS:

Environmental Health Issues & Information:

TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL ACT: In 1976, TSCA (pronounced toska)stated that "It is the policy of the United States that... adequate data should be developed with respect to the effect of chemical substances and mixtures on health and the environment and that the development of such data should be the responsibility of those who manufacture and those who process such chemical substances and mixtures." [15 U.S.C. paragraph 2601(b). In principal, all chemicals should have been tested by now, which is not the case. Source: Rachel's # 564 & EDF's Toxic Ignorance. In addition, testing for health safety should be a government responsibility in order to ensure a legitimate outcome.

CHEMICAL HEALTH HAZARDS: The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) concludes that TSCA "is largely defunct." EDF says, "[F]or most of the important chemicals in American commerce, the simplest safety facts still cannot be found. This report documents that, today, even the most basic toxicity testing results cannot be found in the public record for nearly 75% of the top-volume chemicals in commercial. Source: Rachel's # 564 & EDF's Toxic Ignorance Of the 80,000 pesticides and other chemicals in use today, 10 percent are recognized as carcinogens. (Source: 1998 Cornell Study)

DEATHS DUE TO CHEMICAL EXPOSURE: An estimated 40 percent of deaths around the world can now be attributed to various environmental factors, especially organic and chemical pollutants. (Source: October 1998 issue of the journal BioScience) Cancer-related deaths in the United States increased from 331,000 in 1970 to 521,000 in 1992, with as estimated 30,000 deaths attributed to chemical exposure. (Source: 1998 Cornell Study)

EARLY CHILDHOOD CANCER: "The cancer hazard could only be seen near the birth address, implying that exposure to pollutants shortly before or after birth caused the cancers." Source: Rachel's # 559 Synthetic chemicals move everywhere in the environment, even through the placental barrier and into the womb, exposing the unborn during the most vulnerable stages of development. When a new mother breast-feeds her baby, she is giving it more than love and nourishment: she is passing on high doses of persistent chemicals as well.Source: Dr. Theo Colborn, Our Stolen Future,1997

SYNTHETIC CHEMICALS FOUND:  Our air, water, soil, and a wide variety of products have synthetic, plastic, or petro-chemical ingredients. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as of October, 1996, there were 75,857 chemical substances in commercial use. Source: Rachel's # 564 & EDF's Toxic IgnoranceSource. According to an ENN news story about research studies conducted by Texas A&M University scientist Dr. David Busbee, "the danger these synthetic compounds pose are summed up in the three Bs: biopersistent, bioamplification and biogenerational. They are biopersistent because some of them don't break down for hundreds of years. Bioamplification means that the higher up the food chain, the more vulnerable we are to them. They pose more of a problem for whales and humans than, say, amoebas. Perhaps the most frightening aspect is biogenerational, meaning mammals can pass up to 30 percent of the compounds they're storing on to the next generation through the placental barrier and mother's milk."

PESTICIDES TOXICITY: Most modern pesticides are more than 10 times as toxic to living organisms than those used in the 1950s. The global use of agricultural pesticides rose from about 50 million kilograms a year in 1945 to current application rates of approximately 2.5 billion kilograms per year. (Source: 1998 Cornell University Study)

ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS: An undetermined number of synthetic chemicals present in a wide range of products (including plastics, synthetic materials, petroleum-based products, etc.) contain endocrine disruptors. These may be interfering with the hormones that control and regulate growth, health and behavior in wildlife and humans, leading to birth defects, problems of sexual development, breast cancer, prostate cancer, and even mental problems like attention deficit disorder, reduced IQ, and violent behavior. See ZWA Reports: Are Plastic Products Causing Breast Cancer Epidemic? / EPA's Endocrine Disruptor page / List of Chemicals and Metals That Disrupt Human Development

LEAD-NUMBER 1 HAZARD TO CHILDREN, according to the EPA. Lead can be found in old paints, dusts, solder, soils, and in fluoridated water (see: ZWA's Fluoride page). Although the use of lead in U.S. gasoline declined since 1985, other sources inject about 2 billion kilograms of lead into the atmosphere in this country each year. An estimated 1.7 million children in the United States have unacceptably high levels of lead in their blood. National Institute of Health & (Source: 1998 Cornell Study). According to the NRC, "the pandemic scale of lead contamination... has increased lead concentrations throughout the Northern Hemisphere by a factor of at least 10." The northern half of the planet now has at least 10 times as much lead in soil and water as it had before the arrival of Europeans in North America. Source: Rachel's # 541. See: ZWA's LEAD page.

CUMULATIVE IMPACT: Abating the "Cumulative impact" of pollution would safeguard public health and is required by the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 40 (Environmental Protection), Chapter I (Environmental Protection Agency-EPA), Subchapter A, Part 1, Sec. 1.3 Purpose and functions, which states that the EPA provide "research, monitoring, standard setting, and enforcement activities related to pollution abatement and control to provide for the treatment of the environment as a single interrelated system." However, the EPA is not enforcing these regulations.

NOTE: "EPA Registered" on pesticide and other products does NOT mean that the chemicals were tested for safety by the EPA or are safe to use. Most chemicals are not fully tested for safety by the EPA. The EPA continues to rely heavily upon research and reporting by industry.

FOOD WARNING!  PLASTIC WRAP & FOOD CONTAINERS / PROCESSING FOOD WITH FLUORIDE

Eating Organic food is the best way to avoid foods exposed to harmful fertilizers, pesticides, and sewage sludge. However, according to Dr. Theo Colborn's book, Our Stolen Future,1997, organic foods wrapped, canned, or otherwise contained in plastic may be contaminated with harmful chemicals that may leach from the plastic. Eighty-five percent of all cans in the U.S. are lined with plastic. Studies have shown that this plastic causes breast cancer cells to rapidly multiply (see Are Plastic Products Causing Breast). In addition, many foods may be made with fluoridated water, which would violate the spirit if not the intent of organic standards. Consumers must call the manufacturer for fluoride content information (see ZWA's Fluoride page). According to Elaine Ingham, Associate Professor at Oregon State University and founder of Soil FoodWeb,Inc., "If we get health back into the soil you no longer have to add pesticides, fertilizers, or insecticides.  You can even drop herbicide applications out of the system. How do you get health back into the soil? Compost. Good compost."

BOOKS: ZWA HIGHLY RECOMMENDS....

Our Stolen Future by Dr. Theo Colborn...Peter Montegue's summary, Our Stolen Future Part I and Part II: "...based on a review of literally thousands of scientific studies going back 60 years. The main idea in the book is that synthetic chemicals (includes plastics, phthalates, synthetic materials, etc.) may be interfering with the hormones that control and regulate growth, health and behavior in wildlife and humans, leading to birth defects, problems of sexual development, breast cancer, prostate cancer, and even mental problems like attention deficit disorder, reduced IQ, and violent behavior." See: World Wildlife Fund Canada's Hormone Disrupters - Dr. Colborn

EXCERPT: "Humans also carry PCB's and other persistent chemicals in their body fat, and they pass this chemical legacy on to their babies. Virtually anyone willing to put up the $2,000 for the tests will find at least 250 chemical contaminants in his or her body fat, regardless of whether he or she live in Gary, Indiana, or on a remote island in the South Pacific. You cannot escape them. Ironically, some of those living farthest from industrial centers and sources of pollution have suffered the greatest contamination: these chemicals travel long distances and build up along the way to high concentrations, especially in the Arctic, which is becoming a final resting ground. These synthetic chemicals move everywhere, even through the placental barrier and into the womb, exposing the unborn during the most vulnerable stages of development. When a new mother breast-feeds her baby, she is giving it more than love and nourishment: she is passing on high doses of persistent chemicals as well."

OTHER BOOKS:

NOTE: ZWA does not endorse all the suggestions in the books that offer advice on consumer products. For example, for household cleaning we only suggest White Distilled Vinegar, Baking Soda, Olive Oil, and Lemon Juice. 

• Healthy Baby, Toxic World by Melody Potter & Erin Milam
• "The Enemy Within" & "Deadly Deceit" by Dr. Jay Gould on the effects of radiation
• Life's Delicate Balance: Causes and Prevention of Breast Cancer by Dr. Janette D. Sherman
• ONLINE - Our Toxic World: Who's Looking After Our Children? by Harold E. Buttram, MD
  Richard Piccola, MHA
• Books by Debra Lynn Dadd: Home Safe Home & Nontoxic Home and Office. "Exposure to toxic chemicals can aggravate symptoms of allergy and compromise the immune system to the point where disabling sensitivities to certain chemicals can develop. Over a long period of time, toxic products can contribute to the development of cancer, birth defects, genetic changes, and other illnesses. Some estimates suggest that the indirect costs of what is now called "indoor pollution" exceed $6 billion per year—more than $1 billion in medical bills and $5 billion from sick leave and reduced worker productivity."
• The Safe Shopper's Bible by David Steinman, Samuel S. Epstein (contributor)
• One Good Apple by Catherine Paladino. One Good Apple makes a cogent, urgent case for healthier agricultural practices, exploring with precision and care the destructiveness of pesticides and fertilizers to everything from the smallest organisms to the water we drink.

BABIES / PRECONCEPTION CARE! Some health professionals suggest that couples considering parenthood, first undergo thorough medical testing to determine the kind and level of toxics in their body and to remove as many toxics as possible before conception. SEE: Health Professional Referral Information at top of this page. Also, check-out Preconception Care by Harold E. Buttram, MD and Richard Piccola, MHA.

Do Toxins Cause Autism?

Autism was first identified in 1943 in an obscure medical journal. Since then it has become a frighteningly common affliction, with the Centers for Disease Control reporting recently that autism disorders now affect almost 1 percent of children.

 

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Nicholas D. Kristof

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Over recent decades, other development disorders also appear to have proliferated, along with certain cancers in children and adults. Why? No one knows for certain. And despite their financial and human cost, they presumably won’t be discussed much at Thursday’s White House summit on health care.

Yet they constitute a huge national health burden, and suspicions are growing that one culprit may be chemicals in the environment. An article in a forthcoming issue of a peer-reviewed medical journal, Current Opinion in Pediatrics, just posted online, makes this explicit.

The article cites “historically important, proof-of-concept studies that specifically link autism to environmental exposures experienced prenatally.” It adds that the “likelihood is high” that many chemicals “have potential to cause injury to the developing brain and to produce neurodevelopmental disorders.”

The author is not a granola-munching crank but Dr. Philip J. Landrigan, professor of pediatrics at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York and chairman of the school’s department of preventive medicine. While his article is full of cautionary language, Dr. Landrigan told me that he is increasingly confident that autism and other ailments are, in part, the result of the impact of environmental chemicals on the brain as it is being formed.

“The crux of this is brain development,” he said. “If babies are exposed in the womb or shortly after birth to chemicals that interfere with brain development, the consequences last a lifetime.”

Concern about toxins in the environment used to be a fringe view. But alarm has moved into the medical mainstream. Toxicologists, endocrinologists and oncologists seem to be the most concerned.

One uncertainty is to what extent the reported increases in autism simply reflect a more common diagnosis of what might previously have been called mental retardation. There are genetic components to autism (identical twins are more likely to share autism than fraternal twins), but genetics explains only about one-quarter of autism cases.

Suspicions of toxins arise partly because studies have found that disproportionate shares of children develop autism after they are exposed in the womb to medications such as thalidomide (a sedative), misoprostol (ulcer medicine) and valproic acid (anticonvulsant). Of children born to women who took valproic acid early in pregnancy, 11 percent were autistic. In each case, fetuses seem most vulnerable to these drugs in the first trimester of pregnancy, sometimes just a few weeks after conception.

So as we try to improve our health care, it’s also prudent to curb the risks from the chemicals that envelop us. Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey is drafting much-needed legislation that would strengthen the Toxic Substances Control Act. It is moving ahead despite his own recent cancer diagnosis, and it can be considered as an element of health reform. Senator Lautenberg says that under existing law, of 80,000 chemicals registered in the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency has required safety testing of only 200. “Our children have become test subjects,” he noted.

One peer-reviewed study published this year in Environmental Health Perspectives gave a hint of the risks. Researchers measured the levels of suspect chemicals called phthalates in the urine of pregnant women. Among women with higher levels of certain phthalates (those commonly found in fragrances, shampoos, cosmetics and nail polishes), their children years later were more likely to display disruptive behavior.

Frankly, these are difficult issues for journalists to write about. Evidence is technical, fragmentary and conflicting, and there’s a danger of sensationalizing risks. Publicity about fears that vaccinations cause autism — a theory that has now been discredited — perhaps had the catastrophic consequence of lowering vaccination rates in America.

On the other hand, in the case of great health dangers of modern times — mercury, lead, tobacco, asbestos — journalists were too slow to blow the whistle. In public health, we in the press have more often been lap dogs than watchdogs.

At a time when many Americans still use plastic containers to microwave food, in ways that make toxicologists blanch, we need accelerated research, regulation and consumer protection.

“There are diseases that are increasing in the population that we have no known cause for,” said Alan M. Goldberg, a professor of toxicology at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. “Breast cancer, prostate cancer, autism are three examples. The potential is for these diseases to be on the rise because of chemicals in the environment.”

The precautionary principle suggests that we should be wary of personal products like fragrances unless they are marked phthalate-free. And it makes sense — particularly for children and pregnant women — to avoid most plastics marked at the bottom as 3, 6 and 7 because they are the ones associated with potentially harmful toxins.