The President's Cancer Panel reported on Thursday that "the true burden of environmentally induced cancers has been grossly underestimated" and strongly urged action to reduce people's widespread exposure to carcinogens.
The panel advised President Obama "to use the power of your office to remove the carcinogens and other toxins from our food, water, and air that needlessly increase health care costs, cripple our nation's productivity, and devastate American lives."
About 41 percent of all Americans still will be diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime, and about 21 percent will die from it, according to the National Cancer Institute.
The 240-page report by the President's Cancer Panel is the first to focus on environmental causes of cancer. Chemicals and contaminants might trigger cancer by a variety of means. They can damage DNA, disrupt hormones, inflame tissues, or turn genes on or off.
"The American people – even before they are born – are bombarded continually with myriad combinations of these dangerous exposures." Exposures happen in mixtures, not in isolation, and children are most vulnerable.
The Panel concluded that action is necessary, even though in many cases there is scientific uncertainty about whether certain chemicals cause cancer. That philosophy, called the precautionary principle, is highly controversial among scientists, regulators and industry.
The panel listed a variety of carcinogenic compounds that many people routinely encounter. Included are benzene and other petroleum-based pollutants in vehicle exhaust, arsenic in water supplies, chromium from plating companies, formaldehyde in kitchen cabinets and other plywood, bisphenol A in plastics and canned foods, tetrachloroethylene at dry cleaners, PCBs in fish and other foods and various pesticides. Previous reports by the President's Cancer Panel have focused largely on treatment and more well-known causes of cancer such as smoking.
They urged doctors to use caution in prescribing CT scans and other medical imaging tests that expose patients to large amounts of radiation. Patients who have a chest CT scan receive a dose of radiation in the same range as survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb attacks who were less than half a mile from ground zero, the report says.
The panel also criticized the U.S. military, saying that "it is a major source of toxic occupational and environmental exposures that can increase cancer risk." Examples cited include Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, where carcinogenic solvents contaminate drinking water, and increased lymphomas, prostate cancer, and other cancers from exposure to the herbicide Agent Orange.
Another sensitive issue raised in the report was the risk of brain cancer from cell phones. Scientists are divided on whether there is a link. Until more research is conducted, the panel recommended that people reduce their usage by making fewer and shorter calls, using hands-free devices so that the phone is not against the head and refraining from keeping a phone on a belt or in a pocket.
Environmental Health News.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
Hexane Contamination in Soy Products
Choose organic soy...
Virtually all "protein bars" on the market today are made with soy protein. Many infant formula products are also made with soy protein, and thousands of vegetarian products (veggie burgers, veggie cheese, "natural" food bars, etc.) are made with soy protein. That soy protein is almost always described as safe and "natural" by the companies using it. But there's a dirty little secret the soy product industry doesn't want you to know: Much of the "natural" soy protein used in foods today is bathed in a toxic, explosive chemical solvent known as hexane.
To determine the true extent of this hexane contamination, Cornucopia Institute conducted testing of hexane residues in soy meal and soy grits using FDA-approved and USDA-approved laboratories.
The results proved to be worrisome: Hexane residues of 21ppm were discovered in soy meal commonly used to produce soy protein for infant formula, protein bars and vegetarian food products.
These laboratory results appear to indicate that consumers who purchase common soy products might be exposing themselves (and their children) to residues of the toxic chemical HEXANE -- a neurotoxic substance produced as a byproduct of gasoline refining.
But how dangerous is hexane, exactly? Is it something that could be dangerous at a few parts per million? And which soy-based products on the market right now might be contaminated with hexane?
Scant research has been conducted concerning their effects. And the FDA does not require food manufacturers to test for hexane residues.
In 2008, 92% of soybeans grown in the U.S. were genetically engineered. Highly processed soy protein ingredients are increasingly found in processed foods, as well as 25% of the infant formula sold in the United States. Some industry insiders estimate that as many as 50% of organic soybeans consumed in the United States are imported from China where organic oversight is questionable.
Virtually all "protein bars" on the market today are made with soy protein. Many infant formula products are also made with soy protein, and thousands of vegetarian products (veggie burgers, veggie cheese, "natural" food bars, etc.) are made with soy protein. That soy protein is almost always described as safe and "natural" by the companies using it. But there's a dirty little secret the soy product industry doesn't want you to know: Much of the "natural" soy protein used in foods today is bathed in a toxic, explosive chemical solvent known as hexane.
To determine the true extent of this hexane contamination, Cornucopia Institute conducted testing of hexane residues in soy meal and soy grits using FDA-approved and USDA-approved laboratories.
The results proved to be worrisome: Hexane residues of 21ppm were discovered in soy meal commonly used to produce soy protein for infant formula, protein bars and vegetarian food products.
These laboratory results appear to indicate that consumers who purchase common soy products might be exposing themselves (and their children) to residues of the toxic chemical HEXANE -- a neurotoxic substance produced as a byproduct of gasoline refining.
But how dangerous is hexane, exactly? Is it something that could be dangerous at a few parts per million? And which soy-based products on the market right now might be contaminated with hexane?
Scant research has been conducted concerning their effects. And the FDA does not require food manufacturers to test for hexane residues.
In 2008, 92% of soybeans grown in the U.S. were genetically engineered. Highly processed soy protein ingredients are increasingly found in processed foods, as well as 25% of the infant formula sold in the United States. Some industry insiders estimate that as many as 50% of organic soybeans consumed in the United States are imported from China where organic oversight is questionable.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Plastic Bags Used in DC Drops From 22 Million to 3 Million a Month
Washington DC's 5 cent tax on plastic bags, instated just this past January, has already proven to have a phenomenal impact: the number of plastic bags handed out by supermarkets and other establishments dropped from the 2009 monthly average of 22.5 million to just 3 million in January. While significantly reducing plastic waste, the tax simultaneously generated $150,000 in revenue, which will be used to clean up the Anacostia River.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Suppose You Could Pull Up to the Pump & See Labels Showing You Where Gasoline Comes From?
Cruise through your grocery store's produce section and you'll see helpful country-of-origin labels required by federal farm legislation. Those bananas were shipped from Ecuador. That box of blueberries took a long boat ride from Chile.
Wouldn't it be helpful to know whether you're subsidizing petro despots like Hugo Chavez or Vladimir Putin?
It won't happen. The reality is that many refineries accept oil from both domestic and foreign sources, and those sources may vary day by day.
Second, gasoline from different refineries typically is mixed together as the fuel sloshes through pipelines on its way to bulk terminals, where it is loaded into tanker trucks for delivery to retail stations.
How about labels that give consumers a general idea of where oil consumed in the U.S. originates, broken down by country, and where the biggest reserves are?
Stick pie graphs on pumps showing in living color the global trouble spots and dysfunctional regimes with which the U.S. is likely to be entangled if we continue running on the oil dependence treadmill.
Wouldn't it be helpful to know whether you're subsidizing petro despots like Hugo Chavez or Vladimir Putin?
It won't happen. The reality is that many refineries accept oil from both domestic and foreign sources, and those sources may vary day by day.
Second, gasoline from different refineries typically is mixed together as the fuel sloshes through pipelines on its way to bulk terminals, where it is loaded into tanker trucks for delivery to retail stations.
How about labels that give consumers a general idea of where oil consumed in the U.S. originates, broken down by country, and where the biggest reserves are?
Stick pie graphs on pumps showing in living color the global trouble spots and dysfunctional regimes with which the U.S. is likely to be entangled if we continue running on the oil dependence treadmill.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Climate Change - Over 100 Icebergs Drifting to New.Zealand
More than 100, and possibly hundreds, of Antarctic icebergs are floating towards N. Zealand in a rare event which has prompted a shipping warning, officials said on Monday.
An Australian Antarctic Division glaciologist said the ice chunks, spotted by satellite photography, had passed the Auckland Islands and were heading towards the main South Island, about 280 miles northeast.
Scientist Neal Young said more than 100 icebergs -- some measuring more than 650 feet across -- were seen in just one cluster, indicating there could be hundreds more.
He said they were the remains of a massive ice floe which split from the Antarctic as sea and air temperatures rise due to global warming.
"All of these have come from a larger one that was probably 11.6 square miles in size when it left Antarctica."
When icebergs last neared New Zealand in 2006, a sheep was helicoptered out to be shorn on one of the floes in a publicity stunt by the country's wool industry.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
The Earth is Not One Giant Ashtray
Environmental impact of cigarette butt litter
The filters on cigarettes -- four fifths of all cigarettes have them -- are made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic that is very slow to degrade in the environment. A typical cigarette butt can take anywhere from 18 months to 10 years to decompose, depending on environmental conditions.
But beyond the plastic, these filters -- which are on cigarettes in the first place to absorb contaminants to prevent them from going into the lungs -- contain trace amounts of toxins like cadmium, arsenic and lead. Thus when smokers discard their butts improperly -- out the car window or off the end of a pier or onto the sidewalk below -- they are essentially tossing these substances willy-nilly into the environment.
Studies done by Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and even the tobacco industry itself show that these contaminants get into soils and waterways, harm or kill living organisms, and generally degrade surrounding ecosystems.
Some 5.5 trillion cigarettes are consumed worldwide each year. According to the Ocean Conservancy, cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item found on America's salt and freshwater beaches. While individual discarded cigarette butts may be small, they add up to a huge problem.
The filters on cigarettes -- four fifths of all cigarettes have them -- are made of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic that is very slow to degrade in the environment. A typical cigarette butt can take anywhere from 18 months to 10 years to decompose, depending on environmental conditions.
But beyond the plastic, these filters -- which are on cigarettes in the first place to absorb contaminants to prevent them from going into the lungs -- contain trace amounts of toxins like cadmium, arsenic and lead. Thus when smokers discard their butts improperly -- out the car window or off the end of a pier or onto the sidewalk below -- they are essentially tossing these substances willy-nilly into the environment.
Studies done by Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and even the tobacco industry itself show that these contaminants get into soils and waterways, harm or kill living organisms, and generally degrade surrounding ecosystems.
Some 5.5 trillion cigarettes are consumed worldwide each year. According to the Ocean Conservancy, cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item found on America's salt and freshwater beaches. While individual discarded cigarette butts may be small, they add up to a huge problem.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Sunscreen & Sun Safety
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) tested 1,606 sunscreens and found that 3 out of 5 offer inadequate protection from the sun or actually contain toxic ingredients.
The Food and Drug Administration does not require UVA filters in sunscreens, and most manufacturers have never included them in their formulations.
Most sunscreens protect from UVB, or sunburn radiation. Higher SPFs indicate more protection. Far fewer brands contain ingredients that block UVA radiation, even though a growing number of studies show it is even more harmful than UVB radiation.
EWG tested leading sunscreens from name brands like Coppertone, Banana Boat, and Neutrogena, and the results were not pretty. Despite improvements, 42% of tested sunscreens still contained the chemical oxybenzone, a hormone-disrupting chemical that readily absorbs through human skin.
http://www.ewg.org/cosmetics/report/sunscreen09/investigation/summary-of-findings
The Food and Drug Administration does not require UVA filters in sunscreens, and most manufacturers have never included them in their formulations.
Most sunscreens protect from UVB, or sunburn radiation. Higher SPFs indicate more protection. Far fewer brands contain ingredients that block UVA radiation, even though a growing number of studies show it is even more harmful than UVB radiation.
EWG tested leading sunscreens from name brands like Coppertone, Banana Boat, and Neutrogena, and the results were not pretty. Despite improvements, 42% of tested sunscreens still contained the chemical oxybenzone, a hormone-disrupting chemical that readily absorbs through human skin.
http://www.ewg.org/cosmetics/report/sunscreen09/investigation/summary-of-findings
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