I thought the article covering the history of led poisoning was very interesting. Like I mentioned in my previous blog post, learning about the toll of these chemicals on children is always hard to stomach. Its amazing how horrible the effects these chemicals can be when they reach people at a young age. I especially thought that the fact that lead can have a negative impact on children's reading abilities was interesting. I struggled with reading as a child and I remember how frustrating it was.
I found the article about the lead poisoning outbreak to be extremely sad and was surprised to see that this incident was as recent as 2010! 400 deaths due to lead poisoning in these villages! It was great to read about the United Nations involvement in this issue though - I thought that the steps they took were appropriate. I was happy to see that they administered a significant amount of treatment but was still concerned at the high casualty rate. This article drives home how dangerous lead poisoning is.
Saturday, October 27, 2018
Green Chemistry
I had heard of green chemistry before - from my mother, actually. She had tried to use chemicals that were "green" and I can recall her talking to me about green chemistry as an alternative to traditional chemical development. I think the 12 principals of green chemistry are worth pursuing; I especially feel that "preventing waste" is something we can focus our energies on. If we can create things that do not leave waste, so that there are not things left to clean up, that would be a huge step in keeping people safe from toxic chemicals. I also thought that the video about the garbage patch was distressing. The amount of plastic in the environment is something scientists and public health actors need to continue to address.
Six Classes of Chemicals
Highly Fluorinated:
I did not know that highly fluorinated chemicals were man made or that they were primarily used for non-stick and water resistant products. Its pretty horrible, and crazy, to think that 98% of Americans are living with this inside them! The fact that carcinogens as toxic as this are so incredibly common in Americans is extremely troubling; especially when considering that they never breakdown and come with an array of health problems outside of "simply" cancer.
Antimocrobials:
These chemicals are supposed to kill/inhibit the growth of microorganisms and are once again found in many household items. These chemicals can inhibit/kill good microorganisms and are dangerous when ingested by humans and many animals. Unfortunately they are often found in humans, especially in breast milk where they are then ingested by infants.
Flame Retardants:
Unfortunately these chemicals are added in to many products to help them meet fire regulations. I though it was interesting to learn that these chemicals only hinder flames by generally 2 second and that they do real harm in the toxic smoke they give off. How crazy to think that the smoke of these things is more dangerous than the flames which they are supposedly working to stop. It almost seems as though having the flames run their course would be more worthwhile than having these chemicals create toxic smoke.
Bisphenols:
These chemicals are hormone disruptors and are usually found in plastics. The thing I found most frightening about these chemicals is that they "leach" into things like water and food. This makes it feel like they are harder to remove from our systems and homes unless these items are simply 100% removed; its not like you can clean these chemicals off of our products.
Solvents:
Air contaminant like solvents are often toxic and can be avoided. These chemicals are found in items like nail polish, paint, and cleaning products and can cause an array of respiratory problems as well as end up in drinking water as they seep through soil into groundwater. I liked that this video suggested one very simple solution for stopping solvents like cleaning products by just using water for your cleaning needs. Often advertising makes us feel like we need these chemicals to wipe down "dirty" surfaces, but that's not always the case.
Metals:
Metals are not something that I often think of as chemicals - I am 100% aware that some are toxic but it still is something I tend to forget until reminded. These metals end up in food and drinking water and end up ingested by humans. The biggest takeaway from this video for me was that these chemicals usually effect children while prenatal and/or early life exposure. Its always hard to hear that these things effect children more than any other population.
I did not know that highly fluorinated chemicals were man made or that they were primarily used for non-stick and water resistant products. Its pretty horrible, and crazy, to think that 98% of Americans are living with this inside them! The fact that carcinogens as toxic as this are so incredibly common in Americans is extremely troubling; especially when considering that they never breakdown and come with an array of health problems outside of "simply" cancer.
Antimocrobials:
These chemicals are supposed to kill/inhibit the growth of microorganisms and are once again found in many household items. These chemicals can inhibit/kill good microorganisms and are dangerous when ingested by humans and many animals. Unfortunately they are often found in humans, especially in breast milk where they are then ingested by infants.
Flame Retardants:
Unfortunately these chemicals are added in to many products to help them meet fire regulations. I though it was interesting to learn that these chemicals only hinder flames by generally 2 second and that they do real harm in the toxic smoke they give off. How crazy to think that the smoke of these things is more dangerous than the flames which they are supposedly working to stop. It almost seems as though having the flames run their course would be more worthwhile than having these chemicals create toxic smoke.
Bisphenols:
These chemicals are hormone disruptors and are usually found in plastics. The thing I found most frightening about these chemicals is that they "leach" into things like water and food. This makes it feel like they are harder to remove from our systems and homes unless these items are simply 100% removed; its not like you can clean these chemicals off of our products.
Solvents:
Air contaminant like solvents are often toxic and can be avoided. These chemicals are found in items like nail polish, paint, and cleaning products and can cause an array of respiratory problems as well as end up in drinking water as they seep through soil into groundwater. I liked that this video suggested one very simple solution for stopping solvents like cleaning products by just using water for your cleaning needs. Often advertising makes us feel like we need these chemicals to wipe down "dirty" surfaces, but that's not always the case.
Metals:
Metals are not something that I often think of as chemicals - I am 100% aware that some are toxic but it still is something I tend to forget until reminded. These metals end up in food and drinking water and end up ingested by humans. The biggest takeaway from this video for me was that these chemicals usually effect children while prenatal and/or early life exposure. Its always hard to hear that these things effect children more than any other population.
Monday, October 15, 2018
My Ideal Chemical Policy
After reviewing the content of Module 8, the workers "right-to-know" concern strikes me as the largest environmental health issue. In my ideal chemical policy, open disclose of any/all (though I'd really try and decrease my use of toxic chemicals/pesticides altogether) toxic chemicals/pesticides would be paramount. Furthermore, I'd take my workers care a step further by providing regular medical checks. These medical checks would screen my workers for any symptoms of the side effects of the adverse health issues caused by the chemicals they were working with while employed by me. My goal with this program would be to identify health issues caused by these chemicals/toxins before they progressed to their final/terminal stage. I realize that a program such as this would be expensive, and there would need to be rules/guidelines that made financial sense of some sort, but this seems like a high priority item to me. If the company that is asking these workers to handle toxic chemicals is not supporting their employees health then the duty ultimately falls on workers themselves - and getting sick in America is an outrageously expensive endeavor. I think that obligation lies with the company first to try and stop these illnesses in their tracks rather than wait for a worker to feel so ill that they seek medical attention and discover that they're in the final stages of lung cancer.
Chemical Policy Reform
"Give the Public and Workers Fulls Right-to-Know and Participate"
Knowledge and consent are the key factors here that are being deliberately overlooked by many chemicals when it comes to the chemical policy. I think most people, if they realized their ability to have a positive influence on the chemical policies of the places they work/live in, would want to have clear labels describing the industrial toxins they were being exposed to. Basic information about how much of these toxins are being produced and what the adverse health effects are due to exposure should be a basic human right. The current regularity of limited disclosure laws is alarming, but not surprising. I think Paul Orum does a very nice job summarizing this problem, why its important, and presenting potential solutions.
Knowledge and consent are the key factors here that are being deliberately overlooked by many chemicals when it comes to the chemical policy. I think most people, if they realized their ability to have a positive influence on the chemical policies of the places they work/live in, would want to have clear labels describing the industrial toxins they were being exposed to. Basic information about how much of these toxins are being produced and what the adverse health effects are due to exposure should be a basic human right. The current regularity of limited disclosure laws is alarming, but not surprising. I think Paul Orum does a very nice job summarizing this problem, why its important, and presenting potential solutions.
Pesticides
"Whats On My Food?"
Lettuce: 52 pesticides found; 3 known carcinogens; 17 hormone disruptors; 10 neurotoxins; 8 developmental/reproductive toxins; 14 honey bee toxins
Roast Chicken: **Not listed, I assume this is because its a meat
Black Beans: 1 pesticide found; 0 known carcinogens; 0 hormone disruptors; 0 neurotoxins; 0 developmental/reproductive toxins; 0 honey bee toxins
I founds these results to be a little all over the map for me. On the one hand, 'lettuce' raised a huge red flag for me. Although the pesticides that threaten my own health are alarming and terrifying, I honestly felt more upset about the 14 honey bee toxins! Being raised a bee keeper - I HATE the idea that my food choices could be hurting honey bees. The 'roast chicken' had nothing listed because its a meat so it doesn't really fall into this category and the 'black beans' had basically nothing reported for them. I wonder if the reason for the 'black beans' coming up so clean is because they get shelled, washed, and canned before being tested. This might account for there being so little pesticide residue on them though I suspect they are still exposed to pesticides while on the farm and on the vine.
Lettuce: 52 pesticides found; 3 known carcinogens; 17 hormone disruptors; 10 neurotoxins; 8 developmental/reproductive toxins; 14 honey bee toxins
Roast Chicken: **Not listed, I assume this is because its a meat
Black Beans: 1 pesticide found; 0 known carcinogens; 0 hormone disruptors; 0 neurotoxins; 0 developmental/reproductive toxins; 0 honey bee toxins
I founds these results to be a little all over the map for me. On the one hand, 'lettuce' raised a huge red flag for me. Although the pesticides that threaten my own health are alarming and terrifying, I honestly felt more upset about the 14 honey bee toxins! Being raised a bee keeper - I HATE the idea that my food choices could be hurting honey bees. The 'roast chicken' had nothing listed because its a meat so it doesn't really fall into this category and the 'black beans' had basically nothing reported for them. I wonder if the reason for the 'black beans' coming up so clean is because they get shelled, washed, and canned before being tested. This might account for there being so little pesticide residue on them though I suspect they are still exposed to pesticides while on the farm and on the vine.
Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Topic of Interest
My topic of interest is how climate change is communicated. How is the message of climate change being delivered to the public and is the messaging working? I plan to likely utilize the following agencies as they address my topic:
1. globalchange.gov ; US Global Change Research Program
2. opm.gov ; the Office of Communication
3. climatechangecommunication.org ; the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication
4. un.org ; Climate Change Division
5. cdc.gov ; Health Communications and Social Marketing Practice homepage
1. globalchange.gov ; US Global Change Research Program
2. opm.gov ; the Office of Communication
3. climatechangecommunication.org ; the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication
4. un.org ; Climate Change Division
5. cdc.gov ; Health Communications and Social Marketing Practice homepage
EcoEmploy
I selected the Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The impact that this branch has on environmental health is pretty overwhelming - the majority of their work has to do strictly with the environmental health of human and animal populations! To give a specific example, the Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service offers a specialty certification to veterinarians so that they can confidently sign-off on the health status of livestock. This certification serves our community in an environmental health fashion because these veterinarians make sure that the cows producing our milk, the chickens producing our eggs, etc. are all up to par with their health and well-being. It is because of veterinarians like these, who act to enforce standards of care for livestock, that we can be sure our livestock are producing safe products.
Marin County Health Department
The County of Marin Department of Health and Human Services (CMDHHS) offers the following environmental health services:
1. Access to the community epidemiology program which monitors breast cancer data in Marin County. This program is a branch of the CMDHHS and the data is publicly available so residents can see things like which neighborhoods have the highest number of breast cancer cases.
2. The Community Development program serves residents by disposing of medical waste (Sharps Program).
3. The Marin County Lead Poisoning Prevention Program and the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Programs offer tips for preventing lead exposure from tap water.
I was pleased to see that these services were available in Marin county. The epidemiology program pleased me because I know about the staggering number of women in Marin county who suffer from breast cancer and the lead prevention programs pleased me because, even though Marin's water is top-notch (as I discovered in Module 6's blogs) - the issue is still covered in case residents need assistance/guidance.
1. Access to the community epidemiology program which monitors breast cancer data in Marin County. This program is a branch of the CMDHHS and the data is publicly available so residents can see things like which neighborhoods have the highest number of breast cancer cases.
2. The Community Development program serves residents by disposing of medical waste (Sharps Program).
3. The Marin County Lead Poisoning Prevention Program and the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Programs offer tips for preventing lead exposure from tap water.
I was pleased to see that these services were available in Marin county. The epidemiology program pleased me because I know about the staggering number of women in Marin county who suffer from breast cancer and the lead prevention programs pleased me because, even though Marin's water is top-notch (as I discovered in Module 6's blogs) - the issue is still covered in case residents need assistance/guidance.
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
Obesogens
1.) Locally gown foods usually find their way to your table within 61 miles according to the Seasonal Foods document. Fruits that are currently in season include: pomegranates, cranberries, and persimmons.
2.) I think it is important for hospitals to incorporate seasonal/local foods into their menus for several reasons. They can help reduce transportation emissions by not shipping in fruit outside of a certain radius, they can support their local farmers and agricultural workers and invest back into their local communication, and they can expose their patients to real, wholesome, foods that are nutrient dense.
3.) Harvest Calendar: This calendar provided me with a very long list of produce that is currently in season in California. I was a bit surprised! I did not expect to see such an extensive list in early October - but there were upwards of 30 items listed!
4.) I had heard of obesogens before reading this article, but had only a vague understanding of what they were which was mostly due to their tell-tale name. The key new factor that I learned from this article was that obesogens are "dietary, pharmaceutical, and industrial compounds". I suppose I had not given much thought as to WHAT these things were - only that they were bad and had adverse effects on health and weight in both animals and humans. Still, I wasn't surprised that these things are manufactured as so many of the terrible things we ingest are manufactured by organizations making money on our failing health, growing waistbands, and desire for convenience and flavor.
5.) I chose to look at dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene.
What I found in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives was that this chemical pesticide is a DDT breakdown product and it has been linked to an increased BMI in children and insulin resistance in rodents. Most known obesogens (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene included) are endocrine disruptors which means that they alter the bodies endocrine system function and can cause cancer and/or tumors. Animal studies have done a great deal to link dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene to obesity though, interestingly, the animals often have fewer fat cells but these cells are much larger in size than normal fat cells so the animals end up with a higher BMI than desired.
Holtcamp, W. (2012). Obesogens: an environmental link to obesity. Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives. 59, 100-111. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.120-a62
2.) I think it is important for hospitals to incorporate seasonal/local foods into their menus for several reasons. They can help reduce transportation emissions by not shipping in fruit outside of a certain radius, they can support their local farmers and agricultural workers and invest back into their local communication, and they can expose their patients to real, wholesome, foods that are nutrient dense.
3.) Harvest Calendar: This calendar provided me with a very long list of produce that is currently in season in California. I was a bit surprised! I did not expect to see such an extensive list in early October - but there were upwards of 30 items listed!
4.) I had heard of obesogens before reading this article, but had only a vague understanding of what they were which was mostly due to their tell-tale name. The key new factor that I learned from this article was that obesogens are "dietary, pharmaceutical, and industrial compounds". I suppose I had not given much thought as to WHAT these things were - only that they were bad and had adverse effects on health and weight in both animals and humans. Still, I wasn't surprised that these things are manufactured as so many of the terrible things we ingest are manufactured by organizations making money on our failing health, growing waistbands, and desire for convenience and flavor.
5.) I chose to look at dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene.
What I found in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives was that this chemical pesticide is a DDT breakdown product and it has been linked to an increased BMI in children and insulin resistance in rodents. Most known obesogens (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene included) are endocrine disruptors which means that they alter the bodies endocrine system function and can cause cancer and/or tumors. Animal studies have done a great deal to link dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene to obesity though, interestingly, the animals often have fewer fat cells but these cells are much larger in size than normal fat cells so the animals end up with a higher BMI than desired.
Holtcamp, W. (2012). Obesogens: an environmental link to obesity. Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives. 59, 100-111. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.120-a62
Use of Antibiotics
Article 1: Antibiotic Resistance 101
I found this document really wonderful. It was easy to read and got across key facts about the abundance of antibiotics being forced upon our agriculture. Based on the format of this document, I wonder if it is a policy brief? The layout reminded me of documents we looked at in my Health Policy class last semester. The "Recommendations" section was particularly interesting; I very much liked that the author called upon Congress to initiate change but wanted to see more suggestions that the general consumer could get behind to try and bring about change.
Article 2: Nearby Livestock May Raise 'Superbug' Risk
I found this article to be disturbing - but not necessarily new information to me. The MRSA staph bacteria has been in the news for some time now and I've discussed it before with friends and family. It really is frightening to think about all the antibiotics being pumped into agriculture and how that fact then comes back to haunt us as 'superbug's emerge that are drug-resistant. I appreciated that the end of the article briefly stated that the study found an association, but no cause-and-effect relationship. I don't think there is/was any need to argue/prove the cause-and-effect point when the association is so strong.
Article 3: Antimicrobial Wipes and Soaps
I appreciated the writing style of this article! It was fun and easy to read - this made it fun to follow along as the author told us about the problems of triclosan. This article reminded me of new moms arguing on the playground about whether or not they should "let their kids eat dirt". One young mom explains that eating dirt will strengthen their child's immune system, while the other disagrees and believes the dirt will be the cause of illness. I think the author (and me as well) would side with the mom in favor of a little dirt being okay in their child's lives.
Article 4: Antimicrobials and the Manufacturing of Hospital Furnishings
Ah! Another policy brief! Easy to read and always informative! One new and interesting thing I learned from this article was that copper has antimicrobial properties. This struck me as really interesting, especially since (according to this article) this phenomenon is not entirely understood. If copper was not toxic in high concentrations, this metal could be a helpful tools for hospital furnishings. Along similar lines, Zinc is another interesting option for hospital manufacturing but this metal also falls short as it is not enough on its own to provide a safe hospital environment.
I found this document really wonderful. It was easy to read and got across key facts about the abundance of antibiotics being forced upon our agriculture. Based on the format of this document, I wonder if it is a policy brief? The layout reminded me of documents we looked at in my Health Policy class last semester. The "Recommendations" section was particularly interesting; I very much liked that the author called upon Congress to initiate change but wanted to see more suggestions that the general consumer could get behind to try and bring about change.
Article 2: Nearby Livestock May Raise 'Superbug' Risk
I found this article to be disturbing - but not necessarily new information to me. The MRSA staph bacteria has been in the news for some time now and I've discussed it before with friends and family. It really is frightening to think about all the antibiotics being pumped into agriculture and how that fact then comes back to haunt us as 'superbug's emerge that are drug-resistant. I appreciated that the end of the article briefly stated that the study found an association, but no cause-and-effect relationship. I don't think there is/was any need to argue/prove the cause-and-effect point when the association is so strong.
Article 3: Antimicrobial Wipes and Soaps
I appreciated the writing style of this article! It was fun and easy to read - this made it fun to follow along as the author told us about the problems of triclosan. This article reminded me of new moms arguing on the playground about whether or not they should "let their kids eat dirt". One young mom explains that eating dirt will strengthen their child's immune system, while the other disagrees and believes the dirt will be the cause of illness. I think the author (and me as well) would side with the mom in favor of a little dirt being okay in their child's lives.
Article 4: Antimicrobials and the Manufacturing of Hospital Furnishings
Ah! Another policy brief! Easy to read and always informative! One new and interesting thing I learned from this article was that copper has antimicrobial properties. This struck me as really interesting, especially since (according to this article) this phenomenon is not entirely understood. If copper was not toxic in high concentrations, this metal could be a helpful tools for hospital furnishings. Along similar lines, Zinc is another interesting option for hospital manufacturing but this metal also falls short as it is not enough on its own to provide a safe hospital environment.
The Vanishing of the Bees and Dirt!
1. The "Vanishing of the Bees" film was absolutely heartbreaking for me. I say that honestly, with no exaggeration. My mother raises bees and I've grown up loving them since I was in grade school. I loved the short history lesson in the movie - when they explained how ancient Egyptians would float hives down the river to follow the bloom - how amazing is that?! But the sad reality of this film was also driven home and I was very troubled to learn about colony collapse disorder and seeing the empty hive boxes strewn about all over the place.
2. Similar to my connection to the "Vanishing of the Bees" film, I also had a strong nostalgia connection to the "Dirt" film and Fact Sheet because of how I was raised. My parents have always composted and I am lucky enough to live in an apartment complex that has a composting service for tenants as well. After watching the "Vanishing of the Bees" film, it was nice to switch to something that felt a little more upbeat and positive. The film does a great job describing the process, why its important, and how you can get involved.
3. From the "Factory Farm Map" website I was able to see that Marin County scored in the "high" range according to the US Department of Agriculture Census. This didn't surprise me too much as I have seen, and know of, many farms that operate in our county. I did not see any Factory Farms listed in Marin though I noticed that the info had not been updated since 2012. Still, I do not think there are any Factory Farms in our county - I hope I am correct!
4. As I started to state in bullet #2, composting has been a large part of my culinary life since I can remember. I was raised composting and continue to do it myself. My challenge with composting has been trying to get my significant other on-board with the system. Its not that he is adamantly opposing it, but he often forgets to compost and struggles to remember what CAN and CANNOT be composted. This is something we continue to work on every day and he is getting a hang of it! Slowlllllyyyy but surely!
2. Similar to my connection to the "Vanishing of the Bees" film, I also had a strong nostalgia connection to the "Dirt" film and Fact Sheet because of how I was raised. My parents have always composted and I am lucky enough to live in an apartment complex that has a composting service for tenants as well. After watching the "Vanishing of the Bees" film, it was nice to switch to something that felt a little more upbeat and positive. The film does a great job describing the process, why its important, and how you can get involved.
3. From the "Factory Farm Map" website I was able to see that Marin County scored in the "high" range according to the US Department of Agriculture Census. This didn't surprise me too much as I have seen, and know of, many farms that operate in our county. I did not see any Factory Farms listed in Marin though I noticed that the info had not been updated since 2012. Still, I do not think there are any Factory Farms in our county - I hope I am correct!
4. As I started to state in bullet #2, composting has been a large part of my culinary life since I can remember. I was raised composting and continue to do it myself. My challenge with composting has been trying to get my significant other on-board with the system. Its not that he is adamantly opposing it, but he often forgets to compost and struggles to remember what CAN and CANNOT be composted. This is something we continue to work on every day and he is getting a hang of it! Slowlllllyyyy but surely!
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