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50-year-old contamination that was never cleaned up still polluting water and fish, report says

Fifty years after a Dryden pulp mill dumped its effluent into a northern Ontario watershed, mercury continues to rise in some lakes, according to a study commissioned by the provincial government and the Grassy Narrows First Nation.

The report released Monday also reveals how little is known about the environmental and health consequences of the mercury that flowed freely into the English-Wabigoon water system between 1962 and 1970.

The research review of human and ecological health in Grassy Narrows was conducted by fresh water scientist Patricia Sellers. It takes a wide-ranging look at all published research into the contamination and mercury poisoning of people at Grassy Narrows.

“We have bits and pieces, small amounts of data here and there throughout the years of the human health in Grassy Narrows and various health issues and an assessment of initiatives to address those health issues,” Sellers said. “But there hasn’t been anything very comprehensive.”

Fish remains a staple in the diet for the people of Grassy Narrows, despite the contamination. A new report says information about how much is safe to eat must be better communicated and supports put in place for people who can’t afford any other food. (CBC)

People in Grassy Narrows continue to suffer the effects of mercury poisoning, exhibiting symptoms such as loss of motor function, tingling and weakness in limbs, difficulty speaking and swallowing.

“We know little about the effects of low-dose exposure [to mercury] over the long-term,” Sellers wrote in the report.

Residents believe developmental delays and physical abnormalities in children are also related to the contamination, but Sellers says no studies have been conducted in Grassy Narrows on the effects of pre-natal exposure to mercury.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

An Accidental Trip to the Apothecary

June 8, 2015

An Accidental Trip to the Apothecary

I confess…..every so often I manufacture an important excuse to get off the mountain. Our household joke is for me to “air out” once a month whether I need it or not lol. Recently it was time once again.

My vital task that morning was to hit the nurseries for final fruit and vegetable flats now that the early planting season was almost over. The recent cold nights had zapped the delicate cantaloupe seedlings I had planted and several red cabbage had succumbed to what I now think was a nitrogen deficiency, sigh. Armed with limited cash so as not to overspend, I set out for a leisurely drive down the mountain.

The drop of elevation from our mountain top homestead is severe enough for my destination to be three weeks ahead of us in the summer growing season. If planned carefully, this is quite an advantage for me. I can transplant more mature plants for a longer productive period of time and thus a superior yield. Quite satisfied with my haul from the last nursery I wanted to visit, I pulled out onto the country road to head back home.

To my surprise there across the street was a small building with a few signs in the window, one of which read “Essential Oils”. My heart skipped a beat as I did a quick U-Turn and pulled into the parking lot. My mouth was probably hanging open in anticipation.

While the locals may be familiar with old-fashioned tried and true remedies passed down for generations, there were no distributors of natural health related items anywhere in this area of the VA/NC border. I have looked. Zilch, nada. Yet here I was parked in front of an interesting establishment with various signs indicating all sorts of goodies lie within.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

The Cost of China’s Industrialization: 700 Million People with Diabesity /Cancer /Lung Disease and 225 Million with Mental Disorders

June 8, 2015

The Cost of China’s Industrialization: 700 Million People with Diabesity /Cancer /Lung Disease and 225 Million with Mental Disorders

That the China Story is going to implode is already baked into the public health catastrophe that will unfold with a vengeance in the coming decade.

The financial pundits gushing over “The China Story”–that the Middle Kingdom’s industrialization is a permanent boon to the global economy and China’s poor–never calculate the human cost of that runaway industrialization and the vast inequalities it has unleashed.

The human cost is staggering: at least half the population is suffering from chronic lifestyle/environmental-related illnesses and 225 million suffer from mental disorders. For context, the population of China is estimated to be 1.39 billion, roughly 4.4 times the U.S. population of 317 million, and about 20% of the total global population.

Here are some estimates of China’s public health problems: (source links below)

— Half the population is estimated to be prediabetic (suffering from metabolic syndrome/diabesity).

— 12% of the populace now has diabetes, roughly 115 million people.

— An estimated 70% of China’s diabetics are undiagnosed; only 25% are receiving any treatment and of the 25%, the disease is only being controlled in 40% of those getting treatment.

— Noncommunicable diseases–cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory diseases and cancer, account for 85% of total deaths in China today — much higher than the global average of 60%.

— Mental disorders rose by more than 50 percent between 2003 and 2008. An estimated 17.5% of the population (225 million) suffers from some form of mental problem, one of the highest rates in the world.

— More than 300 million people in China — roughly equivalent to the entire U.S. population of 317 million — smoke tobacco.

— 200 million workers are directly exposed to occupational hazards.

— Informal estimates suggest a large percentage of the urban population suffers from lung/pulmonary diseases. Over the last 30 years, deaths ascribed to lung cancer have risen by a factor of five in China,

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Louisiana Environmental Group Warns Santa Barbara Oil Spill Cleanup Workers to Protect Their Health

June 1, 2015

Louisiana Environmental Group Warns Santa Barbara Oil Spill Cleanup Workers to Protect Their Health

An open letter from the Louisiana Environmental Action Network (LEAN) and the Lower Mississippi Riverkeeper advises those affected by the Santa Barbara Plains All American Pipeline spill not to participate in the clean-up effort.

“We do not want to see your citizens’, workers’, and volunteers’ health harmed in the way we have seen it damaged along our Gulf Coast after the 2010 BP oil disaster,” the letter says.

But the warning may be too late to help some like Osiris Castañeda, a father, ocean lover and filmmaking professor who cleaned up a stretch of Santa Barbara County beach with other volunteers on May 20, the day after a Plains Pipeline spilled an estimated 101,000 gallons of oil into the Pacific Ocean.

A video Castañeda produced with the Youth CineMedia Inc, documents a confrontation between the volunteers and officials who ordered them to leave or face being fined or possibly arrested. An official provided a number for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife office of spill prevention and response , which was giving out passes to volunteers, and told them without the passes they were forbidden to be on the beach. The volunteers called to get passes but, to the group’s dismay, a representative from the agency told them no volunteers were needed.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Arguments against GMOs

May 23, 2015

Arguments against GMOs

I recently decided to take an epidemiology course to fill in gaps in my knowledge base. The entire online graduate certificate in Environmental Health looked interesting, so I applied for the entire certificate. Environmental Health was the first course that I took online at this flagship Florida university. The online experience would be a separate post in itself — the online course was mechanically flawless but grossly deficient in interactions and building critical thinking skills.

One of my class assignments was to argue in a paper against Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Since the course and the textbook were too reductionist for my tastes, I argued using macroscopic arguments. I doubt the teaching assistants read it–like all other assignments in thisMOOC, it received a grade with no comments. Various friends are asking me what I think of GMOs, and most students in the class and most of my friends think that GMOs are a great solution for our food problems, so I am reposting the paper here.

Corporations promote GMOs as the solution to world hunger through expanded global food sources. That hopeful argument is not based on evidence, and there are many arguments against widespread GMO use. Most science and policy arguments are reductionist. But Einstein said that we cannot solve problems from the same consciousness that created the problems. We must learn to see the world anew, from a larger scale to see a complete picture of the processes involved. Reductionist science is not the answer to the problems engendered by a finite biosphere with a human population in overshoot.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Joel Salatin: How food can restore America’s integrity

May 2, 2015

Joel Salatin: How food can restore America’s integrity

While I was in Australia in February, imported Chinese raspberries carrying Hepatitis A (from human sewage) hospitalized a dozen people and heightened interest in my seminars to a fever pitch. The news media and individuals fell over themselves trying to learn about local food systems and integrity food.

Here at Polyface Farms, our business always thrives when recalls and food illness outbreaks hit the news. Why? Breaches in food safety continue to be our best advertisement. While these acute issues make headlines and instill panic, the most egregious food safety issues remain imbedded as a part of our cultural orthodoxy.

If it kills you or sickens you fast, the issue dominates discussions. But if it kills you or sickens you slow, it’s buried as a non-news item. Such is the current state of the industrial food system. Isn’t it amazing what gets people excited and creates societal movement?

To be sure, nobody wants people killed with tainted food. But isn’t it amazing that a couple of deaths and hospitalizations from an E. coli or salmonella outbreak creates hysteria while rocketing autism and childhood leukemia receive scant attention. The U.S. leads the world in the five chronic causes of death.

While our hospitals fill with leaky gut syndrome and bowel problems and our wealth goes from farms to pharmaceutical companies, collectively we just assume these societal changes follow capitalism’s success. If we really loved our children and really loved our neighbors, we’d be staying up at night trying to solve this terrifying trajectory.

– See more at: http://transitionvoice.com/2015/05/joel-salatin-how-food-can-restore-americas-integrity/#sthash.gqv4Sd1D.dpuf

Sand-nado – Beijing Battered By Blanket Of Red Dust

April 18, 2015

Sand-nado – Beijing Battered By Blanket Of Red Dust

In yet another ripped from the movies-screen-esque event, Beijing was brought to a standstill today as a massive Interstellar-like sandstorm covered the Chinese capital in thick blanket of red dust, sparking social media discussions of the end of the world. As RT reports, The China Meteorological Administration issued a yellow sandstorm alert – the third-most serious danger level, which given the images below, makes us wonder just WTF it takes to get to a level 1 sandstorm…

Stunning!! In a city of 21 million people…

As RT reports, Some areas in the city of 21 million recorded air pollution of nearly 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter, which is considered hazardous for people’s health.

Beijing residents had to wear face masks and goggles to protect themselves from the red sand and avoid injury and respiratory problems.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Fracking Increases Radon Gas Hazard, US Study Finds

April 16, 2015

Fracking Increases Radon Gas Hazard, US Study Finds

Levels of the carcinogenic gas rising in Pennsylvanian homes near industry sites.

Another major U.S. health study has found that the hydraulic fracking of unconventional rock formations can liberate and accelerate the release of radon, a highly carcinogenic gas.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that radon levels in U.S. homes in Pennsylvania have been on the rise ever since fracking of the Marcellus shale began in 2004.

The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, found that buildings in areas of the most active shale gas mining had significantly higher readings of radon compared to buildings located in areas of low well density and fracking activity.

The study looked at radon levels in more than 700,000 structures between 2004 and 2013. Buildings using well water had 21 per cent higher indoor radon concentrations than homes using municipal water, the study reported. “The release of waterborne radon during showering or washing can contribute to concentrations in buildings,” it said.

Radon can be found in well water, natural gas and the atmosphere wherever rock formations or soils contain lots of decaying uranium. Lung cancer caused by radon kills about 3,000 Canadians a year.

The U.S. findings collaborate and strengthen earlier studies by Australian researchers at Southern Cross University as well as recent shale gas research in Colorado. All suggest that the industrial activity of fracking can speed up the release of the odourless and tasteless gas in geologies already rich in uranium.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Have you done the Transition Health Check yet?

February 25, 2015

Have you done the Transition Health Check yet?

Believe or not the Transition Health Check is not about measuring everyone’s blood pressure in your Transition group or seeing how fit you all are. It’s actually a great tool for you to use to see how your group is doing, one that many Transition groups have already found to be really useful. It is very important to state upfront that the Health Check is there to help your group, it is not a test that you pass or fail. Over the next few weeks we hope to hear from some groups who have already done the Health Check for their reflections.

A healthy group

Interestingly the similarities between a healthy human body and a healthy Transition group are both about taking an holistic view of what is happening in order to prevent problems by checking that all the different parts are working well. The Health Check is based around the following elements of the Transition support offer. It has been shown through research, actual experience and feedback that if a group covers these they are more likely to be successful, sustainable and healthy:

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Fear of Terrorism Can Destroy Your Health … But There’s Good News

February 25, 2015

Fear of Terrorism Can Destroy Your Health … But There’s Good News

Fear of terrorism can kill you:

A new study has found that long-term exposure to the threat of terrorism can elevate people’s resting heart rates and increase their risk of dying.

The study of more than 17,000 Israelis is the first statistics-based study, and the largest of its kind, that indicates that fear induced by consistent exposure to the threat of terrorism can lead to negative health consequences and increase the risk of mortality, according to researchers at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The scientists explain:

“We found that fear of terrorism and existential anxiety may disrupt the control processes using acetylcholine, causing a chronic accelerated heart rate,” Soreq wrote in the press release. “Together with inflammation, these changes are associated with increased risk of heart attack and stroke.”

(In a 2004 study, Israeli scientists found that fear of terror increases inflammation.)

Swiss scientists also found that fear of terror damages the health of our hearts.

While the risk of terror is real, anything which needlessly increases our fear of terror will increase the risk to our health.

On the other hand, facts which decrease our fear of terror will help to protect our health. This essay provides such facts.

You’re Much More Likely to Be Killed By Brain-Eating Parasites, Texting While Driving, Toddlers, Lightning, Falling Out of Bed, Alcoholism, Food Poisoning, Choking On Food, a Financial Crash, Obesity, Medical Errors or “Autoerotic Asphyxiation” than by Terrorists

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Yellowknife latest city to recognize citizens’ right to live in a healthy environment | News

December 12, 2014

Yellowknife latest city to recognize citizens’ right to live in a healthy environment | News.

City joins Richmond, The Pas, Vancouver and Montreal in standing up for citizens’ right to have a say in decisions that affect the people and places they love

On December 8, Yellowknife became the fifth city in Canada to recognize its citizens’ right to live in a healthy environment, passing a municipal declaration that protects clean water, fresh air and healthy food, and gives citizens a say in decisions that affect people’s health.

The David Suzuki Foundation’s local partner in Yellowknife, Dene Nahjo, welcomed the news. “The people of the North are experiencing climate change daily and living with a mining legacy that doesn’t embody responsibility, social justice or public health,” said Dëneze Nakehk’o, spokesperson for Dene Nahjo. “To have the City of Yellowknife support a declaration for environmental rights shows bravery and leadership and sends a strong message to the North and the rest of the world that our most valuable resource is people.”

The city joins Richmond and Vancouver, B.C., The Pas, Manitoba, and Montreal, Quebec, with many more getting ready to follow suit. “Cities from coast to coast to coast are joining this movement,” said Sophika Kostyniuk, National Organizing Manager for the David Suzuki Foundation. “These cities represent almost two-and-a-half-million Canadians who now benefit from local governments that are putting the health of the people and places they love first.” Kostyniuk said thousands of Canadians are already working to grow this movement in cities and towns across Canada. “This grassroots effort shows what can happen when ordinary people take extraordinary action, and in the coming weeks and months we’ll see even more communities sign on.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

The Real Cost of Fracking: How America’s Shale Gas Boom Is Threatening Our Families, Pets, and Food

November 25, 2014

The Real Cost of Fracking: How America’s Shale Gas Boom Is Threatening Our Families, Pets, and Food.

The first researchers to systematically document ill health in livestock, pets, and people living near fracking drill sites were Michelle Bamberger and Robert Oswald. Bamberger, a veterinarian, and Oswald, a professor of molecular medicine at Cornell University, used a case study approach–looking at individual households–to search for possible effects (Bamberger and Oswald 2012).

Many fracking chemicals are known carcinogens, endocrine disruptors or other classes of toxins (Colborn et al. 2011). Bamberger and Oswald’s studies, carried out during the ongoing fracking boom, uncovered serious adverse effects including respiratory, reproductive, and growth-related problems in animals and a spectrum of symptoms in humans that they termed “shale gas syndrome”. Ultimately, their research led them to consider fracking’s broader implications for farming and the food system (Bamberger and Oswald 2012 and 2014).

Their new book, The Real Cost of Fracking: How America’s Shale Gas Boom Is Threatening Our Families, Pets, and Food describes the results of this research. However, it is by showing the pervasiveness of fracking’s harmful effects on the lives of the householders that Bamberger and Oswald best convey its true costs.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Taxpayers to fund hundreds of fracking boreholes across the country | Environment | The Guardian

November 24, 2014

Taxpayers to fund hundreds of fracking boreholes across the country | Environment | The Guardian.

Hundreds of government-funded boreholes are set to be drilled across Britain to try to persuade the public that a looming shale gas boom can be developed safely, the Observer has learned. Sensors in the boreholes would detect possible water pollution or earthquakes caused by fracking and the information would be made public.

“We will be taking the pulse of the sub-surface environment and will reveal if things are going wrong, but also if they are going right,” said Professor Mike Stephenson, director of science and technology at the British Geological Survey, which would drill the boreholes. “The aim is to reassure people that we can manage the sub-surface safely.”

The plan, called the energy security and innovation observing system, will cost taxpayers £60m-£80m. It is awaiting final approval from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, where energy minister Matthew Hancock, afracking enthusiast, holds another ministerial post.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Understanding How Your Blood reacts To cold Is A Lifesaver | Underground Medic

November 22, 2014

Understanding How Your Blood reacts To cold Is A Lifesaver | Underground Medic.

Every winter we are bombarded by information about the cold and how to protect ourselves from it and from health issues associated with it.

Wrap up warm, keep one room heated to a minimum 18*C, avoid hypothermia, eat and drink warm food, get the boiler serviced to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning, turn off the Christmas tree lights to avoid fire. It’s endless.

Every winter in the UK upwards of 20,000 extra deaths occur that are attributed in one way, or another to the cold. These are referred to as ‘excess deaths from all causes’ on the official statistics. Now that wording makes it sound like the medics record which deaths are caused by the cold. In some cases they do, but in mostly they don’t, the figure is derived by taking the figure for the deaths recorded during non-winter months and taking it away from the winter tally, the number left is the excess deaths from all causes figure.

Now, some things that happen in winter are fully understandable and clearly lead to more deaths than would occur in drier warmer weather. Road accidents, domestic boiler incidents, house fires, drowning from falling through ice, asthma, pneumonia, falls, influenza and so on all have a higher incidence level in winter than at any other time of year.

– See more at: http://undergroundmedic.com/?p=5092#sthash.Uazv59Q6.dpuf

Walking is Going Places | On the Commons

November 18, 2014

Walking is Going Places | On the Commons.

Walking is going places.

Humans’ most common pastime–forsaken for decades as too slow and too much effort– is now recognized as a health breakthrough, an economic catalyst and a route to happiness.

Real Simple magazine (circulation: 2 million) declared “walking America’s untrendiest trend” in its February 2014 cover story. A month later Builder magazine (a construction trade journal) announced on its cover, “Walkability. Why we care…and why you should too.” The reason? Simple: “Increasingly, the market is demanding places where homeowners can hoof it.”

The New Yorker weighed in last September quoting the new book A Philosophy of Walking, which asserts that walking “makes it possible to recover the pure sensation of being, to rediscover the simple joy of existing.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

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You’re Much More Likely to Be Killed By Brain-Eating Parasites, Texting While Driving, Toddlers, Lightning, Falling Out of Bed, Alcoholism, Food Poisoning, Choking On Food, a Financial Crash, Obesity, Medical Errors or “Autoerotic Asphyxiation” than by Terrorists

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