SAVE NATURAL MEDICINES, INCLUDING VITAMINS

Subject: April 30, 2007 Deadline

FYI, maybe they will even consider a prescription to buy organic
produce???  Vance
 
Sent: Saturday, April 07, 2007 12:51 PM
Subject: Fwd: April 30, 2007 Deadline

Where America goes, Howard follows - Pay Attention!  'Modality' becomes
'Medicine', 'Therapy' becomes 'treatment', Vitamins become 'Untested
drugs', and suddenly you're "practicing medicine without a licence". 
 ~~B.


Begin forwarded message:From: Anna
> Date: 8 April 2007 5:40:00 AM
> To: undisclosed-recipients: ;
> Subject: April 30, 2007 Deadline
>
> Hi Everyone,
> (this is a bit long but please read it - take the time - it's worth it)
> The FDA is very close to eliminating alternative medicine, herbs,
> herbal treatments and therapies and over the counter vitamins. If
> their proposed change in guidelines goes through, you could need a
> prescription just for vitamins. Your "Doc" can be arrested or put out
> of business because he/she isn't a medical doctor even though he/she
> is an alternative medical professional. Imagine the natural food
> stores without a supplements section and no way to get them.
>
> Public comments are only open until April 30 before they make their
> rulings. This organization is trying to get 5 Million people to send
> comments to the FDA to let them know that we value our alternative
> medical therapies, medicines and supplements, support those in the
> field of alternative medicine and that we will not go quietly into the
> night.
>
> How can you help?? Simply go to this website and scroll down - you'll
> see a place to fill in your info. You can read and edit what will be
> sent to the FDA in your name. We have to share this info in order to
> maintain our freedom of choice in regard to our own health.
>
> Copy and paste the link if you can't click on it.
> http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/
> healthfreedomusa/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=7185
>
> Use this link if the other one is too long.
> http://tinyurl. com/2u7ghc
>
> I've sent info out to a lot of you about CAM (Complementary and
> Alternative Medicine) before. Here is a link to familiarize yourself
> with NCCAM - the government's website on CAM. 
> http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/
>
> Don't be fooled by its educational demeanor - read this statement
> carefully:
> NCCAM is the Federal Government's lead agency for scientific research
> on CAM . NCCAM's mission is to explore complementary and alternative
> healing practices in the context of rigorous science, train CAM
> researchers, and disseminate authoritative information to the public
> and professionals.
> __________
> Big pharmaceutical companies have been pressuring the federal
> government to find a way to eliminate natural supplements for a long
> long time....and now they have an opportunity to achieve their goal.
>
> NCCAM has been researching and now the goal is simple:
> through a "Guidance" about the regulation of "CAM" the FDA
> hopes to serve the interests of Big Pharma by eliminating all CAM
> practices
> and products. ALL of them - including vitamins purchased without a
> prescription.
>
> Here's how this game is played:
>
> 1. By using the term "Medicine" rather than "Modality" for CAM
> practices, the
> FDA sets the stage so that anyone who is not a licensed physician is
> breaking
> the law by using these modalities since they are therefore 'practicing
> medicine without a license'.
>
>
> 2. By using the term "treatment" rather than "therapy", the FDA limits
> those
> who can perform these practices to licensed physicians and, again,
> anyone who
> is not a licensed physician is breaking the law by using these
> modalities
> since only licensed practitioners can treat. So people using these
> modalities are
> therefore 'practicing medicine without a license'.
>
>
> 3. By using the terms "Medicine" and "treatment" instead of
> "Modalities" and
> "therapy", all substances, including vitamins, minerals, herbs,
> co-factors,
> etc., automatically become untested drugs since they are being used to
> prevent,
> treat, mitigate or cure disease states. Such use can only legally take
> place
> with FDA approved drugs.
> ____________________
>
> OK - you get the point! Please go to that website and make your voice
> heard.
> Share this with others as you feel appropriate.
>
> Peace - Anna  

Date: Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:38:50 -0700
Subject: Radio show on MCS Sun
From: Barri Boone <unmaid43@...>
To: "CripTrip@..." <CripTrip@...>,
BayCanaryGrapevine Moderator <BayCanaryGrapevine-owner@yahoogroups.com>,
SCLyme <SCLyme@yahoogroups.com>,
"Charles R.Stone" <megalith@...>

-----------

Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2007 18:29:08 +0000
From: Alb"cyndi@..." ert Donnay

Subject: [IMMUNE] Radio call-in show this Sunday 3/25: Dr. Albert Robbins
interviews Albert Donnay on MCS, MUSES, etc

Dr. Albert Robbins has invited me to be his guest on his
Environmental Health Hour radio program. The show will air
this Sunday 3/25/07 from 5-6pm (Eastern Time).

You can listen via WNN, the Health & Wealth Network, at
http://www.wwnnradio.com/
(just click the "listen live" link in the upper right corner)
and you can call in via an 800# if you have questions or
comments. (I don't know the # but Dr. Robbins will announce
it.)

We'll be talking about MCS, Multi-Sensory Sensitivity (aka
MUSES Syndrome), carbon monoxide poisoning, Edgar Allan Poe,
and whatever else you call in to ask about!

- - - Albert Donnay, MHS
www.mcsrr.org

ps. please forward this message to any other lists that you
think may be interested.

So I finally just saw my Scent article in Alternative Medicine.  Whole Foods is now carrying the April issue.

Because I hadn't seen the final version with their edits, although I was overall pleased with how it came out and the fact that it came out at all (!), there are a few things that I thought should be addressed - and hopefully people who are sensitive will write in and point some of these things out.

1) They added a line that people who are sensitive to scents "can't go to supermarkets or department stores."  I had written that some can't even leave their homes because scent use is so ubiquitous and harmful to some people.  I mentioned the problem of neighbor's dryer vents and how that makes it difficult to even be in neighborhoods. I think it's important for people to realize just how much lives can be impacted by scent use - not merely "oh we can't go shopping anymore!"

2) They didn't include my line about how essential oils and incense are typically not tolerated by sensitive people and that it's a problem even with holistic doctors who often use both.  I understand we have to take baby steps with educating the public, but I am already finding that friends can't figure out that all the essential oils in their "natural" products can make people sick, too.

3) This one isn't a big deal and I understand why they cut it - but they took out the description of what happens scientifically when we inhale scents.  I talked about the limbic systems and how exposures can cause immediate mood changes, like a whiff of perfume can make someone depressed or irritable.  I thought it was important in terms of understanding how most reactions are invisible and affect behavior.

4) They changed the title - not sure if what they put on the cover is even clear ("Is Your Scent-sitivity Making You Sick?") but still - hey - it's on the cover!!

5) I had originally put in the OxyBall as a detergent alternative but finally found out from the manufacturer that they do have icky stuff in it so I asked them to pull it from the article - but it's still in there as an option.  Oops.

6) The chemicals in fragrances, and "What you can do" is no longer in the article but instead is online and they just have a note to go online to see that info.  Again, I understand because of space, although there is so much artwork that I thought it still could have been in the side bars.

So - of course I'm too close to the piece that it's hard to be objective and I'd love to hear feedback.  And if anyone does read it, it would be great to see letters to the editor both acknowledging the importance of this information to increase support for people who are suffering from others' scents, and also perhaps mentioning that it goes beyond the inability to go to the supermarket but literally drastically changes people's lives...and that essential oils can often be problematic, too...

Jill

Urgent Question:
When I turned 65, I was told by an SSDI worker that my official status
shifted from "disabled" to "aged" and I was therefore no longer
eligible for SSDI work incentives.
Does anyone know about my status with ADA and reasonable accommodation?
I am applying for senior housing (due to drug/criminal activity where
I now live), and will likely need reasonable accommodation for my MCS.
Any information or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Frances Hailman
fhailman@sbcglobal.net

Urgent Question:
When I turned 65, I was told by an SSDI worker that my official status
shifted from "disabled" to "aged" and I was therefore no longer
eligible for SSDI work incentives.
Does anyone know about my status with ADA and reasonable accommodation?
   I am applying for senior housing (due to drug/criminal activity where
I now live), and will likely need reasonable accommodation for my MCS.
Any information or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Thank you.
Frances Hailman
fhailman@...

I have a used Black and Decker Toaster Over that might be good for an MCS
person. It is
outgassed and from a fragrance-free home.
It is 15" Wide x 8" Tall x 10" Deep and is an off-white color.
I don't tolerate it  because there is a slight
burning smell when it is on. It is located in Cupertino, CA. Email me
(k2books@...)  if
you are interested in taking it. Thank you in advance.
-Kristine

Date: Sun, 11 Mar 2007 21:01:59 -0800
Subject: FW: Question re Social Security and natural meds
From: Barri Boone <unmaid43@...>
To: BayCanaryGrapevine Moderator <BayCanaryGrapevine-owner@yahoogroups.com>,
"immune@..." <immune@...>,
SCLyme <SCLyme@yahoogroups.com>, "CripTrip@..." <CripTrip@...>


Howdy,

I'm being reviewed by Social Security because they have determined that my
part-time Homecare gross income was over their ceiling, the SGA (substantial
gainful employment). When you work, they subtract your "allowed"
work-related expenses (IWRE) like medical expenses related to your
disability. BUT it seems they may not accept all or most of my natural
supplements indicated by my doctor. They accept most pharmaceuticals, but
consider natural meds "alternative" and not "necessary" according to their
rules. It also seems that the determination as to what is acceptable IWRE
is decided on a case by case basis locally.

So--I'm asking if anyone knows about cases like this, what happens when you
appeal, and how they rule on this across the country. Seems odd, that in
the 21st century they finally accept MCS, respiratory illnesses, etc. as a
legit disability, but discount that the costly treatment, which necessarily
is non-pharmeuticeutical --is not legit!

I would appreciate hearing about any resources or experiences to help with
this.

Thanks,
Barri Boone
Santa Cruz, CA



------ End of Forwarded Message

Subject: Proposed power plant may pollute Hayward
From: "Joanne L Gardiner, Broker"
Date: Sun, March 11, 2007 12:20 am
To: "Joanne Gardiner"


To Hayward residents and business associates, I am sending you a
news article I just received. I have highlighted critical points.
The proposed power plant in Hayward is getting close to reality
unless you and I and other responsible residents stand up to the City
Council and the California Energy Commission. After you read this
article, I have some additional information.


Proposed power plant may pollute Hayward
By Matt O'Brien, STAFF WRITER
Inside Bay Area Article 03/10/2007

HAYWARD — Supporters of a proposed Hayward power plant expect to achieve an important victory this spring when the Bay Area Air Quality Management District releases a report that says the project meets environmental standards.

But that doesn't mean the gas-burning Eastshore Energy Center won't pollute Hayward's air.

Brian Lusher, an air district engineer, revealed this week that the Eastshore plant will meet all of the agency's "rules and regulations" because the plant developer, Texas-based Tierra Energy, can make up for the pollution it creates by buying credits to reduce pollution elsewhere.

"We're a regional agency so we try to take into account the regional effects," Lusher said.

Lusher's brief comments, revealed only after intense grilling by a Hayward city councilman during a crowded Tuesday hearing, marked the first time most Hayward residents knew anything about the credit program.

According to documents obtained Friday from the California Energy Commission, the commission's executive director, B.B. Blevins, has allowed Tierra to keep details of its proposed credit exchange confidential because the information is a potential "trade secret" that, if revealed, could damage the company's comparative advantage over rival developers.

Blevins, in a Dec. 21 letter to Tierra attorney Jane Luckhardt, wrote that it was "reasonable" and in the "public interest" for Tierra to keep the information classified.

But, he continued, it should only remain confidential "until that point when public participation in review of your proposed offsets becomes necessary."

Whether that public discussion has begun yet has been a point of contention in Hayward.

Officially, according to the Blevins' letter, it begins when the regional air quality district releases a preliminary determination on whether the Eastshore project complies with environmental standards. That report is scheduled to be released in April.

But as Hayward residents prepare for their fourth public hearing on the plant this year — one energy commission meeting in January, one Hayward Planning Commission hearing in February and two Hayward City Council hearings this month — some residents and local officials still feel left in the dark about the true impacts the plant is likely to have on the area.

Michael Toth, who lives less than a mile downwind from the Clawiter Road site where Tierra wants to build the plant, said the credit exchange means his neighborhood will bear an unfair level of pollution.

"The purchase of credit essentially allows a company to move pollution from one part of the Bay Area to another," Toth said. "I don't think the laws in this state have recognized the problems that can be created as an abuse of the credit system."

Gerard Clum, president of Life Chiropractic College West, located directly across the railroad tracks from the site, is also skeptical.

"I think the biggest thing from where I sit is with the particulate matter discharge," Clum said. "(Credits) are fine for the region, but it doesn't do much for Hayward."

The Hayward City Council is scheduled to vote on the proposed power plant on Tuesday. The majority appears strongly opposed to it and likely to shoot it down. But the council has been tasked to look mostly at land-use and zoning issues, not environmental concerns.

Greg Trewitt, a Tierra vice president and engineer, said credits will play an important role in the project's compliance, as it does with power plant projects throughout the state.

Trewitt said the chief concern Tierra must address is with fine particulate matter, which, unlike other problem pollutants, is typically a bigger problem during the winter. Eastshore will be a peaker plant, designed especially for summer periods of peak energy demand.

But Hayward and most of the surrounding region is already in a "nonattainment" status for particulate matter, meaning the pollution is already at levels considered unacceptable, according to the air district. Anything added to that mix must be mitigated.

Trewitt said that along with buying credits, the company is looking at paying for some kind of "fireplace retrofit" program for local residents.

The City Council will vote at 8 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, Council Chambers, 777 B St., Hayward.

State law gives responsibility over studying and regulating power plant emissions to the regional air district and the state energy commission. The commission, not local leaders, has final authority on whether Tierra gets a license to build the plant.

The energy commission has scheduled a five-hour "issue resolution workshop" beginning at 3 p.m. March 19, also at City Hall, in Room 2A.

And the developer, Tierra Energy, is holding a community meeting at 7 p.m. April 16 at Life Chiropractic College West, 25001 Industrial Blvd., Hayward.

All three meetings are open to the public.

Matt O'Brien can be reached at (510) 293-2473 or
mattobrien(AT)dailyreviewonline.com.

I hope you will attend these meetings and also write the city council
before next Tuesday. I have a page on my web site with the Mayor's and
council members contact information:
http://www.joannegardiner.com/ProposedPowerPlantinHayward.html

It is also essential to email your concerns to the California Energy
Commission at: PAO(AT)energy.state.ca.us since that agency is the final decision maker. The following link is to the California Energy
Commission's Public Adviser's Office contact page:
http://www.energy.ca.gov/public_adviser/index.html

This is such a critical issue I hope you will act on it now and send
emails to Hayward's Mayor and Councilmembers and also to the Energy
Commission. Please do not put off writing them.

After sending your emails, please forward this letter to all the people
you know who live in Hayward, do business in Hayward, or might be
concerned about the wind blowing contaminated air to their area.

Best regards,
Joanne
--
Joanne L. Gardiner, Broker, e-PRO Realtor®
Advantage Realty - 510-429-4800
Website: http://www.JoanneGardiner.com

"None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <beneficialbug@...>
> To: <BayCanaryGrapevine@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Sunday, March 04, 2007 11:36 PM
> Subject: Fw: A GLASS OF WATER, A MOTHER'S WORST FEAR
>
>
> > Digging through old emails to dig up some things we need to access 
for
> East
> > Bay Pesticide Alert's work, I came across this
 which I thought 
people on
> > this list might find useful.
> >
> > Max Ventura
> >
> > From several years ago:
> >
> > > >
> > > > A GLASS OF WATER, A MOTHER'S WORST FEAR
> > > >
> > > > Date: 020211
> > > > From: http://www.washingtonpost.com/
> > > >
> > > > IN HAMPTON ROADS, STUDIES OF MISCARRIAGES CAUSE CONCERN,
> > > > SPARK LAWSUITS
> > > >
> > > > By Anita Huslin, Washington Post Staff Writer, February 10, 
2002
> > > >
> > > >  Annette Spaven already had three children when she found out 
she
was
> > > > pregnant again four years ago.
> > > >
> > > >  She and her husband were surprised but pleased by the prospect
 
of
> > > > welcoming another child into their Chesapeake, Va., home. So 
when
she
> > > > suffered a miscarriage in the first trimester, they tried 
again.
> > > >
> > > >  Six months later, she lost another baby.
> > > >
> > > >  "I wondered if something was wrong with me," said Spaven, 38.
> > > >
> > > >  About the same time, two women on her block had miscarriages.
Across
> > > > town, a woman gave birth to a boy who died shortly after birth. 
For
> > > > more than a decade, they and others wondered why they'd 
suddenly
lost
> > > > their pregnancies.
> > > >
> > > >  Today, many are also wondering something else: Might they have 
lost
> > > > their babies simply because they drank tap water while they 
were
> > > >
 pregnant? It's a question that has roiled this booming port
community
> > > > ever since residents became aware of controversy surrounding
chemicals
> > > > in the public drinking supply. Now, 25 women are suing the 
city, and
> > > > nearly 170 more have filed their intentions to do so.
> > > >
> > > >  Fueling their fears are a growing number of studies that link 
birth
> > > > defects and miscarriages to chemicals that are produced when
chlorine,
> > > > used to purify drinking water, mixes with organic matter, such 
as
> > > > fertilizer in surface water.
> > > >
> > > >  Chemical and water industry officials maintain that the body 
of
> > > > scientific evidence linking so-called chlorination byproducts 
to
> > > > adverse birth effects is inconclusive.
> >
 > >
> > > >  "To have liability, in our opinion, you have to prove there's 
a
cause
> > > > and an effect," Chesapeake city attorney Ronald Hallman said. 
"I
> > > > haven't seen any study that has proven a causal connection."
> > > >
> > > >  In a statement last month, the Environmental Protection Agency
called
> > > > the issue of chlorination byproducts in drinking water "an 
important
> > > > health concern." The federal agency will be proposing new water
> > > > quality reporting requirements for utilities this summer and 
plans
to
> > > > fund further research.
> > > >
> > > >  Meanwhile, however, millions of Americans are unaware of what 
their
> > > > water utilities know: The levels of chlorination byproducts in 
their
> > > > drinking
 water often spike higher than the EPA's allowable 
annual
> > > > average.
> > > >
> > > >  This happens as well throughout the Washington area, utility
records
> > > > show, though the EPA does not require the information to be 
included
> > > > in regular water quality reports from utilities.
> > > >
> > > >  Chesapeake residents learned about the problem only when the 
city's
> > > > public health director issued a bulletin about it. And then 
more
> > > > stories from women like Spaven started to come out. And so did 
the
> > > > lawyers.
> > > >
> > > >  Now, the Hampton Roads city has become a test case for the 
nation.
> > > > Water utility operators across the country, including the 
Washington
> > > > Suburban Sanitary Commission, are
 watching to see what becomes 
of
the
> > > > lawsuits.
> > > >
> > > >  The women are alleging that the city did not adequately warn 
them
> > > > about potentially harmful levels of toxins in their water, 
sometimes
> > > > nearly 10 times higher than the danger level identified in the
largest
> > > > public health study to date.
> > > >
> > > >  Chesapeake documents obtained by the women's attorneys show 
that
the
> > > > city had seen significant spikes in chlorination byproducts 
since
the
> > > > early 1980s.
> > > >
> > > >  No comprehensive study of the city's miscarriage or birth 
defect
> > > > rates has ever been done, so it is impossible to draw a 
comparison
> > > > between the period when the byproducts were spiking and
 when 
they
were
> > > > not. Nationally, about one in six women suffer miscarriage,
according
> > > > to federal statistics. The first 25 women suing all suffered
> > > > miscarriages in the mid- to late 1990s. The 168 other cases 
date to
> > > > the 1980s. Altogether, attorneys are seeking nearly $1 billion 
in
> > > > damages.
> > > >
> > > >  "I just hope that . . . people will pay attention to what's 
going
on
> > > > in their cities," Spaven said. "No one should have to go 
through
what
> > > > we have."
> > > >
> > > > First Reports
> > > >
> > > >  Nancy Welch, the director of the Chesapeake Public Health
Department,
> > > > hadn't even heard of chlorination byproducts or the term
> > > > "trihalomethanes" - also
 known as THMs - before the city's 
public
> > > > utilities director came to her office one day in early February 
1998
> > > > with a problem.
> > > >
> > > >  The city was preparing to tear down two purifying towers at 
its
water
> > > > processing plant to make way for a system that would help solve
> > > > chronic water quality problems.
> > > >
> > > >  Seated near the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, the city for
> > > > yearsstruggled to manage the salt that rises with the tides. 
Until
it
> > > > built the two towers, it had also quietly grappled with the 
problem
of
> > > > THMs. Now, it was going to tear down the towers. Once that 
happened,
> > > > chlorine byproduct levels could rise precipitously, perhaps 
even
> > > > exceeding EPA limits,
 utility director Amar Dwarkanath said.
> > > >
> > > >  The city planned to ask for a waiver of EPA water quality
standards,
> > > > at least during this phase of construction, but it would need a
letter
> > > > from Welch supporting the request.
> > > >
> > > > And there was one more thing.
> > > >
> > > >  Dwarkanath gave Welch a copy of a report that was about to be
> > > > published in the medical journal Epidemiology.
> > > >
> > > >  It was a study done in California, where Department of Health
> > > > Services researchers followed more than 5,000 pregnant women. 
They
> > > > found that those who drank five or more glasses of tap water a 
day
> > > > containing 75 or more parts per billion of chlorination 
byproducts
> > > > were
 65 percent more likely to suffer a miscarriage. Pregnant 
women
> > > > are generally advised by their doctors to drink at least eight
eight-
> > > > ounce glasses of a water to avoid dehydration. And now 
Chesapeake
was
> > > > facing the very real possibility that its tap water would 
become
awash
> > > > with consistently high THMs, possibly even for months.
> > > >
> > > >  Welch examined the research closely, then called some 
colleagues
for
> > > > advice. Half said they would inform the public; half said they
> > > > wouldn't.
> > > >
> > > >  On March 24, 1998,Welch wrote a letter to Dwarkanath with her
> > > > conclusions, suggesting that the city ensure that pregnant 
women who
> > > > got their water from the Chesapeake plant use bottled water.
 On
March
> > > > 31, 1998, she sent a public health bulletin to family 
practitioners,
> > > > OB-GYNs, internists and the media, urging pregnant women who 
drink
> > > > five or more glasses of water a day to drink primarily bottled 
water
> > > > and to boil their tap water for a minute or install a tap 
filter.
> > > >
> > > >  Almost immediately, the phones started ringing. Worried 
pregnant
> > > > women called, and so did those who had lost babies, wondering 
aloud
if
> > > > the water might have been the reason.
> > > >
> > > >  Welch could not answer all of their questions. But, she said, 
she
> > > > believed the California study raised enough questions to 
warrant
> > > > warning the public about THMs. But there are many reasons
miscarriages
> >
 > > occur, she pointed out, and it's often difficult to pinpoint 
one.
> > > >
> > > >  "When there's a limited amount of research, you go with what 
you
> > > > have," she said. "I'll never apologize for informing the 
public."
> > > >
> > > >  But to determine whether THMs absolutely cause miscarriage or 
birth
> > > > defects, she said, "you've got to do more research . . . and 
that
> > > > takes time."
> > > >
> > > >  After a few weeks, Welch's phones quieted down and things at 
the
> > > > Chesapeake public health department got back to normal.
> > > >
> > > >  But in the community, people were sharing stories. Stories 
like
those
> > > > told by Marcy Shaffer, now 38, who lived in Chesapeake and gave
birth
> > > > to Peter
 just before Christmas in 1997.
> > > >
> > > >  He was born with just a bundle of nerve endings in his 
half-formed
> > > > skull. He lived for a couple of hours, long enough for her to 
wrap
him
> > > > in a white blanket and for her family to say their goodbyes.
> > > >
> > > >  About the time of Spaven's miscarriages, two neighbors across 
the
> > > > street also lost their babies. After carrying her baby for 8 
1/2
> > > > months, Shelley Rapada, now 22, gave birth to Haley Renee in 
the
> > > > spring of 1998, then buried her in a tiny ivory- colored casket 
at
the
> > > > foot of her grandmother's grave. Her best friend, Michelle 
Rapada,
now
> > > > 21, suffered two miscarriages that fall.
> > > >
> > > >  In conversations during lunch breaks,
 after church or over 
coffee
> > > > with a neighbor, more accounts were circulating. It would not 
be
long
> > > > before someone would try to piece it all together.
> > > >
> > > > Legal Implications
> > > >
> > > >  The cases started coming to Louis Napoleon "Mike" Joynes in 
the
same
> > > > way that most business arrives at his firm.
> > > >
> > > >  The Joynes & Gaides law office sits at a busy intersection 
near the
> > > > edge of Chesapeake, and the increasing traffic in what is the
fastest-
> > > > growing city in Virginia provides at least one new customer a 
week.
> > > >
> > > >  It was one of these clients, an auto accident victim, who 
mentioned
> > > > his wife's miscarriage to Joynes and asked: Could that have
 had
> > > > something to do with the city water?
> > > >
> > > >  Joynes, who had not paid close attention to the public health
> > > > bulletin, said he'd look into it.
> > > >
> > > >  So he called up a colleague at Willcox & Savage, an old 
Virginia
blue
> > > > blood firm with several lawyers who focus on environmental law. 
They
> > > > were familiar with THMs and the issues associated with them, so 
they
> > > > began researching the city's water situation.
> > > >
> > > >  "What we discovered was that the levels of THMs in Chesapeake 
were
> > > > some of the highest we'd ever heard of - 700, 800 parts per
billion,"
> > > > said Gary Bryant, who specializes in environmental litigation.
> > > >
> > > >  He had spoken to some
 experts in environmental health who were
> > > > familiar with the research on the issue and their response was 
the
> > > > same: "They were pretty much shocked by this," Bryant said. 
"All of
> > > > the scientific reports showing health impacts from THMs 
involved
> > > > levels much lower than what we were seeing here."
> > > >
> > > >  But little of that information has reached the public 
anywhere. In
> > > > Montgomery County, officials recently started asking questions 
about
> > > > THMs at a special hearing called after utility data obtained by
> > > > Environmental Working Group, a chemical industry watchdog, 
revealed
> > > > THM spikes in water supplied by WSSC.
> > > >
> > > >  Officials at WSSC, which provides water and sewer services to 
1.6
> > >
 > million residents in the Washington area, acknowledged that the
spikes
> > > > were a concern but noted that the utility continues to meet EPA
water
> > > > quality standards.
> > > >
> > > >  The Chlorine Chemistry Council, a national trade group, 
maintains
> > > > that the research to date "has been inadequate to definitively
> > > > demonstrate an association" between THMs and birth defects,
> > > > miscarriages and stillbirths.
> > > >
> > > >  In Chesapeake, lawyers wondered just how many women could have 
been
> > > > affected. In July 2000, Joynes & Gaides started running 
television
and
> > > > radio ads seeking women who had suffered miscarriages or 
delivered
> > > > babies with birth defects.
> > > >
> > > >  And the phones
 started ringing again.
> > > >
> > > > 'All This Pain'
> > > >
> > > >  Annette Spaven was one of the hundreds of women who called. 
The ads
> > > > didn't say anything about Chesapeake water, but she wondered if 
that
> > > > was behind it all.
> > > >
> > > >  She had grown up in Chesapeake, then moved away after getting
> > > > married. In 1993, after moving back to Chesapeake, the couple 
had
> > > > their third and, they thought, last child. When Spaven 
unexpectedly
> > > > became pregnant in 1997, something wasn't right.
> > > >
> > > >  She started cramping and bleeding one morning, so she went to 
the
> > > > hospital, where doctors ordered an ultrasound. The results 
showed
> > > > simply a mass of tissue growing in her
 womb, with none of the 
early
> > > > signs of a baby that they would have expected.
> > > >
> > > >  Hours later, she suffered a miscarriage.
> > > >
> > > >  Later that year, she got pregnant again. This time, she said, 
she
> > > > worked very hard to make sure she did everything right, 
including
> > > > drinking more than the recommended eight glasses of water a 
day.
When
> > > > she had cravings, she ate ice - lots of it - from the ice-maker 
in
her
> > > > freezer.
> > > >
> > > >  In early 1998, she miscarried again.
> > > >
> > > >  "That was it for me," she said. "I wasn't going to try again."
> > > >
> > > >  Then, when the television ads came out, she started wondering 
and
> > > > turned to the
 Internet for answers. What she found infuriated 
her.
> > > >
> > > >  "I couldn't believe it. I'd sit there every night and tell my
> > > > husband, 'Look at this stuff.' All these people, all this 
pain."
> > > >
> > > >  The first lawsuit was filed last April, and a hearing date has 
been
> > > > scheduled for September. City attorneys are trying to block the 
case
> > > > by arguing that the plaintiff filed her lawsuit more than two 
years
> > > > after her miscarriage, too late for what the law requires.
> > > >
> > > >  A court date for Spaven's case has not yet been set. In some 
ways,
> > > > she said, she believes the outcome of her case is unimportant. 
When
> > > > you've lost two pregnancies, nothing will change that. But her 
story
> > > > and
 those of other women should be heard, she said, to warn the
public
> > > > about these once-obscure chlorination byproducts.
> > > >
> > > >  "You just take for granted . . . that you never have to
second-guess
> > > > what's in your water," she said.
> > > >
> > > >  In January 1999, Spaven moved to Virginia Beach. Ten months 
later,
> > > > she delivered Kerrigan, a healthy baby girl.
> > > >
> > > > * * *
> > > >
> > > > (C) 2002 The Washington Post Company

> > > >

"It's the same stuff that comes out of a tailpipe or a smokestack," said Jerry Martin, a spokesman for the California Air Resources Board. "We're talking hundreds of different kinds of products, stuff everyone uses. It's almost one secret area of emissions that you don't hear about and no one talks about."

Chemicals in Home a Big Smog Source

 GARY POLAKOVIC / LA Times 9mar03 http://www.mindfully.org/Air/2003/Home-Chemicals-Smog9mar03.htm

[E]ven before the chemicals escape into

the environment, they contribute to indoor

air pollution, which typically is more

dangerous than smog because the

chemicals concentrate nearer to people.

Cleansers, cosmetics and other products pump 100 tons of pollutants daily into the Southland's air, ranking second to tailpipe emissions, studies show.

Ordinary household products such as cleansers, cosmetics and paints are now the Los Angeles region's second-leading source of air pollution, after auto tailpipe emissions, air quality officials say.

Regulators have long known that smog-forming chemicals escape with every squirt of antiperspirant, each bubble of detergent and every spritz of aerosol hair spray. And they have been controlling some products' emissions for years, with mixed success. But new research shows that products common in kitchens, bathrooms and garages contribute more to Southern California's smog problem than previously thought.

"It's the same stuff that comes out of a tailpipe or a smokestack," said Jerry Martin, a spokesman for the California Air Resources Board. "We're talking hundreds of different kinds of products, stuff everyone uses. It's almost one secret area of emissions that you don't hear about and no one talks about."

The offending items include detergents, cleaning compounds, glues, polishes, floor finishes, cosmetics, perfume, antiperspirants, rubbing alcohol, room fresheners, car wax, paint and lawn care products.

On a typical day, about 108 tons of smog-forming fumes are emitted from such products used in houses and small businesses in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The South Coast Air Quality Management District released those estimates last month as part of a new comprehensive plan to cut smog and haze in the region. ...

COMMON CHEMICALS

Smog-fighters focus on glue, hair spray ...

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Spencer Hunt

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

http://www.dispatch.com/print_template.php?story=dispatch/2007/01/28/20070128-A1-02.html

Cars and power plants are the prime culprits behind Ohio's smog problems.

But the state's latest effort to clear the unhealthful haze from summer skies focuses on such products as hair sprays, deodorants, furniture polish, glass cleaners and even urinal cakes.

Estimates indicate that these products release about 100 tons of smog-forming chemicals into Ohio's air every day.

Throw in cars and mowers, gas stations, dry cleaners and paint, and the amount grows by more than tenfold, says the Lake Michigan Air Directors Consortium, which offers technical assistance on air-pollution issues to officials in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Smog can damage lungs, spurring asthma attacks and worsening lung diseases.

Faced with a federal mandate to reduce smog, environmental agencies in Ohio and several other states are thinking about ordering manufacturers to cut back on these chemicals.

"Consumer products are a significant contributor to smog," said Christopher Recchia, director of the Ozone Transport Commission, which helped draft proposed product limits for 12 eastern and northeastern states and its home base of Washington, D.C.

A manufacturers group, the Consumer Specialty Products Association, said that although it won't object to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's plan, the proposed rules won't significantly clean the air.

"You're not going to see much difference," said D. Douglas Fratz, the association's vice president of scientific and technical affairs. "We are actually a very tiny percent of (smog) generation."

Mike Koerber, director of the Lake Michigan Air Directors Consortium, said the new limits would reduce product pollutants to about 81 tons per day.

The chemicals, called "volatile organic compounds," along with nitrogen oxides released by cars, power plants and factories, form smog when they are cooked in the air on hot, stagnant days.

Nitrogen oxide released by factories and power plants in Ohio has dropped from a daily average of 1,015 tons in 2002 to 697 tons in 2005, the most recent year for which figures are available.

But in 2004, the U.S. EPA declared that 33 Ohio counties failed a new health standard for smog and gave Ohio until June 2009 to pass.

The Ohio EPA has since asked the U.S. EPA to take 20 counties, including Franklin, Delaware, Fairfield, Knox, Licking and Madison, off the list.

Officials said new cars that pollute less and the reduction in powerplant emissions have helped reduce smog in central Ohio and elsewhere.

And they say that a reduction in chemicals in consumer products would help keep Columbus under the smog limit and reduce unhealthful levels in Cincinnati and Cleveland.

Washington, D.C., and states including New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia have proposed the same product limits, which California already enforces.

"We will ultimately be the first (state) to go ahead and implement this, other than California," said Bill Spires, a manager in the Ohio EPA's air-pollution control division.

Ohio's proposed rules, available for public comment through Monday, would make manufacturers reduce or eliminate smog-forming chemicals by January 2008.

Many of the proposed cutbacks are aimed at aerosol products - everything from glues and engine degreasers to insecticides and hair sprays.

Koerber said the cuts would be more effective when combined with Ohio's other plans to require cleaner paints and gasoline.

"You need to package all of these reductions together," he said.

Fratz said many products sold in Ohio already meet California's standards.

"To a large degree, they are going to get the benefits of these reductions whether they adopt it or not," he said.

Ohio EPA spokeswoman Heidi Griesmer said the proposed rules would cover products sold here but not in California.

Until then, "The rest of the U.S. isn't necessarily getting the cleanest products," Griesmer said.

shunt@... 

*       Smog-makers

http://www.dispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2007/01/28/20070128-A4-06.html

Air fresheners (aerosol)

Carburetor and choke cleaners

Engine degreasers

Fabric protectants

Furniture polishes

Hair sprays

Hair mousses

Insecticides (crawling bugs)

Insecticides (flying bugs)

Nail-polish removers

Antiperspirants (aerosol)

Deodorants (aerosol)

Sources: Federal Register, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency

People with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities for a study
Reply to: comm-284559795@...
Date: 2007-02-25, 3:32PM

Hi, we are a group of Stanford Students looking to complete a short study of a person with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities. We would be observing your lifestyle and helping to target needs that you might have in coping with your illness, and watching for solutions you've found. We would likely need to follow you for a few hours while you do normal daily activities, and then ask you a few questions.

If you are interested, please contact Capra at 503-407-4714

Original URL: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/com/284559795.html
-------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------

I was appalled to read in the March "O" Magazine (Oprah's) that a study on all kinds of cosmetics had been done via contacting environmental toxicologists, dermatologists, etc., etc. and they concluded that cosmetics of all kinds -- including perfume (!) -- were not toxic to humans!!

Capable of causing injury or death, especially by chemical means; poisonous.

To: wsmcsn@yahoogroups.com
From: Don R Paladin <sunergos@...>
Date: Mon, 5 Feb 2007 08:46:46 -0800
Subject: [WSMCSN] Fw: Your Work Made Television!

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Stacey Gonzalez <sgonzalez@chej.org>
To: <sunergos@juno.com>
Date: Mon, 5 Feb 2007 06:20:44 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Your Work Made Television!
Message-ID: <4219733.1170685244461.JavaMail.root@localhost>

Dear Friends,
Your work has made national television!
Tune in to NBC tomorrow night, Tuesday, February 6th, at 10 pm EST to
watch Law and Order: SVU.

This new episode, "Loophole" is a fictional story based on the CHEERS
study, which each of you contributed to halting in its tracks. In the
episode, a fictional chemical company tests several children and their
families with a dangerous organophosphate pesticide. The show will deal
with such issues as environmental injustices, inadequate pesticide
regulation, and the lack of regulation and public awareness on the long
term health impacts of toxic exposures.

Without each of you taking action and contributing to the national outcry
to ban testing pesticides on pregnant women and children, the immoral
actions of EPA and pesticide companies would still be putting our most
vulnerable at risk. Thank you for your great work.

In solidarity,
Stacey Gonzalez
Center for Health, Environment and Justice

You are subscribed to this list as sunergos@juno.com. Click here to
unsubscribe, or send email to
unsubscribe.145109.120853603.1421764394965183618-sunergos_juno.com@en.gro
undspring.org.
Our postal address is
150 S. Washington Street, Suite 300
Falls Church, Virginia 22046-2921
United States

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

"Effects of Odors in Asthma" 

Chang Shim, MD and M. Henry Williams, Jr., MD,

Pulmonary Division, Department of Medicine,

Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx NY,

The American Journal of Medicine, Volume 80, January 1986.

In that study they "carefully distinguished between unpleasant emotional reaction to the odors and respiratory symptoms." In conclusion they wrote: "From a practical standpoint, sensitive asthmatic patients should be advised to eliminate odors from their environment as much as possible. They usually have done so on their own."

We have. But, in a scented workplace, in healthcare facilities . . . anywhere, we must breathe the air polluted by the superfluous fragrance chemicals used by others. -- barb http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=3079951&dopt=Abstract

Air Resources Board and the University of California, Berkeley

*       Household cleaners and air fresheners emit toxic pollutants

May 25, 2006, 12:33, Reviewed by: Dr. Priya Saxena

"Their results indicate that we need to look beyond the directly emitted compounds."

By UC Berkeley, When used indoors under certain conditions, many common household

cleaners and air fresheners emit toxic pollutants at levels that may lead to health risks,

according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

http://www.rxpgnews.com/research/environment/pollution/article_4312.shtml

   . . . and that led to . . .

Principal Investigator: William W. Nazaroff

University of California, Berkeley

April 2006

ARB Contract No. 01-336 (Full Report)

ABSTRACT

When cleaning products and air fresheners are used indoors, occupants are exposed to

airborne chemicals, potentially leading to health risks. Indoor air pollutant exposures

owing to cleaning product and air freshener use depend on emissions from products,

dynamic behavior of chemical species, and human factors. A series of experiments was

conducted to investigate volatile organic compound emissions, concentrations, and

reactive chemistry associated with the household use of cleaning products and air

fresheners. Research focused on two common classes of ingredients in cleaning products

and air fresheners: ethylene-based glycol ethers, which are classified as toxic air

contaminants, and terpenes, which react rapidly with ozone. A shelf-survey of retail

outlets led to the selection of 21 products whose chemical composition was characterized.

Among the criteria used to select these products were ready availability through

California retail outlets and, for the majority of products, expectation that they contained

ethylene-based glycol ethers, terpenes and related compounds, or both. Of the 17

cleaning products characterized, four contained substantial levels of d-limonene (4-25% by

mass), three contained terpenoids that are characteristic of pine oil, six contained

substantial levels of ethylene-based glycol ethers (0.8-10% by mass), and five contained

less than 0.2% of any of the target analytes. Xylene in one product was the only other

toxic air contaminant detected. Among the four air fresheners characterized, three

contained substantial quantities (9-14% by mass) of terpene hydrocarbon and terpene

alcohol constituents, with linalool being the most abundant. Six of the 21 products were

investigated in simulated-use experiments in which emissions and concentrations of

primary constituents were measured. Cleaning products that contain 2- butoxyethanol

as an active ingredient produced one-hour-average concentrations of 300 to 2,300 µg/m 3

immediately after simulated typical use in a room-sized chamber. For cleaning products

that contain d-limonene as an active ingredient, corresponding levels were 1,000 to

6,000 µg/m 3 . Application of a pine-oil based cleaner produced one-hour-average

concentrations of 10-1300 µg/m 3 for terpene hydrocarbons and terpene alcohols.

Reactive chemistry was studied by exposing constituents of three products to ozone, both

in a bench-scale chamber and during simulated use. Prominent products of the

reaction of terpenes with ozone included formaldehyde (a toxic air contaminant), hydroxyl

radical, and secondary organic aerosol (a form of fine particulate matter). Incorporating

the new experimental data, exposures were estimated for several simulated use

scenarios. Under ordinary circumstances, exposures to 2-butoxyethanol, formaldehyde,

and secondary organic aerosol are not expected to be as high as guideline values solely

as a result of cleaning product or air freshener use. However, ordinary use could lead to

exposure levels of similar magnitude as guideline values. Scenario model results

suggest that exposure levels could exceed guideline values under exceptional yet plausible

conditions, such as cleaning a large surface area in a small room. The results of this

study provide important information for understanding the inhalation exposures to

certain air pollutants that can result from the use of common household products.

http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/abstracts/01-336.htm

Let us look at the proliferation of perfumed products, based on information from The Fragrance Foundation®, Inc.

*       1940 - 1950:  19 fragrances were introduced for women, four for men

*       1950 - 1960:  30 fragrances introduced for women, six for men

*       1960 - 1970:  46 fragrances introduced for women, 31 for men

*       1970 - 1980: 197 fragrances introduced for women and 90 for men.

My tallies for the years 1980 - 1989 and 1990 - 1999 are based on the info provided by The Fragrance Foundation®, Inc.

*       1980 - 1989: 281 fragrances introduced for women, 181 for men.

*       1990 - 1999: 636 fragrances introduced for women, 309 for men.

*       2000 -

Fragrance launches sources:

1940 - 2001 -- http://www.fragrance.org/launches1940_content.html . . . now, through the Wayback Machine at http://web.archive.org/web/20021228213050/http://www.fragrance.org/launches1940_content.html

2001 -- [Launches by name] http://www.fragrance.org/launches2001_content.html . . .

http://web.archive.org/web/20021228011904/www.fragrance.org/launches2001_content.html

2002 -- http://www.fragrance.org/launches2002_content.html  66 women's perfumes; 30 men's perfumes [Launches by name]

2003 -- [If anyone has these numbers, I'd appreciate being able to fill in this blank. -- barb]

2004 -- [If anyone has these numbers, I'd appreciate being able to fill in this blank. -- barb]

2005 --  http://www.fragrance.org/news.html 143 women's scents; 61 men's fragrances

2006 - 260 women's perfumes launched in 2006 - 106 men's perfumes from http://www.fragrance.org/news.html

2007 -- Already, by Feb. 1, 2007 11 women's scents and one scent for men.

 AND JUST CHECKING THE NIGHT OF VALENTINE'S DAY, Feb 14, 2007, there are now 50 women's scents and 22 men's scents released. See http://www.fragrance.org/news.html

Forwarded...

Thank-you for your support of recognition of MCS as a physiological
condition.  We ask for your help in one final show of support.  Our
letters petitioning for recognition of MCS to the AMA, CDC, NIEHS, and
WHO have all been received by the agencies.  We would now like to ask
the community to respond by contacting each agency to show your
support and ask for recognition by telephone, fax, mail, or e-mail.
Nothing will get attention like lots of calls.  If you are willing and
able to help, I've provided all the contact information and a sample
script below for your convenience.  I've tried to include "free" ways
to contact the organizations as much as possible via 800 numbers and
e-mail, however if you are able a printed letter would have some
impact as well.  Thank you in advance for your support.  We are still
accepting signatures for the accompanying community petition as well.
  See www.mcs-america.org for more information.  Permission granted to
forward this message.

Our petition Copies as Mailed:
www.mcs-america.org/FAMA.pdf
www.mcs-america.org/CDCL.pdf
www.mcs-america.org/CDCWA.pdf
www.mcs-america.org/NIEHS.pdf
www.mcs-america.org/WHO.pdf


Sample Script:

"Hi, my name is xxx and I'm calling in regards to the petition you
recently received from MCS America.  I wanted to voice my support for
MCS recognition as a physical condition and ask what your plans are to
accommodated this request."



Contact Information:

Dr. William G. Plested, III, MD, President

Board of Trustees
American Medical Association
515 N. State Street
Chicago, IL 60610
312-464-5000

800-621-8335

http://webapps.ama-assn.org/contactus/contactusMain.do;jsessionid=212B6AAF3BD0FE\
F22DE7B04857CA232D


Dr. Julie Louise Gerberding, M.D., M.P.H., Director

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1600 Clifton Road

Atlanta, GA 30333

1-404-639-7000

1-800-311-3435

http://www.cdc.gov/netinfo.htm



Donald E. Shriber, JD, MPH, Director, CDC Washington

CDC Washington

200 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 746G

Washington, DC 20201

Phone: 202-690-8598
Fax: 202-690-7519



David A. Schwartz, M.D., Director

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

P.O. Box 12233, Research Triangle Park

NC 27709-2233
Phone: 1-919-541-3201
FAX: 1-919-541-2260

webcenter@...



Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General

WHO Liaison Office in Washington

1889 F Street, N.W., Room 369
Washington, D.C. 20006
United States of America
Telephone: 1-202-974-3299
Facsimile: 1-202-974-3789
World Headquarters Office
Avenue Appia 20
1211 Geneva 27
Switzerland
Telephone: (+ 41 22) 791 21 11
Facsimile (fax): (+ 41 22) 791 3111
info@...

Daniel Epstein (Washington D.C., USA)
WHO Regional Office for the Americas
1-202-974-3459
epsteind@...



Thank You!




Bonita Poulin

Canadian Coordinator
GLOBAL RECOGNITION CAMPAIGN
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
and other Chemically Induced Illnesses, Diseases & Injury
affecting civilians and military personnel
www.mcs-global.org
More coordinators needed!

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- End forwarded message ---

----- Original Message -----

From: Betty Kreeger

To: Pariahs ; baycanarygrapevine@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, February 11, 2007 9:59 AM

Subject: [BayCanaryGrapevine] Smoking Ban - How About a Fragrance Ban?

A New Hampshire reporter puts the word out about the dangers of fragrances.

http://tinyurl. com/3yfvk2

N.H. Smoking ban is only first step.
A Telegraph Column By Joe Konopka

Published: Sunday, February 11, 2007

 

So then, a new law creating a smoking ban in New Hampshire is a virtual certainty under the Democratic-controlled legislature. That’ll make a lot of people happy, but why not take it one step further?

Now that passage is a foregone conclusion, it’s only logical to start working on the next phase, which is scent control. For those who don’t know, this is a smoldering problem.

For too long now, individuals who pollute the air with fragrance have discriminated against chemical-sensitive people. These victims need relief. The anti-smoking law is the starting point; it sets the precedent.

Surely, if the government can protect people from tobacco smoke, it can do the same for those who suffer from fragrance harassment. That’s only fair, isn’t it?

Consider for a moment the grief through which chemical-sensitive people go. The sickness from exposure to scents sometimes lasts for days. These effects can be so debilitating that the medical establishment is finally taking multiple-chemical sensitivity seriously. It had previously considered the condition a mental disorder. Now, it’s been recognized and established as an illness under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Allergic reactions, migraines and asthma attacks can be triggered by chemical compositions in scented products. Indeed, the Asthma Society of Canada has listed perfumes as a symptom trigger for asthma. Some studies indicate scents can trigger asthma attacks in 72 percent of sufferers.

Certainly, the problem is being addressed in other vicinities. Halifax, Nova Scotia, is the leader in these efforts. In 2000 it banned the use of all scents from public buildings. Shortly thereafter, Gary Falkenham, a 17-year-old high-school student at the time, almost went to jail after an aroma-sensitive teacher complained that he’d repeatedly flouted the policy by wearing copious amounts of Dippity Doo hair gel and Aqua Velva deodorant.

Constable Scott Manning, the RCMP officer investigating criminal charges warned him, “If her [the teacher’s] reaction was severe enough, you could actually even look at an assault charge.”

The teenager was stunned. However, charges were dropped after the story became national news in Canada.

Regardless, in Ottawa City, Ottawa, similar action is being debated. Hospitals in St. John’s, Newfoundland, are also taking steps to ban scented products.

In the United States, the city counsel of Berkley, Calif., is working out the verbiage of a policy to help people who have multiple-chemical sensitivities. The city’s Commission on Disability stated some people may be “seriously harmed” by scented products. That’s important. This is one of the cutting-edge areas of the country in which smoking bans first originated.

Undoubtedly, some people still may wonder about medical evidence for chemical sensitivity. After all, there’s no direct proof that scented products cause the problems observed in victims. No one can point to a person and say for sure that a specific scented product triggered his or her asthma or allergic attack. The evidence is all statistical and circumstantial, but that’s no longer a disqualifier.

Claims against second-hand tobacco smoke are based on the same type of evidence. Anyone at the Cancer Society can tell you that evidence of its dangers is statistical. No one has ever provided empirical evidence conclusively proving that the death of any one individual was directly caused by second-hand smoke.

Instead, evidence was derived from studies of non-smokers who contracted smoking-related illness while extensively in the presence of someone who did smoke. With no other causation, the conclusion that second-hand smoke is to blame is based on scientific probability. Thus, in all fairness, that standard should be applied to chemical sensitivity.

Unfortunately, some of the same people who ardently pursue a smoking ban are dubious about chemical sensitivity. That may be attributable to the probability that they’re perfume abusers. It’s not so easy accepting responsibility for a health risk when it’s one’s own behavioral preference that must be eliminated.

Nevertheless, how would you like to be the person who goes into a restaurant and gets sick because a perfume abuser is in denial about chemical sensitivity? What about service industry employees who suffer from reactions to fragrance? Shouldn’t they be given the same consideration as those whom we protect from tobacco smoke?

Government should also protect those who walk by perfume counters, those who are victimized by odors of supermarket cleaning-supply isles, those office workers who are forced to tolerate the perfume abuse of their co-workers, and restaurant personnel who must endure combined odors. Aren’t these people entitled to equal protection under the law?

Thanks to the precedent set by the anti-smoking bill and ADA recognition, that’s now possible. This is an opportunity to rid the state of odorous concoctions before ADA lawsuits do so.

Let’s face the truth. Many airborne elements have the same carcinogenic properties as tobacco smoke. Yet, none spark condemnation more vociferously than tobacco smoke. Why?

Although supporters won’t admit it, I suspect the real reason tobacco smoke is being banned is because it stinks. Then again, if ban proponents really are driven by health concerns, why not be consistent and clear the air completely?

Joe Konopka is a technical writer who lives in Hudson. He can be reached at stonewillow@....

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

…NEWS FROM ONFCI

FOR LEAD & OTHER HEAVY METALS

AVAILABLE DURING RESEARCH PROJECT

From: "Ecology Center"
To:
Sent: Friday, February 02, 2007 2:41 PM
Subject: West Berkeley Air Meeting


> Attend a community meeting next Wednesday, February 7th to discuss
> Pacific Steel Casting Company's emissions from their plant in West
> Berkeley. Please come with your concerns and questions!
>
> Wednesday, February 7, 2007
>
> Community Meeting on Pacific Steel Casting
>
> Let the Berkeley Mayor and City Council know you want a stop to
> Pacific Steel Casting's pollution! Our community deserves clean air &
> environmental justice. It is important for residents to show up and
> express their concerns about the ongoing pollution and violations at
> PSC. If you smell the odor from PSC, call to complain: 800-334-ODOR
> and come to this meeting! Members of the West Berkeley Alliance for
> Clean Air and Safe Jobs ( http://www.westberkeleyalliance.org/ )
> will be on hand. Other invitees include representatives from the Bay
> Area Air Quality Management District, and Pacific Steel.
>
> Time: 7pm.
> Location: West Berkeley Senior Center, 1900 6th St., @ Hearst, Berkeley.
> Info: 415-248-5010.
>
>
> --
> Beck Cowles
> Information Program Manager
>
> Ecology Center
> 2530 San Pablo Ave
> Berkeley, CA 94702
> www.ecologycenter.org
> 510-548-2220 x233
>
> The Ecology Center is a membership organization providing
> environmental information and direct services to promote sustainable
> living and a healthy, socially just world. Please support this
> community resource for the environment by becoming a member or
> making a donation. Support our work on-line at
> http://www.ecologycenter.org/donate
>
>

Hi all,

Finally, some training for some medical people (see below).

Also, anyone here have information you might pass on about Ponesterase,
which is an enzyme people can be missing? When there it should help
metabolize toxins?

Thanks,
Maxina Ventura

----- Original Message -----
From: "Barbara Wilkie" <wilworks@...>
To: <wilworks@...>
Sent: Monday, January 29, 2007 12:07 PM
Subject: Fragrance Free! Creating a Safe Health Care Environment"


> With Janet Brown's permission, this may be shared far and wide . . .
>
> Best wishes,
> barb wilkie
> EHN president emerita
> www.ehnca.org
> ============
>
> NEWS FOR NURSES
>
> (And Other Health Professionals)
>
> NEW ONLINE COURSE FOR CE CREDIT FROM MNA:
> "Fragrance Free! Creating a Safe Health Care Environment"
>
> Course Description:  Chemical fragrances may seem like a natural part
> of modern American life, but in fact, they are anything but natural.
> These petroleum-based products, many of which contain known
> carcinogens, are produced with virtually no regulation by the FDA,
> and their widespread use is turning the modern health care
> environment-and the rest of the world-into Chemical Soup.  Fragrance
> Free! looks at the hidden costs of chemical fragrance use in the
> health care industry, including the growth of allergies
> and potentially debilitating conditions such as chemical sensitivity.
>
> The course discusses how to recognize the beginnings of chemical
> sensitivity, while offering alternatives to fragranced produces and common
> sense steps to reduce chemical fragrances in the health care environment.
>
> Introduction:  Though we seldom give them much thought, fragrances pervade
> our lives.  We wear perfumes and colognes to make ourselves more
appealing.
> We wash our clothes in scented detergents and household cleaning products
> are full of smell-pine and lemon, just to name two.  But what goes into
> them? It turns out that most of these fragrances are synthetic chemicals,
> introduced into our environment with only minimal safety testing.  Many of
> the ingredients of these chemical fragrances are known to have negative
> health effects.  Respiratory and nervous system illnesses rise right along
> with the use of chemical fragrances.
>
> Learning Objectives:  The goal of this program is to ensure a safe and
> therapeutic environment for both patient and nurse to interact in. The
> elimination of fragrance is a choice the nurse can make to help ensure a
> healthier environment for both patients and workers.  On completion of
this
> program, you should be able to:
>
> 1.      Identify the most common chemicals used in fragrance products
> 2.      Identify adverse reactions to scented and fragrance products
> 3.      Define the concept of the "Chemical Soup" in the air we breathe
> at
> work and at home
> 4.      Describe steps that can be taken to reduce reactions in
> chemically
> sensitive people
>
> Accreditation:  This online continuing nursing education activity is
> provided by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, which is accredited as a
> provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses
> Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.
>
> Program Requirements:  To successfully complete this program and receive
> contact hours, you must read the entire program, take and pass the
> Post-Test, and complete the Program Evaluation. To pass the Post-Test, you
> must achieve a score of 80% or above.
>
> Eligibility:  Anyone can take the credit and convert to their disciplined
> area of study.  (For example, LPNs are using it).  The credits are good
> throughout the nation.
>
> NOTE:  Congratulations to our own TIP Board member, Chris Pontus, M.S.,
> COHN-S, CCM, Health Educator with the Massachusetts Nurses Association,
for
> her hard work on preparing this course!
>
> TO ACCESS THE COURSE:  To register go to http://www.courseserver.com/mna/
> and click on "REGISTER".  The subscription code for members is mna001,
> non-Members is mna002, and students is mna003.  Fill out all of the fields
> in the form and press submit.  This information is also listed on the
> Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) website at
> www.massnurses.org/ce/onlineCE.htm  For more information, contact the
> Division of Health and Safety at 781-830-5723.
> UPDATE:  INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY -
> ACCESSIBILITY POLICIES FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES
>
> In cooperation with the RI Commission on Disabilities, TIP introduced
> legislation in 2006 to require the RI Dept. of Health to establish minimum
> accessibility standards for indoor environmental quality in public
buildings
> and necessary services.  It would include fragrance-free policies,
cleaning
> products, pest control, low VOC materials, in hospitals, nursing homes,
> schools, day care, etc.  Although the bill did not pass last year, we were
> able to obtain support for a Resolution addressing some of our concerns.
> Also, the RI Dept. of Health representative at the hearings mentioned an
> educational campaign as an option.  We intend to follow up on that - if we
> can cooperate with DOH and others to inform health care professionals and
> the public about household chemicals and indoor air concerns, it would be
a
> great blessing!  Our Hispanic Health Education initiative, below, has been
> the first step in a broader campaign for that purpose.
>
> HISPANIC/LATINO HEALTH EDUCATION INITIATIVE
>
> A Collaborative Effort to Provide Information to Spanish Speakers on
Toxics
> in Everyday Life & Healthier Alternatives
>
> Background:  There is a lack of information and materials being provided
in
> Spanish to Rhode Islanders about the many toxic chemicals in everyday life
> and products and on healthier alternatives.  Those who are not fluent in
> English are thus unaware of many factors that can affect their health and
> that of their families - and how to protect themselves.
>
> Strategy:  At this time, we do not have available bilingual resource
people
> familiar with the concerns and information needed to carry out health
> education on this topic.  Also, we believe that those already working in
the
> Hispanic community, especially those providing health-related services,
are
> the best persons to carry out this additional outreach.    Therefore, it
> is
> our aim to provide to these workers the information and training they need
> to add toxics education to their programs.  For this purpose we will:
>
> 1.Translate into Spanish or find through our research informational
> materials in Spanish about toxic chemicals in everyday life and products
and
> healthier alternatives - including cosmetics, cleaners and pesticides.
> Health problems connected with these substances, such as asthma, learning
> disabilities, allergies and cancer will be covered by the articles chosen.
>
> 2.Establish a relationship with several organizations providing health
> education and other services to Hispanics in RI and arrange to offer
> training for individuals working with them to offer toxics information as
> part of their programs. 3.  Bring resource people from Massachusetts to
> assist with the training, and provide the RI organizations with the
> materials to use in their follow-up with their constituencies.
>
> Partners:  We have called the RI DOH Office of Minority Health about this
> project, and they sent us a list of Minority Health Promotion Centers,
> highlighting those that serve significant numbers of Hispanics.  We
> contacted the latter.  Interest in receiving and offering this
environmental
> health information was expressed at Center for Hispanic Policy & Advocacy
> (CHISPA), Progreso Latino, Genesis Center and Women's & Infants Hospital
> (which does extensive training of various health professionals as well as
> educating Spanish-speaking clients).  We are gratified by the response so
> far, and believe that several more organizations will become involved. We
> have already distributed some materials through these partners.   We
> have
> spoken with people in several Massachusetts organizations that give
> presentations (some to Hispanics) on such topics as green cleaning, the
> Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, and pesticide concerns - including MA Clean
> Water Action, MA Breast Cancer Coalition & the Regional Environmental
> Council in Worcester.  Indications are that they are willing to help us
with
> the proposed training in RI, subject to scheduling convenience and
personnel
> availability.
>
> Resources & Training:  Interested health professionals, especially health
> educators and nurses, are invited to keep informed on the progress of this
> project and to receive resource materials when available.  We expect to
form
> an ad hoc advisory group to help us determine details such as which
articles
> to translate, and the time, place and program for the training event.
>
>
> FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THESE PROJECTS, CONTACT LIBERTY GOODWIN, TIP
> DIRECTOR, AT:  TEL. 401-351-9193, OR E-MAIL: liberty@...
>
> Janet Brown
> Partner Coordinator
> Hospitals for a Healthy Environment
> PO Box 3366
> Amherst, MA 01004
> 413/253-0254
> janet.brown@...
> www.h2e-online.org
>
> Janet Brown is a member of the Green Guide for Health Care (GGHC) Steering
> Committee.  For more information, visit www.gghc.org.
> --
> --
> It IS the combinations of chemicals,
> states UC Professor Tyrone Hayes
> in Oakland Tribune article about pesticides.
>
> It IS the environment states
> Breast Cancer Action and Breast Cancer Fund
> in an Oakland Tribune article about breast cancer.
>
> It IS the combination of fragrance chemicals,
> as well as individual petrochemically derived chemicals,
> state Betty Bridges, RN (FPIN) and Barb Wilkie (EHN)
> since petitioning the FDA May 11, 1999.
> Write to the FDA . . . tell them to protect your health
> by regulating the flavors and fragrance industry.
> Put Docket Number 99P-1340 on your subject line.
> E-mail FDA Dockets at fdadockets@...
>
>

Hello Betty,

I have only been using the NutriBiotic Vitamin C
1000 mg with a pH of 2.1 . I am finishing off
the bottle first before I buy the buffered one.

I have not tried any buffered Vit C yet.
Thanks,
Kristine

--- BayCanaryGrapevine@yahoogroups.com wrote:

>

__________________________________________________________
We won't tell. Get more on shows you hate to love
(and love to hate): Yahoo! TV's Guilty Pleasures list.
http://tv.yahoo.com/collections/265

Hello Betty,

I have only been using the NutriBiotic Vitamin C
1000 mg with a pH of 2.1 . I am finishing off
the bottle first before I buy the buffered one.

I have not tried any buffered Vit C yet.
Thanks,
Kristine

--- BayCanaryGrapevine@yahoogroups.com wrote:

>



________________________________________________________________________________\
____
We won't tell. Get more on shows you hate to love
(and love to hate): Yahoo! TV's Guilty Pleasures list.
http://tv.yahoo.com/collections/265

Happy New Year!

February, 2007 will mark the third year we have endured chloraminated water. Although we all wish that the SFPUC would have done the right thing by admitting chloramination was a mistake, they instead chose to try to cover up their lack of due diligance in the performance of their duties by adding a chemical to our drinking water that has not been tested for human consumption. One could call it "chloramine gate". Citizens Concerned About Chloramine(CCAC) is not surprised at the way the SFPUC has handled this situiation, so we are continuing to work at higher levels of government. In late January,we are going to meet with Ira Ruskin to help draft another Assembly Bill dealing with chloramine.

Our website continues to improve and attract people from more states. There are now chloramine groups in New York and Vermont. If you have not looked at the website, www.chloramine.org, in a while, I suggest you check it out again. We now have pictures of a chloramine rash that was only cured by rinsing it with bottled spring water. We have the "before" and "after" photos of this rash.

For those of you who live near enough to come to one of our meetings, here is our current calendar:

Pacifica meetings will be held on January 9 and Febuary 13,(Tuesdays) at 7PM at the main library at Palmetto and Hilton in Pacifica. One of the things we will be deciding is whether we want to change our meeting day to Wednesday. Please let me know if this would be more convenient to any of you. Thanks. I have made arrangements with the library to view "highlights" of SFPUC meetings we have attended. Refreshments are always served.

General CCAC meetings will be held on Wednesday, January 10 at 7PM at the Heritage Bake of Commerce at 369 S.San Antonio Rd., Palo Alto, 94022, and on Tuesday, January 30 at 7PM at the Foster City Clubhouse, 763 Comet Dr.

This will be another busy year for us and we could really use more help. We especially need a Recording Secretary to write up agendas and minutes of our general meetings and a Corresponding Secretary to work with Denise in writing letters and sending information packets to elected officials, scientists and interested groups and individuals. You would not have to attend every meeting as most of the work can be done on the phone or by e-mail. We could also use someone who is good at fundraising or grant writing as we spend a lot of money for photocopies, envelopes, postage, etc.

Please contact me by email at lindacor@... or Denise by phone at (650) 328-0424 if you are interested in helping us. THANK YOU!

Take Care,
Linda

Hi,
I am wondering what local places have Buffered Vit. C that most MCS people can tolerate. I
live in Cupertino. Thank you in advance.
-Kristine

Hi,
I am wondering what local places have Buffered Vit. C that most MCS people can
tolerate. I
live in Cupertino. Thank you in advance.
-Kristine