Please check the CHE-WA website to stay abreast of the latest postings, news and events: http://washington.chenw.org.
To join the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE) and CHE-Washington, please complete the form at http://www.healthandenvironment.org/roles/register?&phase=registerform. Be sure to mark that you want to join the Washington State Regional Group at the bottom of the application.
1) The next CHE-WA quarterly meeting is scheduled for 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. May 16, 2007, at Antioch University Seattle. The meeting will feature several presentations on pesticide research and advocacy as well as updates on the new CHE-WA Climate Change and Health Working Group. More information will be available closer to the time of the meeting.
2) The fourth annual environmental health lecture series entitled "Our Health, Our Environment: Making the Link -- Seeking Solutions" is underway. The series, sponsored by the Seattle Biotech Legacy Foundation and organized by the Institute for Children's Environmental Health, includes one lecture each month January through April. Remaining lectures:
All lectures will be held at Seattle Town Hall from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., preceded by a reception from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. For more information and to purchase admission, please visit http://washington.chenw.org/lectures.html. Admission is also available at the door.
Town Hall is also hosting Bill McKibben who will be lecturing on "Deep Economy" tonight at 7:30 p.m. For those attendees interested in attending both events, Town Hall has made special arrangements for Environmental Health Lecture Series attendees only. Town Hall will be selling tickets for the Bill McKibben event from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. at the Downstairs door. Tickets are $5 and can only be purchased for cash or check. For more information about the Bill McKibben event, please see http://www.townhallseattle.com/calendar.cfm.
3) Making Change: A Workshop for People Who Want to Build a Better World
April 21, 2007
9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Seattle, Washington
at the Antioch campus, 2326 Sixth Avenue
This one-day workshop will provide participants with the time and space to think more deeply about your work and how it contributes to positive social change. This workshop is intended for people who want to build a better world and who identify themselves as social change agents. This includes people working on environmental, health or social issues in nonprofit or community-based organizations, government agencies or the private sector, as well as others interested in how to achieve positive social change. Sponsored by the Center for Creative Change at Antioch University Seattle and the Collaborative on Health and Environment -- Washington (CHE-WA).
Website: http://www.antiochsea.edu/events/makingchangeworkshop.html
Contact: Kate Davies, 206-268-4811 or kdavies@antiochseattle.edu
May 10 - 11, 2007
Atlanta, Georgia
at the Morehouse School of Medicine
The theme of this second national conference of the Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative is "Priming for Prevention: An Ecological Approach to Research, Education and Policy." Dr. David Satcher, former Surgeon General is our invited keynote speaker, and many other leading researchers, health professionals and advocates will be presenting their cutting-edge work on environmental factors and neurological development. Visit the website below for an updated agenda, a full list of presenters and registration information.
Website: http://www.iceh.org/LDDImeetings.html
Contact: Elise Miller, emiller@iceh.org
from the London Daily Mail
March 20, 2007
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=443431&in_page_id=1774
Countless children labeled hyperactive are being subdued with drugs like Ritalin. But many experts think they're just naturally boisterous -- and those needless pills are causing terrifying side-effects.
Article Summary: Figures published last week show that NHS (National Health Service) spending on these drugs has tripled in the past five years, to £12.8 million. Much of the rise in prescribing is driven by parents desperate for anything that may help. It also encouraged by some experts who believe that ADHD could affect as many as 5 per cent of school children; one or two in every class, each a potential candidate for treatment with drugs. But although some children undoubtedly do benefit, there is growing concern that ADHD is being overdiagnosed -- that it is being used indiscriminately to label children who have other problems, or who may simply be badly behaved. There are also claims that parents are not being given an accurate picture about the risk of side effects -- most notably the raised risk of psychotic episodes. Last year the American Food and Drugs Administration advised that ADHD drugs should have stronger warnings about this type of psychiatric side effect. Children aged ten and younger who took ADHD drugs described hallucinations only after taking the drugs so that the effects were most likely caused by the drug rather than being a symptom of ADHD. The risk was estimated at one in 1,000 but with several hundred thousand prescriptions, that's several hundred children who could be affected. Last month, the FDA told the drug companies to draw up clearer labeling warning of the risk of psychosis and hallucinations. The side effects the FDA is now warning about include nausea, loss of appetite and sleeplessness, raised blood pressure, a risk of epileptic seizures and abnormal heart rhythms, increased risk of suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide (this was found in particular with Strattera), hostility and mood swings. Even so both the UK and American regulators say that "overall, the balance of risks and benefits remains positive."
The dramatic rise in prescribing for ADHD raises the question of why children's behavior is getting worse. Experts such as Dr. Sami Timimi, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist in Lincolnshire and Priscilla Alderson, Professor of Childhood studies at London University, believe undesirable behavior is more common because family life has changed. Children take less exercise than they used to; they spend much of the day sitting in front of TVs and computers and they eat more additive-laden foods. On top of that, the educational system has become more target-driven and parents are more likely to be working, separated or divorced. The NICE guidelines on ADHD recommend that drug use needs to be backed up by psychological and social support. However, lack of resources means that all too often these factors are ignored and drugs become the mainstay. Most experts recognize that 70 per cent of children with ADHD have other problems as well, such as learning difficulties, dyslexia, difficulties with co-ordination (dyspraxia) or even a condition related to autism. Because and ADHD diagnosis can indicate a wide variety of underlying causes and conditions, a more comprehensive diagnosis, such as through SNAP (Special Needs Assessment Profile), can allows more targeted treatment such as specific physical exercises or omega 3 fatty acid or other dietary treatments.
from the Australian Associated Press, Sydney Australian
March 19, 2007
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21404727-23289,00.html
CHILDREN exposed to cigarette smoke in cars are more than twice as likely as other kids to develop asthma. Surveys and tests of almost 1500 young teenagers have proved that passive smoking in cars has a more devastating effect on respiratory health than smoking in the home.
Article Summary: The results, published in the latest Medical Journal of Australia, found that 14-year-olds who were exposed to smoke in vehicles show a 55 per cent increased risk of a recent wheezing problem than other kids and were 2.1 times more likely to have long-term asthma. The same study found about nine percent of children were exposed to smoke in the home. While they had a higher risk of respiratory problems than nonexposed kids, their rates were lower than for car exposure. The team called for parents to reconsider their behavior in light of the results.
from Reuters
March 19, 2007
http://uk.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUKCOL96956820070319
Article Summary: Exposure to agricultural pesticides in the first trimester increases a woman's risk of developing diabetes during pregnancy, research shows. Previous studies have examined the relationship between pesticides and diabetes, the authors explain, but none have focused on pregnancy-related or "gestational" diabetes. Dr. Tina M. Saldana from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and colleagues assessed the risk of developing gestational diabetes following pesticide exposures among wives of farmers enrolled in the Agricultural Health Study. Women who mixed or applied pesticides or repaired pesticide-related equipment during the first trimester of pregnancy had a more than twofold increased risk of developing gestational diabetes, the report indicates. In contrast, there was no increased gestational diabetes risk among women with residential exposures to pesticides or indirect exposures during the first trimester. Understanding any potential effect of environmental exposures on glucose (sugar) tolerance during pregnancy "may have substantial public health importance beyond the direct effects on gestational diabetes," the authors conclude.
by Maya Roney, Business Week
March 19, 2007
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/mar2007/db20070316_594911.htm
Article Summary: Ground-level ozone triggers and aggravates all kinds of respiratory problems. It can cause coughing, chest pain, and throat irritation, and worsen conditions like asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis. Many metropolitan areas have successfully cracked down on their ground-level ozone pollution problems since the Environmental Protection Agency passed the Clean Air Act in 1990. Between 1990 and 2005, ground-level ozone concentration dropped 9.2% on average in the metro areas in which the EPA monitored these data. Unlike "good" ozone, which is produced naturally in the stratosphere, ground-level ozone is created by a chemical reaction between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) under the influence of sunlight. The chemicals involved come from emissions from industrial factories and electric utilities, motor vehicle exhaust, and vapors from oil wells and gasoline, paint, and other solvents. Many cities and suburbs in the U.S. suffer from high levels of bad ozone due to the high concentration of motor vehicle traffic and industry in those areas, but even rural areas can be subject to high ozone levels as winds carry emissions hundreds of miles away from their original source, according to the EPA. Using computer models and emission and cost data, the EPA has estimated that in 2010 the benefits of Clean Air Act programs due to decreased illness and fewer premature deaths will total roughly $110 billion, while the costs of achieving these benefits will be only about $27 billion. By 2010 the amendments of 1990 will have prevented 23,000 premature deaths, 1.7 million incidences of asthma attacks, and 4.1 million lost workdays. Though it is a federal law, individual states do much of the work to carry out the Clean Air Act. States need to develop state implementation plans (SIPs) that explain how they will meet the standards set by the EPA, and the EPA must in turn approve each state's SIP. If a state fails to submit a plan, they could lose federal highway money, according to the EPA.
by Sandra Valdez Gerdes and Kathy Van Voorhees, Tucson Citizen
March 19, 2007
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/ss/body/45188
Article Summary: While popular among users, critics say detox diets are "unnecessary" and hogwash because there is no scientific evidence to support the use of a detox diet. Proponents arguments: Physical toxins accumulate in many ways: The food we eat, the environment we live in and daily emotional stresses all contribute to stored toxins in our system. Toxins are stored in fat cells. Detoxing lets some of this toxin burden go and reduces stress on the liver and digestive system. Detoxifying can decrease your risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, gout, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, weight gain, hormone imbalances and fatigue. Opponents counter: The ADA doesn't stand behind any particular detox diet and considers these fad diets, many of which prey on people using alarmist pitches. When you eat a balanced healthy diet that includes whole fresh natural foods, your body is getting the nutrients you need to detox. Diseases are often linked to a poor diet, not to toxins. There is no scientific evidence to promote the claims made for detox diets, but there are things you can do to rev up the body's own elimination system. Detoxing is very stressful on the body. Any type of fasting or cleansing is hazardous to chronically ill people, like those with diabetes who need to monitor their blood sugar.
by Kevin Miller, Bangor Daily News
March 17, 2007
http://bangordailynews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=147595&zoneid=500
BANGOR -- Compact fluorescent lights, those swirly bulbs displacing the old incandescent type in many homes, have become the darlings of the energy-conscious crowd, thanks to their capacity to both fight global warming and lower utility bills. But with more than a million bulbs sold in Maine, questions are being raised about whether consumers know enough about the special disposal and handling requirements that come with these well-documented energy-savers.
Article Summary: Unlike incandescent bulbs, compact fluorescent lights contain a small amount of mercury -- about the amount of ink on the tip of a ballpoint pen -- inside sealed glass. The mercury is essential to create the charge that makes the bulb glow. For comparison, the state toxicologist noted that mercury thermometers contain hundreds, even thousands of times more mercury than compact fluorescent light bulbs. Denis Bergeron, energy division director for Efficiency Maine, said that nationally two to three times as much mercury emissions from power plants are avoided by using a compact fluorescent bulb because of the lower energy use. But because of the mercury, these bulbs require proper disposal as hazardous waste. Should a bulb be broken, the mercury can be released -- a problem if at a residence. Maine Department of Environmental Protection officials said homeowners can safely clean up broken bulbs on their own by following careful instructions and wearing gloves, safety glasses, coveralls and respiratory protection. Instructions include refraining from vacuuming to avoid spreading dust containing mercury and contaminating the vacuum. Instead, both the DEP and federal EPA recommend removing larger pieces and placing them in a secure container. Smaller pieces and dust particles can be removed using two stiff pieces of paper, a disposable broom and dustpan, duct tape or a mercury spill kit.
by Amy Norton, Reuters
March 16, 2007
http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2007/03/16/eline/links/20070316elin002.html
Article Summary: NEW YORK -- Women who are lean and fit may have babies who are also leaner -- a fact that could affect their child's weight and health later in life, according to researchers. British researchers found that women who had a relatively high percentage of body fat or were self-described "slow walkers" tended to have fatter babies. Studies have linked overly high birth weight to an increased risk of obesity later in life. Newborn body composition -- the body's relative amounts of fat and lean tissue -- likely helps to determine body composition in childhood and adulthood, according to study co-author Dr. Cyrus Cooper. Along with not smoking, women should exercise regularly and maintain a healthy weight through a balanced diet before and during pregnancy, Cooper advised.
[Editor's note: See a related article at http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=2123394§ionid=105.]
from United Press International
March 15, 2007
http://www.upi.com/ConsumerHealthDaily/rat_poisonings_in_children_preventable/20070315-042543-4293r/
Article Summary: In observance of National Poison Prevention Week, March 18-24, the EPA wants to increase awareness of the danger to children of unintentional poisonings from pesticides and other household products. Properly stored household pesticides can prevent some of the thousands of yearly poisonings in children, says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Parents and caregivers should lock up products that could potentially harm children. The EPA also recommends all rat poison bait products be marketed in tamper-resistant bait stations with solid bait blocks -- as opposed to small pellets that children can ingest. More information on reducing rodenticides risk can be found at http://epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/chemicals/rodenticides_fs.htm.
by Amanda Gardner, HealthDay News, Washington Post
March 15, 2007
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/15/AR2007031500698.html
Exposure to a class of chemicals commonly found in soap and plastics could be fueling the obesity epidemic by contributing to abdominal obesity and insulin resistance in men, a new study suggests. The chemicals, known as phthalates, have already been implicated in male reproductive problems including low sperm counts and low testosterone levels. However, it's too soon to know whether they are actually causing these health problems, cautioned the researchers and others.
Article Summary: This study follows up on other studies that correlated abnormal sperm counts and low testosterone levels with phthalates. Men with low testosterone levels develop abdominal obesity and insulin resistance. The chemicals have been shown, in animal studies, to have an effect on thyroid hormone, which could also be a pathway to increased obesity. Another study showed that testosterone levels had dropped about 22 percent in men, and that sperm counts had dropped to levels that are considered subfertile or infertile. "It's an important observation that chemical exposures could be contributing to obesity and diabetes in the general population," added Dr. Ted Schettler, science director for the Science and Environmental Health Network. Study author Dr. Richard Stahlhut, a resident in preventive medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry in New York, said: "The thing we're certain of is not that phthalates are doing this, but that phthalates require very careful scrutiny." Phthalates have been widely used for more than half a century in everything from paint to time-released medicines, but only recently have they become a topic of concern. Animal studies show that phthalates decrease testosterone levels while human studies have found that phthalates are associated with poor sperm quality in men.
by Thanh Wang, Environmental Science & Technology
March 14, 2007
http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/esthag-w/2007/mar/science/tw_ewaste.html
Discarded electrical and electronic equipment, often called e-waste, is becoming a major environmental concern, particularly in developing countries. In a report published today, researchers from Hong Kong Baptist University have found elevated levels of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants as well as polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in surface soil samples and combustion residues in Guiyu in southeastern China, a region notorious for its intensive e-waste recycling centers.
Article Summary: The researchers found that PBDE levels in combustion residues from open burning were some of the highest found in any environmental medium, more than 16,000 times higher than those found in soil samples in a distant reservoir that served as a control site. High levels of PBDEs were also found in soils from an acid-leaching site, where workers use a mixture of nitric acid and hydrochloric acid to recover precious metals from shredded printed circuit boards, and from a printer-roller dump site. The UN Environment Programme estimates that each year 20–50 million metric tons of e-waste are produced worldwide; this number is increasing rapidly. The U.S. EPA estimates that between 2000 and 2007, 500 million computers will become obsolete in the U.S. As an alternative to overpacking landfills or recycling domestically, some industrialized countries have found it more convenient and cheaper to export e-waste to developing countries, such as China and India, where labor costs are low, and occupational and environmental laws are lax or not well implemented. The U.S. has not ratified the Basel Convention, which prohibits the shipment of hazardous waste [including e-waste] across countries, according to Oladele Ogunseitan of the University of California, Irvine.
by Ken Ward Jr., Charleston [West Virginia] Gazette-Mail
March 14, 2007
http://wvgazette.com/section/News/2007031320
Residents in the communities where water is polluted with the toxic chemical C8 have elevated levels of several cancers, according to a previously confidential state government analysis. The study was drafted more than a year ago by the state Department of Health and Human Resources, but was never finalized or made public.
Article Summary: The chemical ammonium perfluorooctanoate, also known as either PFOA or C8, is used to make Teflon, other nonstick products, oil-resistant paper packaging and stain- and water-repellent textiles. In the study, DHHR scientists used state cancer registry data to compare disease rates statewide with those in counties where water has been contaminated by C8. Agency researchers found elevated rates of prostate cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in Wood and Jackson counties, according to a draft of the study. DHHR also discovered high rates of leukemia and skin cancer in Wood County, where a DuPont Co. plant makes and discharges C8, according to the study. The report concludes: "The analyses presented here establish only that the rates of certain cancers previously associated with occupational PFOA exposure are elevated in counties in which residents may have been exposed to PFOA via the water supply. They do not demonstrate a causal relationship between PFOA and individual cancer cases. These data do, however, establish the need for further examination of the impact of non-occupational exposures to PFOA on cancer incidence in communities. Researchers are finding that people around the world have C8 in their blood. The blood levels may be generally small, but it is unclear whether these amounts are dangerous. Nonstick cookware may be one route of exposure to C8, but recent studies suggest that food packaging may be a much bigger source.
by Mindy Pennybacker, Green Guide
March/April 2007
http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/119/greenroomtogrow
Article Summary: According to Philip J. Landrigan, MD, director of the Center for Children's Health and the Environment at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, fetuses and babies, whose systems are rapidly developing, are much more vulnerable to toxic substances than at any other time of life. As certain childhood cancer rates creep upward, childhood asthma incidence has doubled and learning disorders are also on the rise, parents would be wise to limit exposure to household toxins before their babies arrive. Studies by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Working Group indicate that all of our bodies have absorbed toxic chemicals. Many of these, such as lead, mercury and PBDE flame retardants, can cross the placenta, exposing the fetus. Frederica Perera, Ph.D., director of Columbia University's Center for Children's Environmental Health, has studied air pollutants and babies. Effects such as stunted fetal growth, cognitive development and chromosomal aberration, especially those of environmental tobacco smoke, "were much worse combined with the psychosocial stress due to poverty." Perera adds that reducing exposures produces positive results. Another problem chemical is the soft PVC (#3 vinyl) plastic used in many "teething" toys, as well as in flooring, shower curtains and wall coverings, contains phthalates, chemicals that evaporate into the air, bind with household dust and have been implicated in children's asthma. Phthalates are also linked to reproductive and developmental harm and worsening of allergic skin conditions. Polycarbonate (#7) plastic, used in clear baby bottles, contains a chemical known as bisphenol-A (BPA), which behaves like estrogen in the body and has been shown to migrate from worn or heated bottles into the liquids they contain.