Asthma, ADD, CNS Disorders, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

by John K. Beaulieu
Asthma
The American Lung Association now estimates that 4 million American children and 20.3 million adults presently have asthma.  That is three times more victims than just twenty years ago.  Once again, environmental factors are under strong suspicion.  Most Americans spend 80 to 90% of their time in air-tight buildings, most with less than adequate ventilation.  One study concluded that the majority of the 400,000 annual emergency room visits for severe asthma attacks are brought on by poor indoor air quality.  Each year, asthma claims the lives of over 4,000 people and costs Americans over 6 billion dollars in medical costs and lost time from work and school.
Doctors know that irritation of the lungs by chemicals can trigger asthma attacks.  Long-term exposure to chemicals can contribute to the development of asthma.  This is especially true with children.  A child's immune system is not fully developed until she is twelve years old.  A one-year-old has practically no detox system at all.
Out of germ-phobia, some parents constantly spray disinfectants into the air and on all surfaces int heir baby's nursery.  What they may not realize is the are exposing their children to formaldehyde, cresol, phenol, ammonia, ethanol, and chlorine.  It takes much less of these chemicals to harm a baby than an adult.  Babies' bodies are much smaller and they breathe at ten times the rate of adults.  The average child visits the doctor twenty-three times in the first four years of life, with the most common complaint being respiratory ailment.  When babies get sick, the last thing they need is to have irritating chemicals filling their lungs.

CNS Disorders
Central Nervous System (CNS) disorders can range from headaches and dizziness to Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, and Alzheimer's Disease.  We know that many chemicals that appear in our household products are neurotoxins.  Some act as depressants, some as stimulants, and some cause mood swings.  Others act similar to alcoholic, leaving a person lethargic, unable to concentrate, and with a loss of balance.
It's important, once again, to remind you that only 10% of the chemicals that appear in household products have been tested for negative effects on the nervous system.  And we know nothing about the long-term effects of exposure to these chemicals.
We do know that young people are destroying their brains by abusing aerosol products and inhaling their deadly fumes.  In fact, aerosols are the drug of choice for many of these people.  This is very frightening.
Doctors have also identified a condition known as toxic encephalopathy, brought on by repeated exposure to solvents over several years.  Symptoms include memory loss, behavioural changes, emotional instability, confusion, inability to concentrate, neurological and personality changes, and problems with manual dexterity.  Chemicals that cause this condition are in household products.  They include chlorinated hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons and aliphatic hydrocarbons.  You need to remember that the amount of chemicals a person is exposed to is not as important as the strength of a person's detox system.  Extremely small amounts of chemicals can have severe effects on certain individuals.
Alzheimer's Disease receives so much attention because it is so prevalent and yet remains such a mystery.  Around 4.5 million people currently suffer with Alzheimer's.  Although we have known about this disease for some time, recently the number of cases has grown dramatically.  Approximately 7.7 million people will have the disease by the year 2030, and it may surpass cancer and stroke numbers as a cause of death.
Although there seems to be a genetic link to the cause of Alzheimer's, scientists admit it is too weak to explain the prevalence of the disease.  Most research points to environmental factors.  Aluminum, a known neurotoxin, is the number one suspect.  However, researchers are looking at other toxins and their possible link to this horrible disease.  Hopefully, science will find the answers.
Not every CNS problem is as dramatic as Alzheimer's, but some can be almost as debilitating.  Betty J., of Albuquerque, New Mexico, suffered from severe migraine headaches for years with major attacks occurring every 6 to 8 weeks.  Unfortunately, the medication she was taking was as disabling as the headaches.  She would spend a week to ten days in bed until the migraines finally passed and the medication wore off.  As you can imagine, this caused great hardship for her, especially with regard to her work.
After doing a little investigation, Betty decided to rid her home of toxic chemicals.  She threw out everything she had purchased at the grocery store and used only natural, environmentally sensitive products.  Her life changed dramatically.  She no longer needed to take painkillers to get out of bed and the recurring migraine attacks stopped.
Disbelieving her own success, Betty purchased a bottle of bleach to see if chemicals were indeed the cause of her problem.  Within minutes of opening the bottle, she had another migraine headache.  Betty became a true believer in the need to rid your home of toxic, chemical-laden cleaners. 

Attention Deficit Disorders And Other Learning Disorders
By 2000, 8 million children in America were taking Ritalin so they can sit still long enough to learn to read and write.  Ritalin is a "Class 2" narcotic.  What could be wrong?  Why do we need such a powerful drug to help control our children's behaviour?  Most veteran teachers will tell you that he increased use of Ritalin is not the result of the increased awareness in ADD, as some would argue, but an increase in the actual number of cases.  Think back to when you were in school.  Was half of your class our of control?  Were most of your friends taking medication for hyperactivity?  Again, we must find our just what is wrong!
The problem is that many young people are being misdiagnosed.  According to Doris Rapp, M.D., and expert on the treatment of environmental illness, as many as two-thirds of the millions of children on Ritalin are actually suffering from acute allergic reactions to environmental agents.  Removal of certain chemicals or a profound change in diet could solve the problem.  These children do not need powerful drugs.
Young people are exposed to so many chemicals that many of them develop sensitivities.  This happens because their detox system burns out even before it fully develops.  Then they become susceptible to the effects of even traces of chemicals.  I want to state one more time that when it comes to toxins, the amount of exposure is not as important as how sensitive a person is.  Children need much less exposure than adults do to develop negative symptoms.

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), or Environmental Illness (EI) are the names for an assortment of problems that can affect any part of the human body.  Chemicals found in cleaners, personal care products, food, plastics, and even water, can cause this condition.  Persons suffering with MCS lack the ability to adequately detoxify their bodies.  Symptoms include: headaches, severe fatigue, hyperactivity, muscle pain, joint pain, stomach and bowel problems, constant congestion, muscle twitches, and behavioral problems, depression, loss of memory, and inability to learn symptoms, and having their sensitivities confirmed.
I have read the accounts of many victims, and personally spoken with dozens more.  Most were very sensitive to chemicals in cleaning and personal care products.  They had debilitating body aches, headaches, depression and other nervous disorders.  Thankfully, the majority I have talked to received nearly complete relief by switching to people-friendly household products.
Dr. William Rea, a world-known environmental doctor in Dallas, Texas, reports that of all the patients he has seen with MCS, only 13% report developing the condition after a one-time acute poisoning.  Sixty percent report developing the condition as the result of long-term slow poisonings involving minimal amounts of toxins.  Only 28% of the cases he has documented are work-related.  A staggering 72% of the cases are people who have been exposed to chemicals at home or at other places.
Dr. Rea sites the following factors as influencing the onset of MCS.

• Total Toxic Body Bruden - This is the sum of all toxins in the body.  When the accumulation overloads a person's detox system, MCS can occur.
• Nutritional State - The most nutrient- depleted a person's body is, the more likely they are to develop MCS.
• Synergisms - This means the combination of the different chemicals in the body will have a stronger effect than individual toxins.
• Bioaccumulation of Toxins - This refers how less dense tissues, like fat cells, can actually absorb and accumulate chemicals.  Without the time and nutrition for the body to cleanse itself, the accumulation level can be dangerous.

According to Doris Rapp, M.D., Multiple Chemical Sensitivity is common.  Most physicians who practice environmental medicine, including herself, estimate that 25% to 50% of today's population is sensitive to one degree or another.
Nancy, a young vibrant, well-trained teacher, developed MCS over a period of 8 years.  She became fatigued, experienced muscle aches, constant ear ringing, difficulty concentrating, blackouts, and severe depression.  She became so sensitive that even the nuance of chemical odor made her ill.  Scents in her body lotions, make-up and hair spray made her so confused that she could not tell time or recall the names of her students.  A whiff of perfume caused her to laugh uncontrollably and twitch.
During a leave of absence, she was too tired to get out of bed, take a shower, or prepare a snack.  Her condition was traced to, among many things, phenol in the disinfectants used in the bathroom near her classroom.  After two years of therapy, she began to feel better, but she still carries a charcoal filter mask everywhere she goes and fears a total relapse.
Sister Martha, a dedicated teacher, was assigned by her school to tutor students who needed extra help.  Unfortunately, the only available room was a converted custodial closet located between two bathrooms.  The vapors from cleaners, disinfectants and deodorizers from the bathrooms constantly filtered into this room through vents in the walls.
After tutoring for a while in this room, Sister Martha developed a persistent, nagging cough, joint stiffness and swelling, facial spasms, excessive mucus, and vision problems.  She was able to find a doctor who began to treat her sensitivities.  Even after extensive treatment, she still lives with many limitations.  Although she has eliminated toxins in her home, she cannot remain in a public place like a mall for more than a few minutes.  She still needs to take an anti-allergy extract and can drink only purified water.
Both of these stories represent extreme cases of MCS.  Most people who suffer with MCS do not have such profound symptoms, but rather experience symptoms like recurring headaches, muscle aches, depression, and chronic fatigue.
Hopefully, more will be learned about MCS and treatments will improve.  However, I think the focus be on prevention.  By reducing the amount of toxins in your home, you can help to reduce the risk for MCS in a loved one.

Infertility And Miscarriage

Infertility And Miscarriage

by: John K Beaulieu

More than 2 million American couples who want to have children are unable to d so.  Perhaps you or someone close to you is living with the heartache.  It many surprise you to learn that between 1938 and 1991 the sperm count of males in the industrialized countries has decreased 50% in quantity and quality.  A cross-sectional study of college men found that 25% were sterile.  Projected figures place the male sterility rate at over 50% early in the next century.

Women's fertility has also been negatively affected by the increased use of chemicals.  In 1934, only twenty-one cases of endometriosis existed in the entire world.  ow there are over 5 million women with this condition, which causes infertility, in the United States alone.  High levels of toxins have been found in German women with endometriosis.  Female monkeys exposed to dioxins has an increased rate of this condition also.  Combine the decreased sperm count with the prevalence of endometriosis and you can see just how the infertility rate could grow so large and affect so many.

Even women who can conceive are experiencing extremely high rates of miscarriage.  In 1988, more than 600,000 women experienced a miscarriage, and in most cases the cause was unclear.  In many cases, a woman's body will reject an unborn baby if it detects a profound defect of some kind.  We may begin wondering if we are living in a time when more babies have defects.  Or perhaps the chemicals that enter the body somehow send mixed or wrong messages.  

Many chemicals, including alkylphenol, found in many industrial and household detergents, are known hormone disrupters.  This means they act like hormone and can actually change behaviour, mood, development and any other bodily functions regulated by hormones.  It concerns me that the delicate balance of chemicals our bodies naturally produce and need to function properly can be skewed by synthetic, toxic chemicals.

There are safer alternatives available for cleaning, laundry and personal care. We must read labels! I have found a company that manufactures all safe, non toxic products that WORK and are LESS EXPENSIVE! I've been shopping at this store for over 10 years... they are THE BEST!

Your Detox System

by John K Beaulieu

Your body has a system that destroys and eliminates toxins.  After all, many things that appear naturally in the environment are toxic, and we need to have a strong defense system against them.  Organs like the kidneys and liver filter out and remove toxins.  Our blood contains T-cells that attack foreign agents.  However, many people have overloaded or very weak detox systems.  High levels of toxins and a poor nutritional state leave many people more susceptible to the effects of chronic chemical exposure.
Even healthy people can be affected.  When exposed to a certain toxin, the body will respond by producing more of the enzymes needed to destroy the poison.  In a sense, the body has "masked" the poisoning.  It has prevented the effects of the poisoning from being felt, even if the effects would have been mild.  But, this has stressed the immune system, possibly leaving a person vulnerable to infection.
By switching to cleaners and personal care products that are not full of toxins, you can reduce the stress on your detox system, possibly leading to a healthier life.  I have not missed a day of work due to illness in over two years.  I have not seen a doctor for illness in three years.  My children have been to the doctor for illness only twice in three years.  I believe this is, in part, the result of my wife and me deciding to switch to safer and more natural products.  I encourage you to do the same.  It's one decision your family can live with. 

Effects of Chemical Exposure

by John K. Beaulieu

Immediate Effects Of Chemical Exposure
Could this happen in your home?  When Peter Schwabb of Seattle, Washington, was a year old, he crawled over the dishwasher to watch his mother unloading it.  Suddenly, he put a finger into the detergent dispensing cup and ate a fingerful of wet bu undissolved Electrasol.  In minutes his face was red and blistered, and the inside of this mouth and his tongue were burned white.  Because of a series of lucky circumstances, Peter was in the hospital within minutes and he recovered in a few days.
While Peter was in the hospital, there was a little girl across the hall who (according to Peter's mother) ate some dishwashing detergent and required seven operations to reopen her scarred esophagus.
Another 18-month-old boy had to eat through tubes for five months and at last count had thirty operations.  Detergent is what destroyed his throat too.
Three-year-old Jason Whitely, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, died a lingering and horrible death two weeks after swallowing three ounces of a hair rinse containing ammonia.
Seven-month-old Adrian Gonzalez, Jr., of Belen, New Mexico, crawled through a puddle of spilled bleach, which gave him third-degree burns on 50% of his tiny body and burned his lings from the fumes as well.  It took him four days to die.
The real tragedy here is that all of these accidents could have been prevented.  A simple decision to use safer products could have meant that these children would not have had to suffer and die.  Unfortunately, most parents don't realize that they have a choice. 

More Dangerous Than Guns
It may shock you to learn that according to the National Safety Council, more children under the age of four die of accidental poisonings at home than are accidentally killed with guns at home.  Among children age five and under, the most common poison is a cleaner or personal care products.
Ninety percent of all poisonings occur at home between the hours of 4 and 10 pm, when children are home from school and playing in the house.  Young children are especially vulnerable.  They learn by putting things in their mouths.  This is even more frightening when you consider the number of products that look like something else.  Window cleaner looks like blueberry drink.  Ammonia looks like apple juice.  Many poisons come in bright, colorful containers with small, obscure warning labels that young children can't read.  Remember the skull and crossbones symbol?  It's a symbol that children can identify easily, but manufacturers are no longer required to display it on most household products.
Lennon Miller, 18 months, of Memphis Tennessee, drank lemon-scented furniture polish, enticed no doubt by the attractive sell.  He lived during a day of suffering and dies in John Gaston Hospital of chemically-induced pneumonia.

Accidents Happen To Adults, Too
Young children are not the only ones at risk for chemical injury.  Poisoning is the number one accidental killer in the home, accounting for over 3,000 deaths in 1985 and over 4,000 deaths in 1990.  These chemicals are also responsible for thousands of injuries each year.
A 34-year-old man received burns on his arm after using a caustic drain-cleaner in his bathroom sink.  Fifteen minutes after applying the chemical, he ran water into the sink, but the remaining residue splashed on his arm.
A woman poured boiling water into a can of over cleaner, according to the directions on the can.  As she carried the can from the table to the oven, it spilled, burning her hand and producing large quantities of ammonia gas, which gave her a chocking cough.
But most of the health problems related to chemicals in the home are not because of accidents like these.  Most chemical-related health problems are the result of exposure to toxics day after day, year after year.

Home Is Where THe Chemicals Are

by...John K. Beaulieu

Home is where you are most likely to be exposed to toxic chemicals.  After all, you spend 80 to 90% of your time indoors, most of that at home.  This fact is important when you understand that in one five-year study, the EPA found that airborne chemical levels in homes were as much as seventy times higher than outside.

When toxic household chemicals release vapors into the air, they have nowhere to go.  During the oil shortages of the 1970s, builders began making houses energy efficient as possible.  The result has been homes that keep toxic indoor air tightly sealed inside.

Exposure to toxic indoor air many have a devastating effect on your health.  One fifteen-year study found that women who worked at home had a 54% higher death rate from cancer than women who had jobs outside the home.  The study concluded that the increased death rate was due to daily exposure to the hazardous chemicals found in ordinary products.  Some experts argue that 30% of all cancers stem from exposure to toxic chemicals.

Not all of the health effects are fatal, however.  According to a special legislative committee of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 50% of all health problems are cause, in part, by deteriorated indoor air quality.  A hangover is the side-effect of non-lethal ethanol poisoning (getting drunk).  How many days so you wake up feeling "hung over", with aches and pains or nausea?  Perhaps in the air in your home is poisoning you.  How many bottles of pain-killers have you purchased to rid yourself of headaches, possibly brought on by your fabric softener?

The good news is that by switching to safer, more natural products, you can rid yourself of these symptoms altogether.  You can make your home a healthy home!

Toxic Chemicals and The Human Body...by John K. Beaulieu

Beware Of Aerosols
Both cleaning and personal care products come in aerosol cans.  I want to warn you of the dangers of aerosols in your home.  First, they send a fine mist of toxic chemicals into the air that is easily inhaled and absorbed.  Second, this fine mist settles, leaving a coating of toxins on surfaces where children crawl and play and adults eat and sleep.  Finally, many of the propellants used in aerosol cans are toxic themselves.  Vinyl chloride, one of the most common, can cause dizziness, lack of coordination, headaches, blurred vision, nausea, and death.

I read of a young man named Stuart who became dizzy and collapsed while spray painting bookshelves in his basement.  When his wife found him a few hours later, he was dead.

These chemical propellants are also highly flammable.  A woman names Laurie received disfiguring burns when the hair spray she was using was ignited by her cigarette.  Each year 5,000 people receive emergency room treatment for aerosol-related injuries.

Jimmy, 8, used a hammer and nail to puncture an old aerosol can.  The can exploded, hurling pieces of metal into his face and upper chest, cutting him severely.

When you weigh the short-term and long-term harms of aerosol products, I think the smart conclusion is simply to get rid of them.

Toxic Chemicals And The Human Body
Your body is a very complex, very fragile system of chemical reactions and electrical impulses.  When you consider a single cell breathes, uses energy, and releases waste much like your whole body does, you can begin to understand how even small amounts of harmful chemicals can affect the performance of the body's processes.  Chemicals enter the human body in three ways: ingestion, inhalation, and absorption.

Ingestion
Ingestion brings to mind the image of a young child opening the cabinet under the sink and drinking something deadly.  Well, each year nearly 1.5 million accidental ingestion of poisons are reported to U.S. Poison Control Centers.  The majority of the victims are under the age of twelve and have swallowed a cleaning or personal care products.  It amazes me how many deadly chemicals are stored under sinks or on bathroom counters and bathtubs within easy reach of young children.


Inhalation
It may surprise you to learn that poisoning by inhalation is more common, and can be much more harmful, than ingestion.  When something is swallowed, the stomach actually begins breaking down and neutralizing the poison before it is absorbed into the bloodstream.  However, when you inhale toxic fumes, the poisons go directly into the bloodstream and quickly travel to organs like the brain, heart, liver, and kidneys.
Many products give off toxic vapors which can irritate your eyes, nose, throat and lungs, and give you headaches, muscle aches, and sinus infections.  This process of releasing vapors into the air is called outgassing.  Outgassing occurs even when a chemical is tightly sealed in its container.  If you doubt this, simply walk down the cleaning aisle at your local grocery store and notice how strongly it smells of toxic vapors even though all containers are sealed tightly.

Absorption
Finally, you need to realize the potential threat absorption poses.  One square centimeter of your skin, an area less than the size of a dime, contains 3 million cells, four yards of nerves, one yard of blood vessels, and one hundred sweat glands.  We've all heard the ads for nicotine patches and analgesic creams.  These medicines work by being absorbed into the bloodstream through the skin.  Even some heart medicines are administered through transdermal (through the skin) patches.
Any chemical that touches the skin can be absorbed and spread throughout the body.  This can even happen when you come in contact with a surface that was treated with a chemical days, or even weeks earlier.  I had no idea that my children could be harmed by crawling across the kitchen floor my wife had cleaned.  I thought we were being conscientious, not reckless.  Since we no longer have products which contain chemicals in our home, I no longer worry when I see my baby daughter crawling across the floor or putting her fingers in her mouth.  I know she is not absorbing or ingesting toxic residues.

Formaldehyde...by John K. Beaulieu

Formadehyde is used frequently in both cleaning and personal care products because it is a cheap preservative.

The following information is taken from a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) which, by law, must be supplied to anyone who uses any chemical product in the workplace.  The MSDS for formaldehyde warns: "Suspected carcinogen; May be fatal if inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin; causes burns; inhalation can cause spasms, edema (fluid buildup) of the larynx and bronchi, and chemical pneumonitis; extremely destructive to tissue of the mucous membrane".

All these symptoms and more are caused by formaldehyde.  Yet manufacturers can put formaldehyde in shampoo and not list it as an ingredient!  You will be shocked to learn that formaldehyde is a common ingredient in baby shampoo, bubble bath, deodorants, perfume, cologne, hair dye, mouthwash, toothpastes, hair spray, and many other personal care items.

The amount of formaldehyde in many of these products is slight.  Brushing your teeth every day probably will not give you cancer, but the risk is still there.  After all, formaldehyde is still a suspected carcinogen, and if all cancers start from the abnormal growth of one cell, then why allow any amount into or onto your body?