ToxTalk

U.S newborn death rate is poor and slipping

2011-11-17T13:44:00.004-07:00

Here are some low-lights from a new report about the death rate of newborns worldwide taken from Health Freedom Alliance:

"Babies in the United States have a higher risk of dying during their first month of life than do babies born in 40 other countries,.

United States dropped from No. 28 to No. 41 in the rankings of newborn death risk. It is now tied with Qatar, Croatia and United Arab Emirates. And behind South Korea, Cuba, Malaysia, Lithuania, Poland and Israel.

One of the bigger challenges in the U.S. is complications from preterm birth. The U.S. rate of preterm birth is double that of countries in Europe and Northern Africa."

There are many chemicals in our environment that can cause premature births, and ours remains a highly exposed population.

7 billion people

2011-10-19T00:16:00.003-06:00

The world's population will hit 7,000,000,000 (7 billion) people on Halloween. When I was born, right after World War II, there were about 2.5 billion people on Earth.

What is the maximum number of people the Earth can support before things fall apart and only the very rich have any quality of life?

What kind of world are we leaving for our children? Good night.

Possible tech issues on our web site

2011-09-08T16:47:00.002-06:00

The CIIN web site is getting a little revamp. And for technical reasons (most of which I am clueless) the site may be down at times until things are fine-tuned and running normally again.

In case you don't know yet, CIIN now has a Twitter account under @ourtoxictimes. The entries there are not earth-shaking, but we try to keep people up to date on some basic activities -- such as when the newsletter goes to press and when it's mailed out.

Also, CIIN will be closed from September 27th until October 11th. We're going to try to take a trip during part of that time -- rest up during the other part of that time.

MCS Lemons-to-Lemonade Project

2011-08-17T11:01:00.004-06:00

This comes from Cynthia Wilson, Executive Director of the Chemical Injury Information Network.

The Lemonade Project

Many members of our [MCS] community are house-bound. Some have risen to the occasion, but how? How are people who are fully or partially house-bound able to handle it? Specifically, how do they spend their time, what projects or hobbies have been helpful, have they found ways to be productive given their situation, have they found ways to create a business or a specific project, or anything else they can think of.

Dr. Robert Mayer, author of the recent, well received book Strategies for Surviving Chemical Sensitivity, The Basics, is planning a series of articles for our monthly newsletter Our Toxic Times on how people with MCS are coping — showing the most resilient aspects of the MCS community and possibly showing others how to live successfully within the confines of the illness.

For example, a woman in the northeast, photocopies educational material and distributes it to individuals in need. She's absolutely dedicated to informing those around her. "I can't do much, but I can do this," is one of her most elegant refrains.

For those who would like to write out their stories, they may be sent to: Lemonade at CIIN, PO Box 301, White Sulphur Springs, or emailed to lemonade@ciin.org. Please provide contact information, so if Dr. Mayer has questions he can contact you. If you think you need to be interviewed (by phone or email), please send a note to CIIN or email with your contact information, the best time to contact you, and a brief description of your own lemonade.

Die-off of bats is growing

2011-07-11T17:46:00.004-06:00

I'm sure you have heard about the die-off of honey bees, and how serious that can be for agriculture. Well there is an equally serious die-off going on, especially in the NE states. It involves bats, particularly the Little Brown Bat. And it is serious enough that those who know are worried about those and other bats becoming extinct in the NE.

Most people don't know that bats are important in pollinating crops. But most people know about bats' appetite for mosquitoes and other insects. I just read that 1 million bats (the approximate number of bats that have died from what is called white nose syndrome in the past couple years) will eat 660 metric tons of mosquitoes in 6 months; 1,200 tons in a year. And that does not count the other, crop destroying or disease carrying bugs they eat.

I'm not sure this post falls under the heading of "toxins", but I find the bat problem very interesting and scarey. And, BTW, the bat die-off has reached as far west as Oklahoma.

One last thought: How many mosquitoes are there in a pound?

Two bad old terms for MCS resurface

2011-05-09T21:53:00.003-06:00

I cannot believe it, but some people are calling "Environmental Illness" the newest name for MCS. It's not. It's an old term from the days when no one a clue what MCS was. All people knew back then was that something in the environment made some people sick.

And on top of that, Cynthia heard someone calling MCS "Chemical Allergies." That is a truly crap term. It mixes technical inaccuracy with confusing terminology. MCS is not an allergy; it is not immune system mediated. Best current research says it is a metabolic and neurologic disorder, probably rooted in damage to the Redox System.

The Redox System is made up of several systems (or sub-systems) that deal with breaking down toxins in various parts of the body so they can be flushed out. When the body cannot break down and eliminate toxins, even very small amounts of toxic chemicals can wreak havoc and cause damage. Sound familiar?

3 Books for Sale at CIIN

2011-04-20T14:34:00.003-06:00

Speaking of the print vs digital world, CIIN sells 3 books on its web site:

1. Dr. Mayer's book, "Strategies for Surviving Chemical Sensitivity, the basics" This is a new book that has been out less than a year, and has gotten very good feedback from our members.

2. Cynthia's book on chemical injury, "Chemical Exposure and Human Health" which is probably the best work on chemical health issues ever written by a lay person. It is no longer in print, but CIIN has gotten a few used, good condition copies.

3. The workbook from the San Francisco workshop on a case definition for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. At 730 pages, this is the best collection of papers on MCS, and our supply is limited. It was the starting point for the doctors and researchers who came to San Francisco.

CIIN is now on Twitter

2011-04-20T13:12:00.003-06:00

We just signed up to have Chemical Injury Information Network on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/ourtoxictimes

CIIN has been slowly entering the digital world because it is so prevalent and wide-ranging. The drawback, of course, is that so many of the chemically injured cannot participate on the internet, either due to the chemical smells from the plastics and resins in computers, or because of electrical sensitivity which often accompanies MCS.

We have no intentions to ever do away with the print version of our monthly newsletter Our Toxic Times. In spite of its cost and labor-intensive requirements, the paper version is our mainstay and our connection to our members. It's not going away.

So there you go. If you have access to Twitter, please check us out.

Apps I like

2011-02-13T14:08:00.003-07:00

For no apparent reason, I want to take note of a few small applications I like. Bear in mind that I am still using Windows XP. Here they are in no particular order:

PrintKey 2000 - It makes the usually useless PrintScreen key really handy for copying whatever is on your screen.

Agent Ransack - A very fast search tool for finding files on your computer. It blows the doors off of Windows built-in search feature.

eCleaner - For copying text out of e-mails and other places, and getting rid of all the extra crap that gets copied like indent marks, formatting marks, and headers.

UK's Kalender - A very functional but not overly tricked out calendar program.

I've also used these (except the Kalender)on Vista machines without problems. In some ways, Vista and Windows 7 seem to have usable alternatives built in.

"green" is not MCS-friendly

2011-01-06T23:34:00.003-07:00

The "Green" building movement and green products in general do NOT address the needs and concerns of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

Green building and green consumer products are a good change from the toxic way we had been doing things,and it may save a lot of people from the living hell of MCS. However, those who suffer from MCS will find themselves disappointed and likely hurt by confusing "green" with MCS-friendly. Don't do it.

There are many good sources of MCS-friendly products if you take the time to look for them. One source of such sellers is the monthly newsletter Our Toxic Times published (since 1990) by the Chemical Injury Information Network.

Danish MCS rant in OTT

2010-11-22T09:59:00.004-07:00

Coming in the December 2010 issue of Our Toxic Times is a good rant about Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and how a Danish organization that was intended to research the connections between MCS and chemicals has taken a turn against there even being such a connection.

The article goes well beyond Denmark's problem. It also talks about the chemical industry's created replacement name for MCS, Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance (IEI). A name that is intended to separate the word "chemicals" from the illness, and was not and is not promoted or approved by the World Health Organization (WHO), despite some claims to the contrary.

The article is very readable and well thought out.

Surviving Chemical Sensitivity book now at N.E.E.D.S.

2010-10-15T16:57:00.003-06:00

The book by Dr. Robert Mayer "Strategies for Surviving Chemical Sensitivity - the Basics" is now also for sale at N.E.E.D.S. as well as at ciin.org.

Our feedback on the book has been nearly 100% positive. the one not-so-positive comment was a little odd: "It's just basic stuff." Considering the book's title, why would you expect anything else?

I'll say it again, if you or someone you know is suffering from MCS, especially someone relatively new to MCS, this book is a must.

A hotel suitable for MCS

2010-10-06T16:26:00.004-06:00

Sometimes we find good news. Here is part of a message from one of our members about finding a hotel in Seattle that she could stay in:

"I thought I would pass this on. The Washington Toxics Coalition recommended the Hyatt at Olive 8 in Seattle (Tel: 206-695-1234) as a possible non-toxic hotel room. They are environmentally friendly, with sustainable designs, saving measures and healthy products. From a search of the hotel, I found that their housekeeping staff uses chemical-free cleaners. When I called, they said they use cleaners, but would be willing to make accommodations. From calling CIIN today, I got the tip to ask for this, which I greatly appreciated. They are more than willing to steam clean the room and use only chemical-free products."

No guarantees, of course, but if it works for one chemically sensitive person, the odds look good for it working for more of us. And it indicates that asking for these kinds of accommodations is getting less weird in the eyes of the "normal" public.

Info sources

2010-08-28T18:27:00.002-06:00

This is just a quick note about a couple good, and not very well known, web sites for information for those who are chemically injured or just chemically aware.

toxnet.nlm.nih.gov
A great site for information on chemicals. We at Chemical Injury Information Network use it a lot.

foodandwaterwatch.org
Also a great site, but for news related to food and water safety.

Could GM Foods Reduce Over-Population??

2010-08-24T12:44:00.006-06:00

Most people who give it serious thought know GM foods are a crap-shoot -- not enough research to be sure they are safe in the long run. And then I ran across this new (new to me) worry in the Organic Consumers Association newsletter #226 (May 28, 2010):

Genetically Modified Foods Could Cause Long-Term Sterility
"We failed to get cubs from these pairs, which were fed with GM foodstuffs. It was proved that these pairs lost their ability to give birth to their cubs."

This quote is Dr. Alexei Surov, a Russian biologist describing the results of a study of hamsters fed genetically modified soy for two years over three generations. By the third generation, most the hamsters lost the ability to have babies. The pups who were born suffered slower growth and a high mortality rate.

You can track down the whole story via the Organic Consumers Association.

Natural does not mean non-toxic

2010-08-10T23:19:00.003-06:00

Again today something popped up that made me want to write a quick word about natural things that many people think of as non-toxic. Wrong! At least if you are chemically sensitive, that is a dangerous assumption.

Mint, cedar, lavender, menthol, pine.

These are examples of things that probably seem pleasant and generally harmless. But for the chemically injured/sensitive these things can be anywhere from irritating to downright harmful. Can be — but not for everyone with MCS. I know people with chemical sensitivities who have no trouble with some or all of these materials. I also know people who really get their asses kicked by them. They and dozens of other innocent-seeming things, like essential oils, need to be treated as guilty of being problematic until proven innocent.

Just today Cynthia dealt with someone who put cedar shakes on their house and now has a serious problem on his hands. It's going to take a lot of work to keep their house usable to him, and it is possible they will have to leave the house for good.

Such simple mistakes can have such mammoth consequences. Protect yourself with caution. Don't be scarred, but do be skeptical.

To fight the SPAM problem at CIIN

2010-07-26T12:20:00.003-06:00

At CIIN we have gotten more and more unwanted/crap/malicious e-mail to the point that we have had to activate an anti-spam program called BoxTrapper. As a practical matter, that means messages sent to us will probably get an automated message requiring the sender to simply hit "reply" in order to prove the message comes from a person and not a program.

It is an inconvenience, but once the person replies to the automated message, their original message goes through — no further action needed. Also, this a one-time thing. The sender should not have to do this again unless they send from a different account.

By the way, this has dramatically cut down on the junk e-mails we get.

This brings up a point to consider, do not just assume that your e-mails get to their destination. BoxTrapper is one of many anti-spam programs out there. Some are better and more convenient than others. If a message is important and you get no response, follow up in some way. There are too many ways an e-mail can go astray.

Surviving MCS

2010-07-24T23:51:00.001-06:00

Dr.Robert Mayer's book on the basics of surviving MCS seems to have hit the spot with many people. Right now it is only available through CIIN, the book's publisher. If you know of anyone in need of basic info on dealing with life with chemical sensitivities, point them to us at 406-547-2255, or chemicalinjury@ciin.org. It could be a great help to them.

The Basics of Surviving Chemical Sensitivity

2010-07-14T00:37:00.001-06:00

CIIN has started selling their new book by Dr. Robert S. Mayer, "Strategies for Surviving Chemical Sensitivity — the Basics." It is the book MCS sufferers have been needing forever.

The book comes from Dr. Mayer's own trail-and-error experiences living with MCS as well as from tons of suggestions from over a thousand people who responded to the question, "What Works?" Some of these suggestions have also appeared in the monthly newsletter, "Our Toxic Times."

Anyone who is stricken with chemical sensitivities needs help just learning how to make the knid of changes in their lives that will allow them to survive. It can be done, but only those who have gone before can be expected to know the tricks. I wish like hell my wife had this book in 1987.

MCS = redox damage

2010-07-08T23:17:00.001-06:00

It seems there is research out of Italy linking Multiple Chemical Sensitivities with damage to the redox system. More on this will appear in Our Toxic Times when the research becomes available here. Until we see the research, that is all for now on this subject.

It's NOT an allergy

2010-06-17T16:25:00.004-06:00

Over and Over again people with MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivities) try to equate their illness with allergies. That may be handy at times, but it can be dangerous.

When MCS is treated as an allergy, dangerous consequences can ensue. People, including MCS sufferers, tend to dismiss allergic reactions (other than anaphylactic shock) as inconvenient but harmless. Wrong!

An MCS reaction isn't an IgE-mediated event, as an allergic reaction is, and while further damage to the redox system, central nervous system, and/or immune system is not a certainty, it is definitely a possibility.

All MCS sufferers have redox and central nervous system damage, and 88% of MCS sufferers have developed 2 or more autoimmune conditions, such as lupus, multiple sclerosis, thyroid conditions, etc.

MCS is damage! MCS reactions are dangerous!

An allergic reaction is the immune system misidentifying a substance and mounting an inappropriate response. An MCS reaction is different — dangerously different — and needs to be addressed differently, treated differently, and thought about differently.

Worry over toxins seems universal

2010-03-08T17:52:00.004-07:00

The U.S. is definitely not the only country where parents and others worry about slowly killing or maiming their children. We ran a brief article in Our Toxic Times recently about Viet Nam's actions to cut down on toxic toys and clothing, and now I ran across an editorial from Pakistan about the lack of laws to protect their children.

As more and more countries rise to the battle, we slowly build momentum in the effort to make this world a cleaner/safer place for us humans.

More exposure, more damage, more symptoms

2010-02-25T10:44:00.002-07:00

It seems that periodically this must be said to those with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS): Do not challenge toxic environments if you are chemically sensitive! Do not go to a movie under the assumption that you will just put up with feeling crappy for a few days. Do not go to the hair dresser thinking it will be worth a few days of being sick to look good. Do not put yourself in contaminated areas thinking you can put up with the reactions -- except in an emergency, of course.

It is sad, depressing, inconvenient for sure, but each exposure beats up on the body a little more, and each exposure risks significantly adding to the damage that is MCS.

Whether you call it MCS or chemical hyper-sensitivity or environmental illness, the illness is caused by damage to the body's systems that are supposed to protect you. To put it super simply, more exposure, more damage, more symptoms.

Over the 20 years Chemical Injury Information Network has been in existence, we have talked to thousands of people who tell us some version of the refrain: That place or product didn't use to bother me. MCS is certainly progressive if exposures continue. Don't take chances if it is not absolutely necessary.

Crappy places list

2009-12-23T17:49:00.003-07:00

If you have internet, go to the Mother Nature Network's site and check out the photos of the 15 most toxic places on Earth. The pictures are mind-boggling even though the word "toxic" is not always the right word to use.

The photos of rivers are the worst, in my opinion, because I can compare them to how the rivers here in Montana look.

Some of the photos don't really tell the story. You get that from the brief descriptions.

The last photo, which I believe might be a composite or artist's rendition of the Earth from space, is just creepy. The things we do without looking ahead.

Where to (not) live.

2009-11-17T17:39:00.003-07:00

Forbes magazine came out a short time ago with its list of the 40 most contaminated metropolitan areas in the U.S. I found few surprises. Atlanta came out worst, followed by Detroit, Houston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Los Angeles.

Of the few surprises, Portland, OR, being high on the list caught me off guard. It is just a couple steps less worse than LA. Austin, TX, being on the list also was a surprise to me. Otherwise, I see the list as being mostly the usual suspects.

Forbes' list considers more than just air quality. It includes in its ranking the number of superfund sites, the pounds of toxins released, and the number of sites releasing toxic chemicals. In fact, there are some interesting comparisons of air quality ranking and overall toxic ranking.

You can read the article and see the full list of their most toxic cities here.

I haven't done this, but it might be interesting to compare the Forbes list with the toxicity map on our web site at ciin.org.

Also, Forbes has maps of other rankings than most toxic. There's Worst Cities For Short-Term Particle Pollution, Worst Cities For Year-Round Particle Pollution, and Worst Cities For Ozone Pollution.

Another site to help when relocating

2009-11-04T14:01:00.004-07:00

I've just looked at the government's Air Quality Index web site www.airnow.gov. There appears to be a ton of info/data covering the continental U.S.

For anyone planning a move or traveling, this site should be helpful, especially when combined with the info from scorecard.org and from the map at the bottom of our housing page at ciin.org.

For those with MCS, relocating or traveling can be really difficult. Having places to find reliable information about different places can help, but no one resource will be perfect. Combining data from these 3 sources will help develop a clearer picture of the places on anyone's list of possibilities.

Are people reacting to hand sanitizers?

2009-10-23T11:10:00.007-06:00

I got a message the other day from someone who reacts very badly to some of the hand sanitizers we are seeing everywhere these days. I have not heard much in the way of bad reactions, but those things are so common now that even a tiny percent of people being hurt by them will add up to a lot. Here is the gist of her message:

I would like to hear from anyone who has suffered anaphylaxis or any other adverse health effects from exposures to hand sanitizers now widely used in medical clinics and hospitals to fight swine flu and other bacteria and viruses. Contact me at "mcscherie at comcast.net"

If you contact her about this, please post to this blog too, and maybe I will put something in our magazine Our Toxic Times. Thanks.

The WayBack Machine

2009-10-21T13:19:00.003-06:00

They say that anything that gets onto the internet never really goes away. It is stored or archived somewhere. One of those somewheres is "the Wayback Machine" at web.archive.org where you can find past web pages for almost any web site.

I used it for our own site, ciin.org, looking for an item from several years ago. And after a couple clicks, there it was -- the CIIN site from 2006.

If you are doing research on the internet, and it looks as if a page or site you know used to be there, give The Wayback Machine a try. But be careful; it can be a lot of fun and can pull you in for long stretches.

Exposures and emotions

2009-10-07T21:41:00.000-06:00

Just a short note about something we at Chemical Injury Information Network already know. When a person inhales a chemical, it goes up the nose, hits the olfactory bulb, and goes straight to the brain. No messing around with the blood-brain barrier.

In the brain, the chemical reaches the hippocampus, very important to logic and emotion. As a practical matter, this means that exposures can leave a person with volatile emotions and impaired logic ability – just about the worst combination at the worst time.

Chemical sensitivity, or MCS, comes with a lot of emotional pain. It can help if people understand that the heightened emotions they feel under exposure are not really theirs – they are artificially produced and will ease off as the exposure wears off.

Stop saying "chemical free"

2009-10-05T23:29:00.001-06:00

We in the chemical injury community need to stop saying "chemical free" when we mean toxin free. The whole world is made up of chemicals -- including our own bodies -- so to say we are trying to live "chemical free" makes no sense to the normal community. It makes us look as if we are simply afraid of the modern world, or worse, just plain nuts.

Within the MCS community saying "chemical free" is understood; it is usable short-hand because we know what it is supposed to mean. When dealing with the normal world, say "toxin free" or possibly "toxicant free" and sound more science-based rather than phobia-based.

The dose does not always make the poison

2009-08-26T11:38:00.005-06:00

There is an old saying in toxicology: the dose makes the poison. What that means is that things can be harmful at higher amounts and not harmful at lower amounts. Unfortunately, that is very old school. Newer research shows that some things have not safe level, and many substances can have stronger or different effects as the dose goes down. See the article in Science News, January 20, 2007, as reported on in the October 2007 issue of Our Toxic Times.

As a practical matter, this adds another layer of complication for those who are hypersensitive to chemicals. You cannot make the assumption that items will out-gas to the point where they will no longer cause reactions.

And always remember — trying to live through an out-gassing may make you hypersensitive to whatever is out-gassing. If that happens — a real hypersensitivity — you will likely never be able to tolerate the item. That is why out-gassing something must be done away from your living space. You cannot just "tough it out" and expect something good to come of it.

Be cautious, please

2009-07-29T12:48:00.002-06:00

People with MCS or chemical injury always seem to be looking for a product or treatment that will make them better. Perfectly understandable. However, they need to approach all such things with a super large amount of caution. One of the hallmarks of MCS is overreacting or strangely reacting to most anything that comes into their lives.

That means that when a doctor or health-care practitioner or sales person says a certain dose or product will be appropriate, the MCSer's first reaction must be to step back and ask a few questions. Such as, does this person actually understand MCS? Can I start with a very low, partial dose to measure my reaction? Is there any actual evidence to suggest this will help me?

Be cautious, please. Very few people have an in-depth understanding of Multiple Chemical Sensitivities. There is too much uncertainty in the field of environmental illness and medicine to make broad assumptions about the illness, its dynamics, and possible treatments. People with the best of intentions can too often cause things to get much worse. And, of course, some people are simply peddling crap to make money.

That being said, there are a few things out there that have helped people — sometimes substantially. In pursuing treatments and the like, take two large suitcases along, one filled with caution and the other filled with common sense. And if need be, contact the Chemical Injury Information Network to see if they have any information that might help.

Time Can Move So Slowly

2009-03-26T23:46:00.002-06:00

The new case definition created out of Chemical Injury Information Network's San Francisco workshop is in the process of being peer reviewed. After that, it will be put in line to be published. I know it seems to be taking a long time, but that is because it is taking soooooo loooong.

The only good thing I can say about the pace of the process is that by the time it is finished, it will be a pleasant surprise because we will have all forgotten about it. Keep a good thought.

The “car wreck” dynamic of MCS

2009-03-24T16:58:00.002-06:00

Co-morbidity in MCS, or the “car wreck” dynamic, as an explanation of why so many illnesses or problems seem to run with MCS.

When someone gets chemically injured and ends up with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, the MCS rarely comes alone. It usually comes with other health conditions that need to be dealt with too, such as: Porphyria, Multiple Sclerosis, various autoimmune diseases, Fibromyalgia, peripheral neuropathy, arthritis, and so on. What is super confusing, for doctors as well as patients, is that these co-morbid illnesses can occur on their own as well as in conjunction with MCS.

The “car wreck” explanation is very simple; if you are in a car crash and end up with a broken leg and a concussion, even though the two injuries were caused by the same accident, they are not tied together and are not treated as a single injury.

In Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, you can have two or more unrelated conditions or illnesses caused by the same exposure. And, in fact, that is the more common experience. My wife, for example, ended up with 7 distinct health problems from her prolonged formaldehyde exposure.

This also explains why many MCS sufferers can find treatments that help somewhat — relieving some symptoms without actually making their MCS better. And, to look on the bright side, it points out the benefits of being able to treat what is treatable even if it isn’t a cure for MCS.

Some chemical injury is manageable, some is treatable, some is possibly curable, but unfortunately some is irreversible.

However, I will say it again, avoidance is beneficial in all cases. It helps treatments be more effective. It is what makes management possible. It makes life for those with chemically induced illnesses more comfortable.

Software resource for the cash-strapped

2009-02-27T01:03:00.001-07:00

Just found a web site that is both "cool" and valuable. Those who suffer MCS usually are cash-strapped. Their computers, if they have one, can be out of date. So finding software that goes with past operating systems can be frustrating. Also, free software is to be preferred if financial resources are lacking. This site covers both problems.
Last Freeware version
There are 30 pages of programs, a couple that I use still, and it was fun for me to browse thru them. This is like the program version of The Wayback Machine.

Barcodes don't tell the story, sorry

2009-02-14T19:41:00.003-07:00

There is a story making the rounds about how the first three digits of a product's bar code tells where the product was made – its country of origin. With all the worry brought on by reports of lead and mercury contaminated toys, knowing a product's country of origin looms large in our minds these days.

Unfortunately, this bar code idea doesn't work. You'll learn at www.snopes.com/politics/business/barcodes.asp that there are basically two things wrong with it:

First, the first three digits do give the country of origin, but not of the product – of the bar code itself. Those digits tell you what country assigned that code to the company. It's possible that that country is also where the product was made, but that would be just by chance. For example, a Philippine company would have numbers beginning with 480 assigned to it, but its products could be made anywhere, in the Philippines, China, Canada, anywhere, and still have a code beginning with 480.

Second, those first three digits do not appear in the Universal Product Code (UPC) that we see on all of the stuff we buy in the U.S. Instead, those tell-tail digits appear at the beginning of the European Article Number (EAN) bar code, a code rarely seen in the U.S.

Go to the Snopes rumor-busting web site (www.snopes.com) to check out any rumor you hear and follow your nose. You'll most likely find information on what you're looking for. It's good to have a place you can trust pretty much when it comes to the weird and scary stuff you hear these days.

The (not so) Silly Season

2008-09-30T12:49:00.004-06:00

The end of September is about the middle of what we at Chemical Injury Information Network call the Silly Season — the same way the 6'6" linebacker might be called Tiny. This is the time of year when due to summer-long exposures to sun, sun screen, pesticides, herbicides, and fires those who are chemically sensitive are at their lowest point. Emotionally hammered, logic impaired, physically beat.

This is the time of year to avid important decision-making, and to work hard to keep relationships on an even keel. Good luck.

It ain't the immune system

2008-09-05T11:59:00.004-06:00

Chemical sensitivity — including MCS — is obviously a complex illness. However, research —often spurred by the conferences of the Chemical Injury Information Network (CIIN)— leads us away from the belief that the immune system is the culprit in the illness. For sure the immune system can be screwed up, but that is more a symptom of the illlness. In fact, the immune system can react in various ways in MCS. Sometimes it is depressed— sometimes it is hyper activated—and sometimes it remains mostly uninvolved.

When trying supplements or other treatments focused on the immune system, people must be careful to not agrevate the problem by, for example, doing things to boost the immune system when it is already overactive. I've talked to hundreds of people with chemical sensitivities over the past 14 years who have piled on treatments and supplements —usually based on well-intended suggestions— without regard for the specifics of their situation, their symptoms. It can be a wealth-draining waste or it can make a horrible situation worse.

GM-resistant pests

2008-08-23T22:23:00.004-06:00

I just read an article about bugs becoming resistant to the genetically modified crops that were supposed to be pest resistant. This has the potential to become super serious. It means that crops that have built-in pesticide will have to be sprayed anyway. It also means that the chemical companies that developed these crops will be doing the "new and improved" 2-step to correct their mistakes. And farmers here and abroad will go insane and broke trying to keep up.

It will also make it harder and harder to avoid genetically engineered foods. For those who have MCS or are chemically sensitive, or those who are just trying to be cautious in our polluted world, organics are becoming more important and at the same time more difficult to produce.

If you can, find and support organic growers in your area — or national growers too. It's one way to fight the growing crapification of our air and water.

Case definition update

2008-05-20T00:17:00.003-06:00

At this time, there is a new case definition for MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity). It was written in a meeting of doctors/researchers that took place in August of last year (2007). It is now working its way through the peer review process on its way to publication. Difficult to tell how long that will take, but it probably won't come out until early next year, at a guess.
When it is published, we will shout it to the world in the pages of Our Toxic Times.

Case Definition

2007-10-25T22:05:00.000-06:00

Been a busy year. The case definition for MCS needed another meeting to get it done. That was held for two days in early August 2007 in Great Falls, Montana. The meeting was intense and productive, and a very good definition was put together — something that had been hoped for but not expected. It has since been put into the hands of Dr. William Meggs from the meetings to shepherd thru the necessary peer review process and into publishing.
Wish I had time to say more, but I don't.

Priorities

2007-04-06T14:27:00.000-06:00

I have been talking to a man who has serious chemical intolerance problems. He knows it. That is why he called me. However, he does not yet grasp the fact that he does not have a choice any more — his work place is injuring him, and it is most likely to the point of permanent injury.

If he stays where he is, and making a living is not an option — it's a requirement, then he will sooner or later get so sick from it that he cannot work in his occupation any more. He may get so sick that he cannot work at all, or even walk or talk or think normally. At that point, making a living may be completely impossible.

But that possibility is in the future, and earning money to eat and pay the mortgage is in the present. He has not yet come to the understanding that financial pain now may be needed to protect any future for him and his family. He needs accurate information about how his health is being impacted by the workplace chemicals so he can begin setting priorities.

Setting priorities means being able to see options and judging how they can help or hurt his situation. To see options, he needs information. I sent him to look at the web site for the Chemical Injury Information Network — ciin.org. It will give him a place to start to understand how his life has been changed. And it will help his see that he is not alone.

John

Very successful workshop

2006-08-22T22:18:00.000-06:00

The workshop was more successful than even I hoped. 33 doctors from across the U.S. and from 6 other countries sat down and worked together and learned how much is actually known about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. As an opening salvo in setting about creating a case definition for MCS, this was ex-cellent. Ten doctors now have the task of writing up a definition. The whole process could take months, but the wheels are now turning.

Also at the workshop, 2 doctors were able to present information about new, as yet unpublished, research. Those were Dr. Robert Haley and Dr. Mohamed Abou-Donia. Dr. Haley's info was good news about identifying brain injuries in Gulf War vets. Dr. Abou-Donia's was scary news about long term brain cell death from exposures to several chemicals, including DEET — found in many bug repellants.

In spite of the toll the workshop preparation and this trip took on Cynthia, it appears to have been well worth the effort. Now we wait to see the product: a scientifically based case definition of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity that can help researchers and ignorant doctors world-wide.

22 days and counting down

2006-07-12T23:16:00.000-06:00

Twenty-two days from now the MCS Case Definition Workshop opens. With luck, it will result in a new definition for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity that will get world-wide acceptance. With doctors or researchers from 7 foreign countries coming — Australia, Canada, Scotland, Germany, Spain, Italy (which just won the World Cup), and Japan — the workshop has a real world-spanning flavor.

Things are bound to get more and more nuts leading up to the workshop. Adios.

MCS case definition workshop preperation

2006-06-09T11:24:00.000-06:00

The MCS case definition workshop is coming in less than two months, and the workbook for the participants and others is looking great. It is big — over 600 pages so far — and contains the most pertinent, peer reviewed research papers on MCS. The book will be an awesome resource, and it will be available for sale after the workshop through ciin.org.
In the meantime, we will be starting to construct the workbooks — more than 100 of them, and that will be a monumental job. Makes me wish we had unlimited funds to have the woorkbook bound professionally. It is going to be a busy summer.

Wearing bamboo

2006-05-20T22:38:00.000-06:00

Bamboo is one of the most invasive and hearty plants around. They make wood floors out of it that, from what I understand, rival other good hardwood floors. They also make paper, of course. Now it apears they are making clothing out of bamboo. No kidding.

I found this out from a catalog selling shirts made of bamboo and cotton. I am inclined to try one of them, but have not done so yet. But I love the idea of bamboo clothes. Cotton, the defacto go-to fabric, is one of the most chemical-intensive crops grown today. If we can clothe ourselves from what is essentially a weed tree, that would be great. I don't know how chemically intensive or environmentally friendly bamboo fabric is, but it is something to look in to.

Uncomfortable but true

2006-05-05T11:48:00.000-06:00

It is uncomfortable but true that some chemical exposures can make people appear to be crazy — just plain nuts. However, remove the exposure and the “nuts” goes away. I’ve seen it happen over and over.
There is a second “however” to deal with. Over time, exposures take a toll — and it can become a permanent toll — on a person’s mental state. Sadly, we have witnessed downward spirals in some people that leave them no longer able to think, or talk coherently. By that time, any recovery is going to be uncertain and a long time coming.

This is not an allergy

2006-04-20T16:21:00.000-06:00

There are many misconceptions about chemical sensitivities. Near the top of the list is that chemical sensitivities are a form of allergy.
Not so.
There are technical differences between allergies and chemical sensitivities, and those are important when dealing with doctors, but there are two practical, everyday reasons to not confuse chemical sensitivities with allergies.
The first is this: though people may get an understanding of what kind of distress you are trying to describe, they will likely expect you to take an antihistamine and get on with your life. Antihistamines may provide a little relief of some symptoms, but many people with chemical sensitivities cannot tolerate them so they will tend to feel worse.
The other is that many treatments designed for allergies are not designed for chemical sensitivities. In fact, some allergy treatments can be harmful for those who suffer chemical sensitivities. Provacation and neutralization comes immediately to mind.
-That's all for now.