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ATLANTA HEAL NEWSLETTER

Summer 2010

Published by the Atlanta Chapter of the Human Ecology Action League (HEAL), Inc.
P.O. Box 28116, Atlanta, GA 30358-0116.  www.atlantaheal.org
President: Jim Boswell, Program Chairman: Sydna Fisher, Membership: Joyce Taylor, Secretary: Pat Hetzler, Treasurer: Andrew Bunecicky, Webmaster: Ian Greenberg, Newsletter: Sydna Fisher

SUMMER MEETINGS

Our June meeting was an indoor picnic at Andrew Bunecicky’s house. Everyone enjoyed beating the record summer heat in air-conditioned comfort and a good time was had by all.

There will be no meeting in July as our board of directors convenes to work on publicity and other issues.

Our August 21st meeting will be a dinner at Jason’s Deli in Tucker (4073 Lavista Rd) at 4:30pm followed by a games night at the home of Pat and Morris Hetzler at 6:30pm. Directions (Hetzler home): Take Chamblee Tucker outside 285. At the Henderson Mill intersection go straight about .6 mile and turn left on Northbrook Drive. Go .2 mile. The house is on the right corner lot. 3359 Northbrook Drive. Make sure you and anyone you bring are fragrance free!

PESTICIDE GUIDE TO PRODUCE SHOPPING

Buying organic can be expensive and it is also difficult to find in some areas. There are some items, such as strawberries, that are heavily pesticided and should always be organic. On the other hand, tropical fruits, such as mangoes and pineapples are not heavily pesticided or have thick skins that protect the fruit and it is not as important that they be organic. Here is a list of the dirty dozen and the clean 15:

The Dirty Dozen       The Clean 15

Celery                           Onion

Peaches                       Avocado

Strawberries                Sweet Corn

Apples                          Pineapple

Blueberries                  Mango

Nectarines                   Asparagus

Bell Peppers               Sweet Peas

Spinach                        Kiwi

Kale                              Cabbage

Cherries                       Eggplant

Potatoes                      Papaya

Grapes (Imported)      Watermelon

                                      Broccoli

                                      Tomato

                                      Sweet Potato

 

Source: Environmental Working Group

BOOK REVIEW – THE EMPEROR’S NEW DRUGS

Exploding the Antidepressant Myth by Irving Kirsch

Do antidepressant’s work? Hundreds of studies and thousands of patients say that they do. But, what does this really mean? Dr Kirsch and his staff did a meta-analysis examining two decades of published and unpublished studies on the six leading antidepressants. This analysis confirmed that patients improve considerably after taking these drugs, but it also shows that patients given the placebo improved almost as much as those who got the actual drug. Dr Kirsch claims that the difference is not statistically significant and goes on to hypothesize that the reason these drugs work is largely due to the placebo effect. He also contends that due to the side effects of these drugs most people in the studies knew when they were given the actual drug and this increased the placebo effect which accounts for the small difference in performance between the drug and a placebo.

He goes on to explain just how powerful the placebo effect can be and looks at the role of placebos in the practice of medicine. He also disputes the popular theory that the newer antidepressants work by balancing faulty brain chemistry.

As you can imagine, this book caused an outcry and controversy in the billion dollar antidepressant drug business. The book is well written, solidly based on scientific evidence and careful analysis and is an interesting read for anyone interested in how big pharma manipulates and misrepresents data to the public. The author recommends treating depression with more compassionate methods than popping pills.

SAFE SUNSCREENS

Summer is upon us and as millions of people seek relief from the summer heat at beaches, lakes and swimming pools, sunscreen sales are at an all time high. The Environmental working Group (EWG) has investigated hundreds of sunscreens and have certified the following list to be the safest and most effective products available.

  1. All Terrain - Aquasport / Terasport / Kidsport Performance Sunscreen SPF 30
  2. Badger Sunscreen for Face and Body, SPF 15 & 30
  3. Beyond Coastal Lip and Face Screen SPF 30
  4. California Baby Sunblock/Sunscreen Lotion/Stick, SPF 30+
  5. Caribbean Solutions - Natural/Biodegradable SolGuard, SPF 25, Sol Kid Kare Natural Sunscreen, SPF 25
  6. Desert Essense Age Reversal SPF 30 Mmineral Sunscreen.
  7. Episencial Sunny Sunscreen SPF 35
  8. Estion Sunscreen with Zinc, SPF 38
  9. Jason Natural Cosmetics - Sunbrellas: Mineral Based Physical Sunblock, SPF 30+, Sunbrellas: Chemical Free Sunblock, SPF 30+, Earth’s Best: Sunblock Mineral Based, SPF 30
  10. Kabana Skin Care - Green Screen Organic Sunscreen Fragrance Free, SPF 20, Green Screen Organic Sunscreen, SPF 22, Skin Tone Tinted
  11. L’uvalla Certified Organic SPF 20 Sunscreen Face/Body
  12. La Roche-Posay Anthelios 40 Sunscreen Cream
  13. Little Forest Sunscreen Lotion For Babies and Kids, SPF 30+
  14. Loving Naturals Sunscreen, SPF 30+
  15. Miessence Reflect Outdoor Balm, SPF 15
  16. Purple Prairie Botanicals - SunStuff, SPF 30, Sun Stick, SPF 30, SunStuff, SPF 15
  17. Soleo Organics / Wyland Organics / Atlantis Resort All Natural Sunscreen, SPF 30+
  18. thinkbaby and thinksport Sunscreen SPF 30+
  19. Trukid Sunny Days Face and Body Stick, SPF 30+
  20. UV Natural - Baby Sunscreen, SPF 30+, Sunscreen Sport, SPF 30+, Sunscreen, SPF 30+
  21. Vanicream Sunscreen Sport, SPF 35

Most of these sunscreens can be purchased on www.amazon.com and some are available at health food stores. For much more info on sunscreens and a searchable database rating 477 popular brands, go to the Environmental Working Group’s website at

http://www.ewg.org/2010sunscreen/best-beach-sport-sunscreens .

ODOR CONDITIONING

You enter a building and a strong odor of vanilla and cinnamon hits your nostrils, your brain gets into an excited state, and you start to panic. Your first thought is “Oh my God, there’s an air freshener! I better get out of here before I get really sick”. At this point you have two options – run or try to figure out where the odor is coming from. If you took the first option, chances are you went home feeling defeated and complained about how toxic the world is. However, if you stayed, your eyes soon found the plate of fresh cookies! So what just happened here?

Classical conditioning theorists would say that after being exposed to the stimulus (odor from the cookies), your immediate response was anxiety which caused a variety of symptoms. They would claim that having been exposed to a similar chemical-based odor in the past which made you ill, you have now become conditioned to this type of odor and you will experience symptoms whenever you encounter it. Classical conditioning became popular decades ago when a scientist named Pavlov was doing research on the digestive system and noticed that whenever his dogs encountered food they would salivate. He rang a bell whenever he fed his dogs and then discovered that the dogs would salivate every time they heard the bell even without any food present. This became known as classical conditioning and has been successfully used in psychology ever since.

So what does this mean for those of us with MCS? Over-exposure to toxic chemicals has made us sick, creating a high level of anxiety when we venture out of our comfort zone. We have to be afraid of anything scented because of the potential danger, so most of us go to great lengths to live in an odorless world. Now, when all odors are eliminated, our odor tolerance threshold starts diminishing rapidly and soon we find even the slightest odor troubling. My mom, who does not have MCS, stopped using fragranced products because she wants me to be able to visit safely anytime I want. Now she notices even the slightest odor and finds strong odors offensive. One day my dad put on cologne and it made her so nauseous that he had to wash it off! I talked to a recovering MCS lady who now works in an office building and lives a pretty normal life who claims that if she goes odor free for any extended period, her naturally scented soap starts to bother her. What I can conclude from this is that it’s not normal for the brain to live in an odor free environment and it becomes conditioned to react to even the slightest fragrance.

So, before you go out and make yourself sick breathing toxic odors and write me some colorful hate mail, let’s try some experiments to make classical conditioning work in our favor. Cut open some fresh fruit like oranges or pineapples and let the smell permeate throughout your house. Use lots of garlic in your food and let it stink up the place. Bake cookies with lots of vanilla and cinnamon as you relive fond childhood memories. If you can tolerate it, brew some fresh organic coffee or some delicious fragrant tea and let the aroma tantalize your taste buds. Try these odor conditioning experiments for a few weeks and see if it helps the anxiety and exposure symptoms when you encounter fragrances, chemical and natural. Amazing. What you smell could help you get well!

ENVIRONMENTAL ILLNESS AND THE NATURE OF FEAR

In ancient times, man lived with a lot to fear. There was a constant threat of being attacked by wild animals, not having enough to eat, extreme weather, being attacked by enemies, plagues, etc. In those times a certain level of fear was useful, because it helped to keep us safe. Now, in our modern, western world these threats are largely non-existent, but anxiety disorders are at an all time high.

It’s not to say that modern life is not scary, it’s just that the threats are different and not nearly as life threatening. A great man once said “there is nothing to fear, but fear itself” and this has never been more relevant than in today’s uncertain times. Mass hysteria can lead to dire consequences like financial system crashes, riots, wars and looting. Often, all that is needed is a rumor that is widely circulated. After “War of the Worlds” was broadcast on the radio decades ago, there were people who actually thought that earth was under attack by aliens and started stockpiling food and weapons for the upcoming confrontation. Our political “talking heads” on the radio and TV manipulate the fear response while making their off the wall ideas actually seem credible. I have looked back on many statements made by these doomsday commentators and can’t believe how easily I was made a believer. It is also interesting how we are more drawn to the negative news than the positive.

Those of us with environmental illness have a great degree of fear and often leave our safe havens in a constant state of anxiety. The more exposures we get, and the more health issues we have, the more this fear ends up controlling our lives. Pretty soon we don’t want to take any risks at all and live life in a state of quiet desperation. We miss out on picnics, family get-togethers, movies, plays, sports events, etc. If your exposures can be life threatening, then you are justified most of the time, but if you recover after an exposure and get back to normal in a reasonable period of time, you need to be pushing your limits more often. Sometimes the emotional high from being with loved ones or seeing a great movie is worth the hangover you get the next day.

When you do decide to push your limits always give yourself permission to take it easy the next day or two in order to recover. Don’t plan an outing if you have somewhere you have to be the next day, like a doctor’s appointment. Before heading out do some deep breathing, relaxing exercises, and visualize a positive outcome. Always plan an exit strategy like taking your own car in case you need to leave. When you get back, remove your clothes and hop in the shower to remove any chemical and other residues. Alka Seltzer Gold (available from CVS), glutathione, vitamin C (can be stimulating for some before bedtime), saunas, Epsom salt baths and relaxation exercises can be helpful in taking the edge off a reaction. Here’s to a safe and active summer!

RECENT MCS NEWS

June 2010:

Through dedicated and exhaustive legal efforts, the attorneys for Dr. William J. Rea of the Dallas Environmental Health Clinic succeeds in getting the first case dismissed. The legal efforts are made possible by a legal defense fund set up to protect Dr Rae and his innovative environmental illness practice of over 30 years.

A new non-profit organization called Re|shelter forms to address the urgent need for housing alternatives for people with environmental intolerances. (Please see full article in section below).

The mysterious illness hitting gulf workers after the massive BP oil spill is now being identified as 'TILT' or Toxicant-Induced Loss of Tolerance. TILT, also known as MCS, has been diagnosed in workers who had inadequate protection from the oil and the toxic dispersant used. So far, about a hundred workers have been affected and workers are now being supplied with protective gear.

May 2010:

In 2006 Craig Bowes, a Pennsylvania man, erected a “bubble” room on his property for his wife without permits. After ignoring a court order to remove the structure he is slapped with more than $32,000 in fines and court costs. Judge Carol K. McGinley also scolds Bowes for not complying with her October 2008 order to remove the structure. ''He continues to play games with the court and the legal system and we're not going to have it,'' the judge said.

Bowes' attorney, Benjamin Lichtman, said his client is now ''stuck between a rock and a hard place.'' Bowes is trying to find a new place to live with his wife, Elizabeth, but says the fines may prohibit him from buying a new home. Bowes says he won't remove the structure because his wife has MCS and must spend most of her time in the 11-by-14-foot steel and porcelain structure, which has a bedroom and bathroom.

April 2010:

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services, issues a policy on indoor air quality that will affect all CDC offices (owned, leased and rented) and more than 15,000 employees nationwide. Among a host of indoor air quality standards, the policy includes specific guidelines restricting the use of fragrance in cleaning and personal care products. This is arguably the strongest and most important chemical-free and fragrance-free policy in existence for the workplace.

March 2010:

The city of Detroit restricts fragrance use at all of their facilities after a $100,000 settlement in a lawsuit filed by an employee who complained that a co-workers' perfume made it difficult for her to do her job.

February 2010:

Saskatoon Transit bans a Canadian woman from riding on a bus because her perfume bothers the driver. The driver who has asthma claims this is health hazard for him and the passengers.

Florida’s Boward County Sheriff's Internal Affairs office implements a fragrance-free policy after an employee complains of health issues due to strong fragrances.

December 2009:

Reversing a decade-old decision the EPA announces plans to require pesticide manufacturers to disclose the inert ingredients in their products, since many of these can be toxic as well.

November 2009:

In South Carolina a 19 month old boy dies and his 2 year old brother is critically injured after their mother repeatedly fogs their trailer for bugs.

September 2009:

The EPA announces plans to review 6 controversial chemicals. EPA administrator Lisa Jackson announces a plan to change how the US regulates toxic chemicals. Jackson says that the 1975 law is “cumbersome and time-consuming” and the current administration will promote a new law geared to place the onus on industry to prove that the chemicals they sell are safe.

July 2009:

An office building in Ft Worth, TX is evacuated after 150 people become ill. Fire officials on the scene suspect carbon monoxide or other toxic fumes, but an investigation shows that the incident started with two people complaining about dizziness after a co-worker sprayed perfume. It is not known what type of perfume is to blame.

June 2009:

The department of Health of the Austrian government recognizes MCS as a physical disease and adds a code under their registrar of diseases. MCS is already formally recognized by the governments of Germany, Canada, Denmark and Japan.

The Oregon house votes to ban a fire retardant suspected of harming the environment, despite concerted lobbying efforts by the chemical industry. If signed into law, Oregon would be the third state after WA and ME to ban a type of decabrominated diphenyl ether used for decades in furniture to prevent fires.

For more info and links for these articles, see our website http://www.atlantaheal.org/Advocacy.htm#Ref1.

HOUSING PROJECT FOR PEOPLE WITH ENVIROMENTAL SENSITIVITIES

Re|shelter is a new non-profit organization forming to address the urgent need for housing alternatives for people with environmental intolerances. Currently applying for 501(c)3 status, the charitable organization is committed to addressing the global housing crisis and high rates of homelessness and suicide within vulnerable populations affected by disabling environmental sensitivities. Their activities will include fundraising, awarding housing aid grants, facilitating the design and construction of healthy homes and communities, and using the arts to promote awareness.

Co-founders Julie Genser and Julie Laffin formed the charity because "the need is so great, and no one else is doing it.". Genser and Laffin are hoping to direct funding from government and the private sector to help prevent homelessness and suffering. Both Genser and Laffin were disabled by severe chemical, electrical, and other environmental sensitivities, and have a firsthand understanding of the housing struggle for this population.

Genser and Laffin will comprise the Board of Directors. The Advisory Board has 16 notable members with experience working in related fields, or with the illness itself, including William J. Rea, M.D., a pioneer in environmental medicine and safer housing construction, Pamela Reed-Gibson, Ph.D., an author and researcher of the life impacts of environmental sensitivities, Magda Havas, Ph.D., an expert on the biological effects of electromagnetic radiation, Carl Grimes, President of the Indoor Air Quality Association, Bennie Howard, the former director of the Office of Disability at HUD, Susan Molloy, a long-time disability rights activist, and Paula Baker-Laporte, an architect experienced in building for those with environmental sensitivities.

Some of the group's planned projects include awarding home renovation grants to eligible individuals, construction of a clean air community as well as an emergency shelter, and an architecture school outreach program that educates students while collaborating on re|shelter's projects.

Genser, who has moved seven times in the last five years in search of safe housing, studied Design and Environmental Analysis/Interior Design at Cornell University and coordinated construction projects prior to getting ill. Laffin searches each summer for a place to escape the aerial crop spraying in her home county in northern Illinois. Driven by compassion and personal insight, the two are very excited to be taking this important step, as there is no other organization in existence today that is solely focused on housing solutions for those with environmental intolerances. For more information, please visit www.reshelter.org

MEMBER NEWS

[] August Birthdays: Barb Almy 7th, Hilda Tatom 10th, Jerry Heltzer 12th, Shirley Parsons 26th, Jan Hensley 28th.

[] September Birthdays: Pat Hetzler 4th, Scott Killingsworth19th, Mark Fisher 22nd, Mary Norman 28th, David Taylor 29th.

BUSINESS

[] Welcome new member Rebecca Stuckey. Rebecca has been sensitive for a long time and became worse after a building was painted. She is looking forward to meeting people in the group with similar issues and is looking for doctors that treat MCS. Rebecca’s interests include nature and art.

[] If you have any books or supplements to pass along, bring them to the meetings.

[] If you have any size small clothes, towels, sheets, or blankets to donate for Cindy Bronk, please contact Sydna Fisher or bring them to the meeting.

 

Thank you to Mark Fisher and Ian Greenberg for your assistance with this newsletter.

As always, our aim is to educate, not medicate.

SOME OF OUR MEMBERS