 |
| Start with a 15oz can of BPA free beans of your choice and a cup of cooked rice |
 |
| Add cup each chopped tomatoes and onions, 1/2cup corn meal, 1/2 flour, tsp cumin, TB garlic, 1 jalapeno chopped |
 |
| Smush together with your hands or a potato masher |
 |
| Oops, this is what it looks like before the smush. |
Human exposure to bisphenol A underestimated – study Exposure to these chemical through plastic food packaging may have longer time impacts on our reproductive system and other abnormalities. Eat as much fresh food as possible and use glass or ceramics (just watch for lead and mercury in ceramics from other countries).
Bisphenol A in can linings – a storm is brewing: "Is the tidal wave of concern over bisphenol A (BPA) that swept away polycarbonate baby bottles containing the chemical about to cause similar mayhem in the food and beverage can sector?" Was doing some research for a few clients and discovered this great website, which contains a wealth of information. You can subscribe to a customizable newsletter.
I have been meaning for the longest time to provide you with a recap of the Women's Health Conference that I blogged live from last month, but with the Women's Economic Development Summit and family stuff, haven't found the time. But guess what? You can view or listen to the conference with a few clicks.If you don't have time to listen or view any other parts of the conference, you have got to listen to, Lisa P. Jackson of the EPA, Beverly Wright Phd,Will Allen of Growing Power (he will inspire you and blow you AWAY) and the authors of "Slow Death By Rubber Duck" speak. Teresa Heinz also gives a powerful testimonial of her breast cancer story and our Surgeon General also has an interesting background. All of the speakers were great, so try to listen to them all if possible. Let the journey begin......here
My quick recap:
Moderator: John Peterson Myers, PhD. Overview: Tools we used to determine what safe have been flawed, used to protect chemicals over people. New tools being used now, which are linking chemicals to health conditions more than ever. As we identify these chemicals, we need to develop practices and policies around their use. Green Chemistry on the uprise. Dr. Terry Collins, a leader in this area.
Panelists are strong advocates for change in the area of environmental toxins.
Dr. Hunt - enviromental exposures in the womb
Dr. Brody - indoor toxins
Dr. Wright - enviromental health and justice in poor communities
Dr. Hunt: Washington State Univeristy. Interests in reproductive health and limited amount of time women have to produce. Shows a slide of chromosomes of downs syndrome child. Huge increase of child's chance of downs syndrome with age of woman. We have change our reproductive habits. More women are waiting until they older before they get pregnant, but we aren't designed to do that. That is unique to humans. Are we making things worse? There have been dramatic changes in reproductive functions. Pathways of exposure, air, water, food packaging, pesticides, furniture, heavy metals. Today's focus: BPA. Contributor to chromosomal abnormalities, this was confirmed by leaching BPA from cages of lab animals. Changes in mice: Increased cancer risk, obesity, heart disease. These changes start in the womb, they can impact the female fetus' eggs. But this was discounted. This was then tested on monkey females (I know, that's terrible). Same result. There are other chemicals that behave like estrogens in the body. We need to start talking to our legislators about changes in our chemical policies. Change starts with us. Good example - removal of BPA from baby bottles as a result of individual phone calls made by concerned parents.
Dr. Brody: Silent Spring Institute: Rachel Carson, a hero for all of us. Topic: Environmental Chemicals and Breast Cancer. Turn the question of "why did I get breast cancer?" into "why are we seeing a higher incidence of breast cancer". Silent Spring Institute is seeking to answer this question. Challenges statements of lack of evidence about pesticides and toxins impact on breast cancer. New research shows that we can reduce incidences of breast cancer. Inherited genes are NOT the main story, only 27% due to genes. Industrial nations have the highest rates of breast cancer. What are opportunities for prevention? Risk factors: Radiation, alcohol use, lack of physical activity, hormone replacement therapy, overweight after menopause. Biological mechanisms linked: endocrine disruptors, developmental toxicants that affect mammary glands - 216 chemicals used in pollutants, cosmetics linked to breast cancer. www.silentspring.org for "breast cancer list". PAH's, PCB's. Why don't we know more, humans more difficult to study. Most chemicals have never been studied, so the no proof claims, aren't necessarily valid. Sometimes we just need to experiment with eliminating suspect chemicals and see if rates of disease drop.
Dr. Wright: Dillard University
New Orleans area also known as Mississippi River Chemical Corridor. Home to 136 petrochemical businesses. Will discuss environmental racism. Began her journey in this area 30 years ago. She says that climate change is real, activists knew this to be true a long time ago, because they were living with the results.New Orleans were completely shocked at the severity of Hurricane Katrina. Showing slides of tens of thousands of people trying to leave. Not everyone had the ability to leave. Women, children and elderly most impacted, least able to leave. Climate change impacts: flooding, leakage and spread of contaminants. Says that there was a lot of EPA agency double speak, tells the city that it is safe, but their samples say otherwise -extremely high levels of contaminants found in soil, gives a clean bill of health, but instructs parents on ways to keep children safe while playing outside. This weekend there will be a Jazz and Heritage Festival in N.O. at Church Hill Downs. This will be a safe place as the owners excavated all of the soil so the horses will be safe. Speaks of the incredible amount of bureaucracy in getting stimulus funding from HUD. Universities, labor, environmental organizations, community organizations and homeowners collaborated to do a demonstration project called "Safe Way Back Home" to show the government what needs to be done. 180 volunteers helped with project including getting Hazmat training, removed 6 inches of top soil from 23 homes on the street, replaced with sand, then sod. Politicians showed up afterwards. Neighborhood restored beautifully. The people make it happen baby! Dr. Wright did a great job and has a wonderfully humorous personality.
What chemicals are safe?
1) We need to educate ourselves?
2) Advocate for greater research and disclosure of chemical impacts
3) Going into another era of designing better products
4) We need to understand impact of interaction of mix of chemicals that we are exposed to
What should we do about mixtures of chemicals and interaction of other parts of the environment?
1) Dr. Wright says we are going to get very ugly and very smelly if scientists don't figure something out, because she has almost stopped using everything! S
2) Very complex issue, but environmental scientists are pushing for better science, research and policy
Web Resources
1) www.silentspring.org
2) Our Stolen Future Site
3) Be wary of information sponsors of sites that you research
4) EPA
5) Black and Into Green (my response)
What's Up with Soy?
1) Phytoestrogen - think of estrogen receptors as a parking lot, holding excess estrogens, especially for post menopausal women and women that have not used soy all of their lives. Studies in process.
2) Matters where you grew up, gestated, what grandmothers ate.
Great panel!!
Be sure to check out the Above The Fold daily environmental health news from around the world, featured in Black and Into Green. This weekend's highlights, I found to be particularly relevant:
Other green tidbits:
That's all folks!
Our finances are not the only aspects of our lives affected by deregulation. This same lack of oversight has cause a meltdown in the lives of people who have died of cancer (who knows how many) as result of the synthetic estrogen BPA, found in common everyday household items-canned food, baby bottles, cups, dishes, you name it. Finally, legislators are promising to take action to ban this dangerous substance, please write your representative, to ensure they remain committed. People are dying for a bailout.
The Cancer Association of South Africa has ordered a large study on the role that common plastics and other food additives may play in endangering our health. Margarine, baby bottles (polycarbonate or BPA) and cling wrap are being evaluated as potential sources of toxins. Canada has already taken steps to ban polycarbonate bottles. There has yet to be a ban on BPA in the United States, although major retailers like Walmart and Toys R Us are pulling BPA baby bottles from their shelves in the face of increasing evidence of the reproductive, breast and prostate cancer problems attributed to the chemical, which itself acts as a synthetic estrogen hormone. Common uses for the chemical:
I have in an attempt to be fair and balanced, included a rebuttal of the dangers of BPA by the Bisphenal A association for your review.
For those of you that want to err on the side of caution, look for the number "7" within the recycling triangle on the bottom of a container. This number implies that BPA may be present. You could also replace plastic food containers with glass, ceramic or stainless steel items. Purchasing fresh foods is another way to avoid leaching chemicals from food packaging.
For more reading on dangerous chemicals present in our environment check out the book, "The Hundred Year Lie", available in the Currently Reading section of Black and Into Green.
Since learning about the potential dangers of bisphenol-A (BPA), phthalates and other barely pronounceable product components, I am carefully scrutinizing ingredient and package labels. I was pleasantly surprised today to see a creamy tomato sauce container labeled "BPA free" and a bulk salad container promoting its biodegradeability. The latter was made out of corn and is labeled as being compostable. Amazing. It looks exactly like a normal petroleum based plastic container. Turns out that while these corn based containers do require considerably less energy to produce and don't release as many toxins in the environment during processing, there are some issues with compostability. The containers require a specialized composting that can't be done in your backyard. Some recycling centers don't accept them, because they don't mix well with other plastics. Whole Foods stores in some cities will accept used containers for recycling. So while not perfect, these types of containers are a start in the right direction for better and safer products for consumers and the earth. Look for these types of safe and eco-friendly products in your stores. If not available, ask the manager or email headquarters to request that they start using them. These containers have been on the market since 2004, but more consumers are requesting environmentally beneficial products and retailers are listening. Green money talks!!
You have probably heard a lot about baby bottles and toys made with BPA (Bisphenol-A), PVC and other toxic substances, that are being linked to hormonal issues and cancers. I have posted on this in the past. Glass baby bottles, stainless steel water bottles and sippy cups are selling out in some areas. The plastics seem to cause the most problems when exposed to hot substances or liquids. You can identify the most dangerous plastics by turning the item upside down and looking for the number inside the recycling triangle. The number 7 is not lucky in this application. It is the most likely to leach the chemicals that are causing the stir. I have attached an overview of the problematic plastics that I found on Wikipedia. I know Wikipedia is not always the most accurate source of information, but most of the information in this overview seems consistent with what I have read from other sources. I like the Wikipedia approach, because it is very comprehensive and easy to follow. Feel free to add your feedback on this topic. If you are looking for stainless steel water bottles, check out my recommended products on the sidebar. Personally, I am going old school and trying to use more products in glass and cardboard containers or fresh foods that don't require long term packaging. Good luck!
