Activistas

We mamas say "No Way to BPA!!"

As you'll see in this lovely video from the folks at EWG, this week the FDA and US Department of Health finally agree that the use of Bisphenol-A (BPA) in our products is a "cause for concern".  Here's what I wonder:  What the hell took them so long?  And when are they going to actually *do* something?

While they've been dragging their feet and folding to the interests of corporate lobbyists from the chemical industry, babies across the country have been consuming formula from cans with linings that contain BPA in bottles that also contain BPA many times per day.  Actually, we're all exposed to estrogen-mimicking BPA, whether it's from the lining of our cardboard milk containers, our canned food, or other various plastic wares.  Much, much valid and compelling research has been done to show the hormone-disrupting effects of this stuff, but still, *nothing* has been done in Washington or in Salem! 

I can't be the only mama feeling crazy with anger about this, right?

The good news is that our friends at the Oregon Environmental Council are way, way ahead of the FDA on this - and they've been fighting the good fight here at home.  As we speak, they are working to pass a bill that would make the use of BPA in baby and children's products ILLEGAL in Oregon.  As it should be.  Kind of a no-brainer, right? 

So who, might you ask, opposes this?  Out-of-state chemical lobby groups.  Not Oregonians.  But those lobby groups have deep pockets - and they're spending a lot of money to keep this toxic crap on our shelves.

What can you do?  Call and email your State Representative and State Senator and speak your mind.  OEC has made it easy for you to do this by simply clicking here.

Creating Change with Family Forward Oregon

Over the next several months I will be posting about my experiences with Family Forward Oregon's "The Economics of Motherhood" discussion/action group.  

First Entry.  Why join?

During the first days of holding my newborn in my arms, I realized what a tremendous loss it was to have my own family 3,000 miles away. Fierce independence was useless to me now, in a life filled with such fragility, vulnerability and hard work. Every small gesture mattered dearly, and when someone I barely knew delivered a bag of needed groceries to my door, I understood that it does take a village to raise a child.

In this era of two-parent incomes and geographically distant relatives, the realities of our culture - structured around the automobile and consumerism - began to clash drastically with what I needed for my family to survive and thrive. The shocks of childcare costs, breastfeeding and lack of flexible jobs were at times overwhelming, and helped me to understand that so much of our country is not designed for families. At the same time I felt a welling of compassion for the generations of mothers before me, who worked so tirelessly to raise their children only to be undervalued in so many ways.

And so it was only natural for me to join Family Forward Oregon. I welcomed the chance to voice my concerns with other moms and work toward creating change. Our first meeting was the same weekend I heard about deadly cadmium being found in children’s jewelry. Years of my heart breaking over e. coli poisonings, lead poisonings and pharmaceuticals in the water supply had only resulted in more gray hairs and tears, not any effective change. This is not what I want for my child’s future or my family’s present. We deserve better.

Up next: About my first Family Forward meeting!

Family Forward Oregon's Economics of Motherhood Action Groups build on an understanding of the underlying political and economic issues, and generate commitment to action. The groups will explore topics like work, taxes, and child care. The format will combine short readings with an emphasis on ways parents can take action and make a difference.

Join the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

Here's a fun fact:  How many chemicals do you think have been banned from cosmetics in the European Union?  1,100!  How many in the good 'ol United States?  9.  That's right.  Nine!  I promise you this is not because our country chooses on it's own to produce safer cosmetics.  Nope.  Instead it's because major loopholes in federal law prevent the FDA from reviewing the safety of cosmetics before they can be sold.  That's right.  Unsafe products can only be pulled from the shelf if *you* (the consumer) can prove them to be toxic...and that's after being sold to (and used by) millions.

Another fun fact:  Number of ingredients in personal care products in the U.S.: 10,500.  Percentage tested for health and safety?  11%

Why care?  Think for a minute about the stuff you use every day: shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, lotion, make up, nail polish - most of which you've been using for most of your life, right?  Turns out many of these things are made with synthetic (and harmful!) ingredients that we put directly on our skin or in our bodies.  Ingredients that build up over a lifetime of use.

Things like:

• mercury (eye drops and ointments),
• lead (found in almost all lipstick)
• formaldehyde (nail polish)
• toluene (nail polish)
• petroleum distillates (mascara, perfume, foundation, lipstick, lip balm)
• ethylacrylate (mascara)
• coal tar (anti-itch creams, dandruff shampoos, hair dyes)
• dibutyl phthalate (nail polish, perfume, hair spray)

And the list goes on and on....

The makers of our products aren't thinking so much about our health, they're thinking instead about marketing, cheap manufacturing and long shelf lives.  The synthetic ingredients added to these products show up in our bodies, our breast milk, and our children.  Some have been linked to cancer, birth defects, learning disabilities and other major health problems.  For the others, that link is likely to reveal itself in only a matter of time.

What can you do?

1) Take action: Join the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics in asking major cosmetics manufacturers to cut toxic chemicals from their products. 

2) Be informed: Check out EWG's Skin Deep Database to learn more about the chemicals in the products you use every day.  And support EWG in their efforts to push for tougher laws regulating the chemical industry too. 

3) Shop smarter:  You'd have to be a chemist to understand the labels on most our products - or to pick out the things you should be avoiding.  And, unfortunately, just because something says it's "natural", "organic" or "pure" doesn't mean it is.  Unlike with our food, in cosmetics there are *no* regulations monitoring that. 

Luckily, we have many shops in town that sell only non-toxic products.  My favorite in Portland is Camellia Pure Beauty on NE 48th & Fremont (they also have an online shop for anyone who lives outside Portland).  Owners of shops like these stock many local products, and all are safe.  Plus they're a wealth of good information about other ways to to shop safely. 

A closer look at the unsafety of cosmetics

This is rich.  Unsafe cosmetics and the people who use them: exposed.

Want to find safer products? Read the Environmental Working Group's Healthy Home Tip on Choosing Better Body Care Products (it's part of a series - sign up to get them in your inbox here).

The video specifically mentions fragrance, an under-regulated ingredient that EWG suggests you avoid.  And of course, you can check out Skin Deep, EWG's Cosmetics Database, to see how your products rank and find safer ones.

The Disappearing Male

When I was in high school I was given an assignment to read a dystopian novel.  For some reason, likely related to my identity as feminist, I chose The Female Man.  One of the characters in the book lived in a future with no men.  A kind of utopian dystopia where men no longer existed, so women had evolved some way of merging eggs to reproduce – or risk extinction.     

I didn’t know then that this was not so much dystopian science-fiction as, perhaps, a forecast of the actual future. 

I just finished watching The Disappearing Male (which you can view above).   It is an alarming Canadian documentary about how the chemicals in every day products – and especially plastics - are leading to a declining male birth rate and increasing reproductive problems in boys and men.  These chemicals, phthalates and BPA, to name two, are actually disrupting normal hormone processes and leading to long-term health problems in our boys.  They also seem to be linked to higher rates of miscarriage for male fetuses.  

Green Halloween Ideas..and Other Scary Stories

Maybe you've seen the recent recall information about candy, made in China, and tainted with melamine (the same stuff that killed some people after it made it's way into milk and toothpaste recently).  The FDA now says we should not eat White Rabbit Creamy Candy or Koala's March Crème-filled Cookies. The Canadian Government is warning the public not to consume Sherwood Brands Pirate's Gold Milk Chocolate Coins - also contaminated.

I mentioned these things to my husband, who usually reacts less insanely to this kind of news than I do, and he suggested we toss all candy made in China.  Is that going too far?  Also, who knows where these individually-wrapped little candies are made anyway?  I believe that information is reserved for the big bag and not the tiny wrappings.  He suggests tossing anything we don't recognize and then researching the rest to see where it's made.  Aack!  Now the kids impending sugar-rush and inevitable breakdown seems like a small concern compared to toxic candy and all this research.   

First the toys, now the candy.  It's definitely got me thinking about non-candy alternatives. Green Halloween offers ideas for non-food treasures like: stickers, polished rocks, seashells, beads, soy crayons, and others.  Or non-candy treats like: juice boxes, honey sticks, fruit leather, boxes of raisins, and more.  The site also has some great tips for "green" costumes, Halloween parties, and Halloween-specific energy-saving tips. 

Non-candy alternatives seem like a win-win to me.  Better for the kids, better for the earth, no safety risk.  Plus, my kids are still at an age where a box of raisins and a rock would *thrill* them.  But I can see some sideways glances from more experienced trick-or-treaters out there. 

What are you handing out?  Are any candy-safety standards being implemented at your house?

Rachel's Friends Healthy Living Fair Saturday 10.11

Here's a great opportunity to learn about the toxics in our everyday lives, right here in Portland.  Rachel's Friends Breast Cancer Coalition, an Oregon advocacy organization dedicated to lowering the incidence of breast and other cancers by reducing our exposure to environmental carcinogens, is hosting the event - you can download the flyer here.  What you'll find in addition to the usual fair offerings is lead testing for young children and two excellent speakers:

• 1:30-2:30 pm: Nena Baker, author of The Body Toxic, will present "Getting toxics out of everyday studff: It's personal and political."

• 2:30-3:00 pm: Renee Hackenmiller-Paradis, environmnetal health program director at the Oregon Environmental Council, will present "Healthy roducts, Healthy Environment, Healthy Children: State-based policies that protect children's health."

Be there (I will): Saturday, 10.11.08 from 11 am to 4 pm @ the First United Methodist Church on 1838 SW Jefferson. 

Can't make it?  You can always grab a copy of Baker's book 9support a local author!), plus you can listen to her talk at Google HQ here.

Summing up the Chinese problem with melamine

I've been reading plenty about this issue, where Chinese moms are learning they've been feeding their babes formula tainted with melamine.  Yikes.  Beyond that horrifying discovery, I found something else worth repeating.  In an article titled, 'Behind bad milk, an ethical gap in China's business', the Christian Science Monitor describes the reason for it all like this:

The scandal revealed more than a recurrent regulatory problem, Chinese and foreign experts suggested. Rather, they said, it pointed to a deeper malaise in Chinese society where private profit often trumps the public good as the country races to create a market economy that has outstripped government regulators.       

Sounds more than a little like Home Sweet Home, doesn't it mamas?  God Bless the USA (right?).

The Body Toxic: Listen & Learn

Portlander Nena Baker has a new book out that's pretty relevant these days: The Body Toxic: How the Hazardous Chemistry of Everyday Things Threatens our Health and Well-being.  And since you may well not have a chance to read it, why not head to Powell's and hear it straight from the source?  I am.  I'm about 1/2 way through it since I'm interviewing her next Monday - lucky me!  And as for the book - so far, so good.  It has a great history of the chemical industry in the U.S. as well as the skinny on plastics, flame retardants, pesticides, cosmetics, and more.  Here's the publisher's summary to give you the gist:

Our bodies now carry a dizzying array of chemical contaminants, by-products of modern industry and innovation that contribute to a host of developmental deficits and health problems in ways just now being understood. In The Body Toxic (North Point Press), investigative journalist Nena Baker explores the many factors that have given rise to this condition — from manufacturing breakthroughs to policy decisions to political pressure to the demands of popular culture.

Be there!  Monday, 9.8.08 @ 7:30 PM at Powell's on W Burnside.

Learn about Plastics & Human Health ~ 9.6.08

Seems like everyone's talking about plastics and human health, BPA, phthalates, and other hard-to-pronounce chemicals (including me).  Wanna hear it from the experts?  Good news!  Thanks to the local chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, you can! 

Be there!  Saturday, 9.6.08 @ the Central Library (1st floor room on right) from 4 to 5 PM.  RSVP to Maye at 503.274.2720.

Learn about two chemicals typically found in plastics - phthalates and bisphenol-A.  Here's PSR's snapshot of these two nasty additives:

Phthalates are found in PVC-based #3 plastics in vinyl toys, fabrics, flooring, and medical devices. They make the plastic more flexible. They are also found is cosmetics and personal care products because they make the products "stick" to the body.

Health effects of phthalates include male genital malformation and infertility, asthma, liver cancer, and thyroid function.  The European Union banned phthalates from children's toys in 2005, and California followed suit in legislation to take effect in 2009.

Bisphenol A is found in polycarbonate #7 plastics, used in bottles. Bisphenol A is also found in the plastics that are used as dental sealants and the linings of food and beverage cans, and in flame retardants.

Health effects of bisphenol A: Recent evidence implicates bisphenol A in breast and prostate cancer, early puberty, diabetes, obesity, and altered immune function. The complex metabolism of this contaminant makes the level currently deemed "safe" quite suspect.  Bisphenol A has been labeled "toxic" by the Canadian government, which has led Wal-Mart and Sears in Canada to remove food-related bisphenol products from their shelves.