Our Deadly, Daily Chemical Cocktail

Food writer, Kristen Wartman, discusses the chemical body burden of food additeives, preservatives, and coloring.  Here is a snippet...

Yet while the FDA drags its heels and hedges on the safety of these substances, Americans are exposed to untested combinations of food additives, dyes, preservatives, and chemicals on a daily basis. Indeed, for the vast majority of Americans consuming industrial foods, a veritable chemical cocktail enters their bodies every day and according to the GAO report, "FDA is not systematically ensuring the continued safety of current GRAS substances."

The term GRAS refers to "generally regarded as safe," the moniker the FDA uses to regulate food additives, dyes, and preservatives. The trouble is this system is not effective. Dr. Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at Consumers Union, said in an interview that many additives in our food supply are never even tested. That's because the GRAS designation is a voluntary process -- instead of being required to register food additives, companies can notify the FDA about their product, but only if they so choose. Hansen added that even for those additives considered GRAS, he didn't have much faith in the designation.

Read the full article at the Huffington Post or at Wartman's blog 

Vermonters find elevated toxins through body burden testing

When six Vermonters agreed to be tested for the presence of industrial chemicals in their bodies, they weren’t sure what to expect. The results proved eye-opening for environmentalists...40 chemicals tested for, on average, were found in each of the testees...

Read the full articel at Burlingtonfreepress.com

Melamine again finds its way into Chinese milk products

Chinese police have seized more than 26 tonnes of milk powder tainted with melamine from a ice cream maker in a southwestern city, state media said, three years after milk tainted with the industrial chemical killed six and made thousands ill.

The food sector has been beset by poisonings and toxin scandals that have shaken consumer confidence. Numerous government crackdowns have apparently had little effect. In 2008, at least six children died and nearly 300,000 fell ill from powdered milk laced with melamine, an industrial chemical added to low quality or diluted milk to fool inspectors checking for protein levels. China said in March at least 20 percent of domestic dairy companies would lose their operating licenses following inspections of fresh milk and infant formula producers.

Read the full article at Reuters.com

Walmart bans toxic flame retardants through "retail regulation"

"Wal-Mart has taken an important step toward protecting children and families from exposure to toxic chemicals," said Steve Owens, assistant administrator of the EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. "EPA has long had concerns about PBDEs."

Researchers say PBDEs easily leach out of household products, ending up in dust, air, food and, eventually, human bodies. Levels of the chemicals in the environment have dramatically increased over the past 20 years, as have levels in human blood and breast milk samples, according to federal researchers.

Federal studies have shown that nearly all Americans carry the chemicals in their bodies, and young children show higher levels. A 2010 study found that children born with higher concentrations of PBDEs scored lower on tests of mental and physical development between the ages of 1 and 6...

Read the full article at the Washington Post online

Why are toxic materials used in consumer products?

The Tampa Tribune explains why lead makes it into our consumer products. In particular they tested reusable grocery bags and discovered that the lead content was likely due to shoddy oversight of subcontractors who use it for making pigments look more vibrant.

Besides causing learning disabilities in children, the toxic chemical lead is especially good at making green inks look greener and yellow inks yellower.

That's the most likely reason why recent tests commissioned by The Tampa Tribune found elevated lead levels in elaborately decorated grocery bags sold at Winn-Dixie and Publix, according to executives in the promotional merchandise manufacturing industry...

...Lead shouldn't be in paint, and there are better alternatives. But making a newly popular item like reusable bags sometimes involves a dizzying array of subcontracting and handoffs stretching around the globe. And, too often, someone, somewhere will substitute cheaper, dangerous ingredients, like lead, to support their profit margins...

Read the full artilce at TBO.com

China to regulate food additives

The Chinese government has ordered food companies to keep clear and intact records of all their production and selling operations as part of the efforts to prevent the illegal use of food additives.

The circular said it was strictly forbidden to produce and sell non-edible materials that are likely to be used in food production without official certificates, and authorized production companies of these materials must adopt a real-name selling system.

Mind Boggling that there needs to be a regulation that prohibits non-food ingredients in food...

Read the full article here

Industrial wax and inks found in Chinese noodle production

The latest food scandal started to come to light on Thursday when more than 5.5 tons of starch noodles that were suspected of being tainted were confiscated and their producer was put under investigation for allegedly having used black ink, industrial dye and paraffin wax to produce them in Gangkou township in the province's Zhongshan city, according to Guangzhou Daily.

This appears to be a domestic Chinese problem but illustrates the all too common problem with corruption in the Chinese food supply. Our own food supply is often made in part with Chinese ingredients. Good thing the FDA is increasing their inspection process for imports.

Read the full article from China Daily

Activist Sneaks "Toxic" Labels On Deodorant

Photo: Jessica Assaf.

New York University student Jessica Assaf created stickers to educate consumers about the toxic ingredients found in many cosmetics and personal care products.

Assaf targetted Secret because it is one of the most popular deodorants used by young women in the United States today, she said. According to the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep, Secret has some not-so-savory secret ingredients, such as butane, associated with allergies and immunotoxicity, and aluminium chlorohydrate, linked to developmental and reproductive toxicity.

So Assaf went around to some drugstores in her area and stuck toxic warning labels on 100 Secret bottles.

Says Assaf: "I believe that consumers should know the truth about the ingredients in their everyday products. This is a completely unregulated industry, and most people do not know that cosmetic companies can put any chemical in their products and with no labeling requirements or safety testing, sell these toxic products to the public. I'm not going to wait for legislation to protect our health because we don't have any time to wait. These chemicals are accumulating in our bodies and no one is stepping up to stop it."

Read the full article at Treehugger.com

GlaxoSmithKline flu vacine to have narcolepsy risk warning in EU

A swine flu vaccine which has been given to thousands of children in Britain may cause the sleep disorder narcolepsy. Symptoms include excessive daytime sleepiness and nodding off suddenly without warning.

All packets of the vaccine Pandemrix will have to carry a warning about the risk following a ruling by the EU regulator, the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The EMA, which is currently investigating the effects of the vaccine, has also told doctors to weigh up the potential risks before injecting children against the deadly H1N1 virus.

There have been seven reported cases of narcolepsy in the UK linked to the GlaxoSmithKline vaccine – four of them children. The condition can also cause temporary muscle paralysis, hallucinations and problems concentrating....Experts in Finland revealed last month that children who had the vaccination were nine times more likely to develop narcolepsy. And in Sweden research found the risk was four times greater.

...The label updates are intended as an ‘interim measure’ until the investigation is completed in July, the EMA said.

Read more at the Daily Mail online

Pediatricians seek better regulation of toxins

The American Academy of Pediatrics joins other groups such as, American Medical Association, American Nurses Association and American Public Health Association to advocate for changes in The Toxic Substances Control Act, which hasn't been updated since 1976.

The U.S. needs to do a better job protecting children and pregnant women from toxic chemicals, says a policy statement out today from the American Academy of Pediatrics. The group says children's developing brains and bodies are far more vulnerable than adults' to toxins. And while pediatricians typically spend more time in the clinic than on Capitol Hill, the policy's authors say they felt compelled to advocate for patients who can't defend themselves...

...Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., has introduced legislation to update the regulation of toxic chemicals four times. His most recent effort, the Safe Chemicals Act of 2011, was introduced this month.

Read the full article at USA Today