Claudia's EnviroHealth Blog

I asked my husband to share his MSDS from work, he's an  Aviation Operations Sergeant for California National Guard ( USA Army). I choose to examine the Glass & Surface Cleaner from the MSDS, no specific brand name was provided for this product. What are the health risks associated with this chemical? This cleaner is listed as hazardous by OSHA/HCS status. The hazardous statements = Causes serious eye irritation and skin irritation. Is the chemical a carcinogen? Per HazMat linked via Toxnet, this chemical is listed as:  IARC Carcinogen Not Classifiable ACGIH Carcinogen Confirmed Animal What personal protective equipment or special precautions should be taken when working with this chemical? Wear protective gloves, 1-4 hours (breakthrough time): butyl rubber. Wear eye or face protection. Recommended: safety glasses with shields. Wash hands thoroughly after handling. If this is a chemical found in your workplace, what training/education were you g...

The primary pneumoconioses are asbestosis, silicosis, and coal workers’ pneumoconiosis (commonly referred to as CWP or black lung). As their names imply, they are caused by inhalation of  asbestos fibers,   silica dust , and coal mine dust. Typically, these three diseases take many years to develop and be manifested, although in some cases – silicosis, particularly – rapidly progressive forms can occur after only short periods of intense exposure. When severe, the diseases often lead to lung impairment, disability, and premature death. From a public health perspective, these conditions are entirely man-made, and can be avoided through appropriate dust control (CDC, 2017). The Respiratory Health Division within NIOSH published the first Work-Related Lung Disease (WoRLD) Surveillance Report in 1991 ( http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/91-113/ ). This report presents data for asbestosis, coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, silicosis, byssinosis, exposure to cotton dust, hypersensitivity...

NIOSH = National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health was established by Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, it is a research agency that studies the safety and health of workers, and empowers employers and workers to create safe and healthy workplaces.  NIOSH is part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the U.S. Department of Health and Human  Services. Vision Safer, Healthier Workers Mission To develop new knowledge in the field of occupational safety and health and to transfer that knowledge into practice. Values Relevance —NIOSH programs are responsive to the occupational safety and health problems that burden today’s and tomorrow’s workers. Quality —NIOSH utilizes only the best science, the highest level of data quality, and the most transparent and independent peer review. Partnership —NIOSH accomplishes our mission in partnership with industry, workers, governments, academe, and scientific and professional com...

Article 1: Lead Poisoning by Prof. Herbert Needleman This article surveys the past three decades of lead research and reviews the evolving knowledge of the distribution, toxicology, and remediation of lead toxicity (Needleman, 2004). This was a really well written article, it provides history and insight into lead poisoning. It compares and contrast how lead toxicity impact adults and children-this comparison is crucial to understand how the dosage and mechanism of lead toxicity. I really appreciated that the article did discuss the steps it took to discover lead toxicity and the steps that are needed for the diagnosis and management of the disease. Lastly, the article emphasizes primary prevention as a vital element for the reduction of lead poisoning Article 2: An environmental health response to a severe outbreak of childhood lead poisoning in Nigeria Casey Bartrem This article shares a success story of how lead toxicity was reduced in villages in Nigeria. In 2010, MSF fo...

Digging into the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Video If green chemistry principles were applied at the time when plastic was being invented we wouldn't have the environmental catastrophe that we have now. Meaning, our ecosystem  would have been devoid of toxins from plastics  and our marine life wouldn't have their well being compromised.  Our global ecology would have been environmentally sound if the principles  of green chemistry were applied when plastics were invented. But it's still not too late, the principles from green chemistry can be applied to create safe plastics and the accumulated plastic has to be cleaned up and recycled. The production of all plastic products that aren't biodegradable  should be banned and only biodegradable plastic should be produced. BLOG  about your thoughts on green chemistry. Have you heard of or seen any examples of green chemistry in your work or in daily life? What are your thoughts on the 12 principles of green...

1-Highly Fluorinated : Products that are highly fluorinated are man made and is found in several products that we use daily, it can be found in nonstick cook wear and waterproof items. These chemicals are toxic to our health and remain in our environment permanently. These chemicals were found in 98% of Americans, the development of fetuses and infants are in jeopardy from exposure to these chemicals. C8 and PFOA are linked to kidney, testicular cancer, elevated cholesterol, decreased fertility, thyroid disease and hormonal disruption HF bioaccumulates and does not breakdown thus damages the environment.  How can we protect ourselves: A-Choose textiles and carpeting without water- and stain-repellent B-Avoid food with grease proof packaging, such as microwave popcorn and some fast food. C-Avoid personal care products with "PERFLUR", "POLYFLUOR" nad "PTFE" on the label. D-Be way of products labelled "PFOA FREE", they often contain sim...

Ideal Chemical Policy would Educate, Advocate and Protect everyone. 1-Educate: consumer education regarding the pollutants they are exposed to and toxicities associated with those pollutants. 2-Advocate: health promotion regarding means of management to exposure of chemical pollutants in all areas of dwelling, such as homes, workplaces, schools etc. Information regarding pollutants will be required to be distributed to the public. 3-Protect : the policy would mandate the surveillance of persistent pollutants, bioaccumulation and/or toxic chemicals. Data from the surveillance would be utilized to eliminate them and a ban would be issued to manufacturers to stop the production and distribution of these chemicals both domestic and internationally. Green chemical engineering would be promoted and businesses that implement green innovations would receive incentives. Social Determinants of Public Health would applied to the chemical policy to ensure the era...

What is the Louisville Charter for Safer Chemicals?  The Charter is consists of six background papers that describe the six key principles needed to regulate chemicals and change the economy for clean and safe chemical production and distribution. Implementation of these principles will require polices that mirror the principles to protect the health and well-being of people, provide information for both consumers and manufactures to make sounds decisions regarding the chemicals they choose to utilize and cause change in the economy by providing incentives for environmentally conscious businesses. Background Paper #2 Of the six background papers, I've chosen to focus on Background Paper #2 which focuses on the phasing out of persistent organic pollutants, Bioaccumulative and/or Highly Toxic Chemicals which are also known as PBT.  1. What are Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP):   Defined by the Stockholm Convention as Toxic Has the potential...

Last night I had a tuna sandwich for dinner, listed below are some of the ingredients, the number pesticide residues (PR), the human health and environmental effects that can be found due to them. The information was gathered by USDA Pesticide Data Program. Ingredient Number of Pesticide Residues Human Health Effect Environmental Effect Tomatoes 35 3 — Known or Probable Carcinogens 12 — Suspected Hormone Disruptors 6 — Neurotoxins 3 — Developmental or Reproductive Toxins 10 — Honeybee Toxins Hot Peppers 75 3 — Known or Probable Carcinogens 25 — Suspected Hormone Disruptors 16 — Neurotoxins 7 — Developmental or Reproductive Toxins 25 — Honeybe...

My topic of interest is the Bhopal Disaster of 1984.   On December 3 1984, more than 40 tons of methyl isocyanate gas leaked from a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, immediately killing at least 3,800 people a nd causing significant morbidity and premature death for many thousands more. The company involved in what became the worst industrial accident in history immediately tried to dissociate itself from legal responsibility. Eventually it reached a settlement with the Indian Government through mediation of that country's Supreme Court and accepted moral responsibility. It paid $470 million in compensation, a relatively small amount of based on significant underestimations of the long-term health consequences of exposure and the number of people exposed. Methyl isocynate (MIC) is a   colorless liquid with a pungent odor. The primary use of  methyl isocyanate  is as a chemical intermediate in the production of pesticides. It is also used to produce polyureth...

HISTORY : In 1961 Western Coachella Valley founded the groundwater agency which came to be known as the Desert Water Agency(DWA); and in 1968 it started providing water services to residents of Palm Springs and Cathedral City.  WHO ARE THEY : DWA is a not-for-profit government agency, it is 1 of the 29 water contractors in California. They are a team of 76 publicly elected employees and a 5 member Board of Directors. WHAT DO THEY DO : This agency imports water to recharge the groundwater basin (which is the main source of water in the desert).  DWA currently has 230,000 water connections that provides water services to 106,000 residents.In addition, it provides the following services: 1-Groundwater Management 2-Drinking water 3-Sewer services 4-Recycled water 5-Conservation resources