Health & WellnessS


Beaker

American Academy of Pediatrics calls for 'urgently needed reforms' to fix broken food additive regulatory system

Tom Neltner
Environmental Defense Fund
Mon, 23 Jul 2018 21:24 UTC
Chemical Cuisine
© Garden Variety - WordPress.comChemical Cuisine
Today, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a "Food Additives and Child Health" policy statement calling for "urgently needed reforms to the current regulatory process at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for food additives." The policy applies to chemicals deliberately added to food or to food packaging or food processing equipment that get into food. These substances are used to flavor, color, preserve, package, process and store our food, but many never appear among the list of ingredients. AAP's statement calls specifically for the following:
  • "Greatly strengthening or replacing the GRAS [Generally Recognized as Safe] determination process;
  • Updating the scientific foundation of the FDA's safety assessment program;
  • Retesting all previously approved chemicals; and
  • Labeling direct additives with limited or no toxicity data."

Comment: Don't hold your breath! Additional information on the complete use-less-ness of the FDA:

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Evil Rays

Zapped: Our cellphone addiction is turning wireless tech into an invisible weapon that's destroying wildlife

Reynard Loki
Salon
Sat, 14 Jul 2018 13:55 UTC
cell phone
© Justin Hamilton/Pexels/Independent Media Institute
Electromagnetic radiation from Wi-Fi and cell towers poses a "credible risk" to birds, mammals, insects and plants

There is growing evidence that our addiction to cellphones could be impacting brain functionality and be the cause of stress, anxiety, insomnia and a lack of attention and focus. Now a new report has found that we're not the only living things to be affected by our increasing dependence on wireless technology. Mammals, birds, insects and even plants are likely being harmed by the electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emanating from Wi-Fi, cellphone towers, broadcast transmitters and power lines, according to a new analysis of 97 peer-reviewed studies conducted by EKLIPSE, a biodiversity and ecosystem project funded by the European Union.
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Health

Scientists in Australia warn chemicals in plastics are number one threat to male fertility

Stephanie Bedo and Lizzie Parry
The Sun, UK
Fri, 27 Jul 2018 19:38 UTC
Sandwiches in plastic containers
© Getty Images
There's lots of reasons not to use plastic - but this one might come as a shock.

Chemicals in everyday items, from household cleaners to food packaging, can damage a man's penis - and make it smalller.

Chemicals in plastic containers and household cleaners could make a man's penis SHRINK, experts have warned.

Phthalates, BPA and parabens are to blame for a rise in the number of baby boys being born with genital defects, experts have warned.

Dr Andrew Pask and Dr Mark Green, from the University of Melbourne, said in Australia penis birth defects have doubled in recent years, due to plastic use.

Comment: See also: Chemicals in commerce: How to keep plastics out of your food

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Heart - Black

US campaigns against breastfeeding to protect infant formula manufacturers

Dr. Joseph Mercola
Mercola.com
Tue, 24 Jul 2018 00:00 UTC
breastfeeding
What's the optimal food for your newborn baby? Common sense would tell you that a mother's breast milk is as optimal as infant nutrition could possibly get, yet that fact - indisputable as it may seem - is something that makers of infant formula have spent decades' trying to sweep under the carpet.1 Following the development of manufactured infant formula, mothers were told breastfeeding was unnecessary.

Formula offered greater freedom for busy moms, and the promotion of the obnoxious idea that breastfeeding in public is shameful fueled the transition, making more moms defer to the bottle rather than their breast. For years, women could even be fined for "public indecency" if caught breastfeeding in public. This year, Utah became the last state to enact laws protecting the rights of breastfeeding mothers by permitting nursing in public.2

Only 28 states provide workplace protection for nursing mothers, however, so many are still forced to pump milk in dingy bathrooms and suffer discrimination for needing time to express milk. In terms of nutrition, moms have, and still are, told there's "no difference" between bottle feeding and breastfeeding, yet nothing could be further from the truth.

There is very little similarity between the two, from a nutritional perspective. Unfortunately, marketing materials have a way of giving mothers the false idea that formula may actually provide better nutrition.

Comment: More on the benefits of breastfeeding for both mothers and infants:

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SOTT Logo Radio

SOTT Focus: The Health & Wellness Show: Tomorrowland: Dystopia or Utopia?


Sott.net
Fri, 27 Jul 2018 15:00 UTC
bad tech
Dystopia or Utopia? We suppose it depends on your point of view. There are some tech giants and tech lovers who see a whole new world of possibilities at their fingertips. There are people who'd like nothing more than to merge with technology and enhance their subpar human abilities whilst living in a segregated smart city. If you're an average Joe who values his privacy and doesn't want to be spied on by his refrigerator or have to engage in biometric screening just to go to work, a fresh hell awaits.

On this episode of The Health and Wellness Show we discuss the world of the future, the slow creep of technology and the benefits and detriments of Tomorrowland.

And stay tuned for Zoya's Pet Health Segment where she talks about the origin of domesticated cats!

Running Time: 01:18:36

Download: MP3

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Fish

Something's fishy here: Farmed salmon contaminated with toxic flame retardants

Dr. Joseph Mercola
Mercola.com
Wed, 25 Jul 2018 00:01 UTC
salmon farm
Fish are an important part of the ecosystem and the human diet. Unfortunately, overfishing has depleted many fish stocks, and the proposed solution - fish farming - is creating far more problems than it solves. Not only are fish farms polluting the aquatic environment and spreading disease to wild fish, farmed fish are also an inferior food source, in part by providing fewer healthy nutrients; and in part by containing more toxins, which readily accumulate in fat.

Farmed Salmon = Most Toxic Food in the World

Salmon is perhaps the most prominent example of how fish farming has led us astray. Food testing reveals farmed salmon is one of the most toxic foods in the world, having more in common with junk food than health food.1 Studies highlighting the seriousness of the problem include:

Comment: What the human race has done to our lakes and oceans is tragic and it's not surprising that it's coming back to bite us. Despite the health benefits of fish consumption, the levels of toxicity are leading many to question whether or not it's worth the risk.

See also:

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Evil Rays

SOTT Focus: Is your mobile phone destroying your digestive system? On EMF-Microbiome interaction

Elliot Overton
Sott.net
Wed, 25 Jul 2018 07:58 UTC
gut bacteria
© University of Minnesota
The detrimental effects that non-native electromagnetic frequencies (EMF) have on the cells of the human body are well-documented. The radiofrequency EMFs emitted from mobile devices, computers and wifi routers have been associated with a wide range of illnesses, including brain cancers and neuropsychiatric disorders. Upon exposure to this radiation, our cells begin to flood with calcium ions and become excited - sometimes to the point of burnout and eventual death.

Considering these human effects, it would be safe to assume that EMFs also influence the homeostasis of bacterial cells. And with all of the cutting-edge research coming out about the importance of the microbiome and host-bacteria relationships for maintaining health, it would be wise to examine some of the established effects.
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Alarm Clock

Eleven babies die after Dutch women given Viagra in drug trial


The Guardian
Tue, 24 Jul 2018 12:17 UTC
newborn
© YouTube screenshotNearly a dozen babies died during a trial where their mothers were given Viagra during their pregnancy.
Research halted as 10 to 15 other participants wait to see if their children affected

The death of 11 babies born to women who were given Viagra during a drug trial has led to the termination of the experiment - and an anxious wait for other mothers involved.

The trial was designed to test whether sildenafil, a medication sold under the brand name Viagra, could help boost babies' growth in the womb.

The research was carried out at 10 hospitals across the Netherlands and involved women whose placentas had been underperforming.

Viagra, which dilates the blood vessels, is used for erectile dysfunction in men and is prescribed for people with high blood pressure. The hope, backed up by experimental research on rats, had been that the drug would encourage a better flow of blood through the placenta, promoting the growth of the child.

The women taking part in the trial all had unborn babies whose growth had been severely limited in the womb. The children's prognosis, given a lack of available therapy, was regarded as poor as a result.

The trial was terminated last week when an independent committee overseeing the research discovered that more babies than expected were being born with lung problems.

In total, 93 women were given the drug as part of the trial, led by Amsterdam University Medical Centre. Seventeen babies developed lung problems, and 11 have since died. A further eight babies in the trial died of unrelated conditions.
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Stop

Dutch medical trial testing Viagra on pregnant women halted after deaths of 11 infants


RT
Tue, 24 Jul 2018 17:07 UTC
Viagra medical trial pregnancy
© Mark Blinch / ReutersAn interim analysis by Amsterdam UMC, location AMC, showed that sildenafil may be detrimental to the baby after birth. The chance of a disease of the blood vessels of the lungs appears to be greater and the chance of death after birth seems to have increased.
A Dutch medical trial has been halted after the deaths of 11 babies whose mothers were given Viagra as part of a study aimed at helping unborn infants grow.

The research, led by Amsterdam University Medical Center, focused on improving the flow of blood through the placentas of 93 pregnant women. Since the trial ended, some 17 babies have developed lung problems and 11 have died, leading to fears that babies suffered fatal effects from the medication. Between 10-15 women are now waiting to hear if their child was also affected.

"We wanted to show that this is an effective way to promote the growth of the baby. But the opposite happened. I am shocked. The last thing you want is to harm patients," gynecologist and leader of the research Wessel Ganzevoort told Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant.

Ganzevoort said her team have notified a group of Canadian researchers carrying out a similar study to warn them of the results. That research has now been temporarily stopped, she said.
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Syringe

Outrage in China at vaccines firm that faked documents relating to child rabies

Adam Jourdan and John Ruwitch
Reuters
Mon, 23 Jul 2018 16:18 UTC
vaccinated child
© AP
A vaccine scandal in China, which has prompted angry reactions from citizens fed up with safety scares, is sending ripples across the local drug market and threatening Chinese ambitions to play a larger role in the global pharmaceutical space.

Shares in Chinese vaccine makers and biotech firms fell across the board on Monday after Premier Li Keqiang slammed Changsheng Biotechnology Co for having crossed a moral red line and called for swift action.

Changsheng has been found to have faked production documents related to a rabies vaccine that is given to babies as young as three months, underscoring the difficulties China faces in cleaning up the image of the world's second-biggest drug industry as it aims to promote its vaccines globally.

While there have been no known reports of people being harmed by the vaccine, the regulator ordered Changsheng to halt production and recall the product after the scandal emerged earlier this month.
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