Air Quality Awareness

Did you know that today falls under Air Quality Awareness week? The US Environmental Protection Agency and the CDC have teamed together to make Americans more aware of the air they breath the week of April 30-May 4, 2012. Information about Air Quality Awareness week can be found HERE. Air pollution can severely affect many people in our population, especially those inflicted with asthma. Asthma has become more common in the US, with over 25 million asthma patients diagnosed today. Children are more susceptible to air pollutants. Any change that you can make will help our air quality, even as simple as carpooling once a week. Millions of americans will thank you for your change in daily activity.

Polio Eradication Update

Wait...do people still get Polio? Isn't there a vaccine for that? The answer to both questions is yes. Polio is still considered an epidemic in Nigeria, India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Polio is a viral disease that attacks its host's nervous system, often crippling the victim. The CDC, WHO, UNICEF, and other non-profit organizations are teaming up to try and eradicate Poliovirus. India and Nigeria are making progress, particularly India. By the end of 2012, India is expected to stop the transmission of Poliovirus, and Nigeria has only reported 23 cases of Polio so far in 2012. Afghanistan and Pakistan, unfortunately, are not making any progress towards eradication. Do you want to help and make a difference? Help eradicate Polio HERE. Anything can help, and the world is so close to eradicating Poliovirus. Only two infectious diseases have been eradicated to date: smallpox and rinderpest. Let's all pull together and make Poliovirus the third.

Dioxin Danger?

Environmental Chemicals. We’ve all heard about their dangers to our health and well-being. Today, I took a closer look at Dioxin, a fairly common chemical to everyday life. How is a person exposed to Dioxin? By eating fatty foods, such as meat and milk products, and by working in environments where wastes are burned on a regular basis. Dioxin is not a purposely-made chemical. Dioxin, in low environmental levels, really has no outcome or impact on our lives. It’s when Dioxin occurs in high levels that we run into trouble. High exposures to Dioxin can cause liver problems, elevated blood lipids, reproductive problems, and chloracne, a dermatological disease (follow the link to learn more). A study completed in 2009 in Taiwan showed that people who worshiped in a temple that burned incense (which contains polychlorinated dibenzo p dioxins) were twice as exposed to Dioxin and twice as likely to develop cancer as the average person. In my opinion, Dioxin cannot be completely avoided, and religious customs cannot be changed by scientific findings. I think that we need to accept our low possibility of cancer, and focus on more prominent chemicals, and chemicals that we can potentially remove from our lifestyles.