Reducing Toxins in the Home

Here's a great video from Sutter Health, on how to reduce toxins in your home.  And here is another on indoor air pollution.

"Green" alternatives for products that are typically used:

• Flooring/carpet:
• Use natural fiber carpets made of wool or cotton.  Look into renewable resources for you flooring, like cork, palm, and bamboo.
• Paint
• Choose no volatile organic compounds (VOC) paints with natural pigments.
• Materials used in furniture & household decor:
• Wash curtains before hanging and let new furniture "gas off" outside for at least a week before bringing into the home.  If these suggestions aren't practical, buy products with natural materials such as wool, cotton, linen, or silk.  Make sure products are not treated with chemicals to repel moths or flames.
• Avoid furniture made with chipboard wood because it contains formaldehyde, and avoid plastics because they often contain harmful toxins.
• Cleaning products:
• Use natural products to avoid bringing unnecessary toxins into your home.  Many of these cleaners are just as effective as the ones made with harsh chemicals, but the natural formulas don't pose a hazard to your health.

Things you can do to reduce the build up of indoor toxins:

• buy plants to help clear the air
• change your AC air filter regularly
• use natural cleaning products
• open your windows regularly (even in the winter!)
• remove your shoes before entering your home (you don't want to welcome those pesticides from the lawn into your home)
• avoid using artificial air fresheners

Where do you buy "green products" for the home?  Check out some of these sites:

• EcoByDesign
• Organic & Healthy, Inc.
• Green Building Supply

More Resources:

• Eco-novice - 10 Easy Ways to Reduce Toxins in Your Home
• Green Living Ideas
• Ecologist - Reduce Toxins & Green Your Baby's Nursery
• More about VOCs

Chronic Illness - Podcasts & Resources

Chronic illness is very disruptive to those who experience it.  It can offset even the most seemingly basic day to day activities, cause financial strain, and marital/family problems.  Although there is no easy solution, here are some resources that offer some help.  I should also add that the podcasts listed below could be useful for anyone, not just those with a chronic illness.

Podcasts:
For most of these, I subscribe through iTunes, so if you don't want to subscribe through the websites listed here, you could easily just do a search on iTunes and get the podcast there.

• Inner Health Studio Podcast (Website: Inner Health Studio) - this podcast has many specialized relaxation scripts that target a variety of issues.  They are great for general relaxation, specific health problems, and emotional disturbances.  One of my personal favorites is the "Hot Springs Sleep Relaxation".  There also are some episodes for pregnancy, autism, and positive self image.  I am looking forward to listening to one of the newer podcasts titled "Relaxation for dealing with food sensitivities."  
• Meditation Oasis Podcast (Website: Meditation Oasis) - this podcast has a very soothing nature to it.  It takes you through meditation and relaxation step-by-step, and helps to reduce the pressure of achieving a meditation that is "right" or "wrong".   My personal favorites are the "Body Awareness Meditation" and the "Grounding Meditation".
• The Heart of Healing (Website: Kerani Marie) - this podcast discusses the healing powers that life has to offer.  It examines our relationship with our views on life, and examines how we can change them to experience life in a whole new way.  My favorite episodes are "Changing our Perception" and "Pain Can Lead to a New Dance".

Links about chronic illness:

• Pacing Yourself
• Setbacks & Flares
• Support & Friends
• Sometimes Less is More
• Coping with Chronic Illness

Books:

• Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired: Living With Invisible Chronic Illness

Helpful Video on Lyme Disease

Watch this 50 minute talk about lyme disease given by Dr. Yang.  She discusses lots of different treatments (natural and conventional) and really gives a nice description of how lyme disease impacts your body.  Check it out the video here.  Dr. Yang has a family practice located in Santee, California.  To find out more about her practice, you can also check out her website, here.

"Under Our Skin" to be shown on PBS Stations in May 2011

Spread the word and let your friends and family know that "Under Our Skin" will be aired on national television in May!!!  I read about this on the CALDA website, so hopefully they'll provide more details about this as the time gets closer.

Watch the trailer for "Under Our Skin", here.

Buy a copy of "Under Our Skin", here.

How Safe is TB Testing?

I began to wonder about this as I signed on to a new job that requires annual TB testing.  I came across a very lengthy article (1) that discussed TB testing in detail.  Some important takeaways were:

• the chemicals used for the TB test are typically made up of TUBERSOL® and Phenol (a preservative - see the toxicological profile for Phenol)
• TUBERSOL® is a known mutagen 
• the CDC states that TB testing is safe during pregnancy, even though there has never been any mutagenicity testing performed and Tubersol is a known mutagen
• according to the 1972 edition of Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine and nursing defines Phenol as "an extremely poisonous antiseptic, germicidal, and disinfectant"
• Phenol is associated with skin cancer development when injected in animals 
• the CDC states that the TB testing is safe, even though no carcinogenicity studies have been performed

• targeted TB testing in health care workers is only recommended (not required) by the CDC; although some facilities make testing mandatory amongst employees (and subject to termination for refusal)

Specifically, in the FDA document on Tuberculin (TUBERSOL®), it states:

• "Animal reproduction studies have not been conducted with TUBERSOL.  It is also not known whether TUBERSOL can cause fetal harm when administered to a pregnant woman or can affect reproduction capacity.  TUBERSOL should be given to a pregnant woman only if clearly needed."

The article also discussed conflicts of interest amongst doctors establishing treatment guidelines on disease treatment.  Some interesting facts according to a cited JAMA article(2) on the website I'm referencing:

• 85% of guideline authors have some sort of relationships with drug companies, and they are often not disclosed
• 38% of respondents said they had served as employees or consultants for drug companies; 58% received research money
• 59% had links with drug companies whose medications were considered in the particular guidelines they authored, almost all cases predating the guideline creation process 
•  These numbers may be even greater, as only 52% of authors responded

Wow!  Great to know that the information OUR doctors read to learn how to properly treat US, is written by doctors that frequently have conflicts of interest.  Just another reason why it is so important for YOU to be in charge of your own health and be an advocate for proper care.

Also worth mentioning:
Another interesting document I came across indicates that the current limit values for Phenol were set over 40 years ago(5).  The document states that the limit values need to be reconsidered because research indicates that Phenol is harmful even at very low levels in animal experiments.  In addition to serving as a preservative in TB testing, phenol is used in plastic and dyes (and is frequently used in childrens toys and our food packaging).


References:
1) http://www.vaccinetruth.org/tb_testing.htm
2) N.K. Choudhry, et. al. Relationships between authors of clinical practice guidelines and the pharmaceutical industry JAMA; 287,612-617, 2002
3) http://www.fda.gov/downloads/BiologicsBloodVaccines/Vaccines/ApprovedProducts/ucm114924.pdf
4) http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp115.pdf
5) http://www.bfr.bund.de/cm/230/limit_values_for_phenol_in_food_contact_articles_and_toys_are_to_be_updated.pdf

Lyme Resources

Here are some very helpful websites and online resources for Lyme:

• California Lyme Disease Association (CALDA) News, Events & Blogs
• Dr. Burrascano's Lyme Treatment Guidelines 
• IGeneX (The lab of choice for Lyme & TBD)
• ILADS (International Lyme Disease and Associated Diseases Society)
• ILADS 2010 Takeaways @ BetterHealthGuy.com
• Lyme Disease Association, Inc. (Click on the Dr. Referral tab to find an LLMD)
• Lyme Disease Association Southeastern Pennsylvania
• A Nutritional Approach to Lyme Disease (by Ben Briggs, RPh, CNC, IACP)
• Monthly Symptoms Tracker
• MDJunction (online support group)
• Under Our Skin (A must-see documentary about Lyme disease)

And here are some books that I've found to be the most helpful in learning all there is to know about beating Lyme disease.

• Cure Unknown by Pamela Weintraub - An excellent book that details the political issues behind lyme disease, in addition to telling the story of one family's journey through dealing with Lyme.
• Insights into Lyme Disease Treatment by Connie Strasheim - A great resource for learning about various treatments for Lyme and coinfections.  The book is written by 13 Lyme Literate health care providers.
• The Lyme Diet by Dr. Nicola McFadzean - Gives a great in-depth look at what foods we should avoid to decrease inflammation and to obtain optimal health.
• The Lyme Disease Solution by Dr. Kenneth Singleton - A great resource for learning about symptoms and treatment of Lyme and its coinfections.  A nice exploration through dietary and lifestyle changes that further promote healing.
• Recipes for Repair: A Lyme Disease Cookbook (written by Laura & Gail Piazza, with help from Dr. Singleton) - While I haven't actually read this book, it will be next on my "books to purchase" list.  Maintaining the anti-inflammatory diet can be very difficult, and I can only imagine how helpful this book will be for meal planning!

Beauty Products

I plan to blog more about food, chronic illness, and lifestyle in the future, but I'd also like to focus on beauty products that we all use.  I've decided to write about some new natural products I've received, which I will follow up with reviews.  Here's what I've got:

Suki Hair & Scalp Conditioning Oil - I ordered the Suki Hair & Scalp Conditioning Oil for a few reasons:
1) Because it claims to make your hair grow faster--- I'm trying to grow out some nasty highlights, so I need all the help I can get.
2) Because I read about Demodex Folliculorum.  Ewww- this is probably one of the grossest things I've ever heard in my life.
3) Because I keep hearing more and more about how our scalp health is so critical for healthy hair.  It seems that our scalp health suffers (dandruff, bumps, eczema, itchiness, etc.) as a result of many of the products that we use on our hair.  Specifically, I've found that sodium laureth sulfate (SLES)/sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) is particularly bad for our scalp/hair, and unfortunately, it's in every bottle of shampoo I own (even the organic kind!).  These chemicals are what makes the shampoo foamy, but they're harsh agents found in things like dish soap, and our hair doesn't need something that strong.  I think I will dedicate a whole new post to SLES/SLS, and my experience in finding/using a good sulfate-free shampoo.  Also worth mentioning-- I did notice that L'Oreal has a new "sulfate-free" line out, but I'm not interested.... there are way too many chemicals in there to make it a quality product.

Trilogy Certified Organic Rosehip Oil - this oil claims to help with stretch marks, scars, and wrinkles.  Sounds good to me!  I think my face is too oily to use it as part of my face care regimen, so I will be testing it out on some scars on my back that I'm trying to clear up.