Jaclyn's Environmental Health Blog

One of my family members work in a grocery store where she works in the back kitchen preparing food and sometimes as the cashier. Both of these shifts have potentially hazardous occupational exposures. Working in the back kitchen exposes them to sharp objects and sometimes large machinery which could be harmful if not used correctly. Knives can be dangerous for obvious reasons, which is why cutting gloves should be provided to all employees working this shift. In the hierarchy of controls, it is nearly impossible to prevent employees from using knives when they are preparing food. Alternatives such as a plastic knife is ineffective. The most that the employers can do is provide PPE and provide proper training. Working as a cashier has it's own set of health exposures such as exposure to the BPA found in the paper. There are alternatives to this type of paper, but it costs alot more than the standard used. Wearing PPE such as gloves is very helpful in preventing high exposure leve...

One of Cal/OSHA's work safety program focuses on the adult industry and keeping them safe from diseases such as HIV and hepatitis A/B/C, among many other diseases. This is often a taboo topic and it is certainly not one of first occupations people think of as having high occupational hazards. While most STIs can be treated fairly easily, there are some diseases that have more serious consequences such as HIV/AIDS and HEP A/B/C. Even those STIs easily treated, like chlamydia and gonorrhea, have potential to cause infertility. There is also the high risk of transmitting these infections among workplace partners. Cal/OSHA has helped create regulations that require production companies to enforce condom use during work. They have fined many companies large sums of money when they found the companies to be in violation of these regulations. They enforce regulations through the Bloodborne Pathogens standards, which requires employers to protect their employees using universal precautio...

I looked into California's Department of Occupational Safety and Health and the various safety programs they support. I looked further into the Valley Fever Safety program; I had never heard of Valley fever util reading it on their website. Valley fever is caused by a fungi found in the top 12 layers of soil in many parts of the state. There is no vaccine to prevent valley fever, but CAL/OSHA provides guidelines on ways to prevent contracting the illness. They encourage individuals to be proactive in assessing their workplace for exposure and encourages workers to report their symptoms to supervisors immediately. When a governing agency encouraging workers to report their illness to their supervisors, they feel more protected. They do not need to fear of repercussions they think will happen if their boss finds out that they grew ill while on the job.

Material Safety Data Sheets are kept at workplaces where there may be a potential harm to it's workers from chemical exposures. These sheets provide employees and emergency personnel with safety percussions and chemical background. I do not work in a work place with environmental hazards so I looked at one for employees at a gas station. Using TOXNET, I looked up benzene, a chemical that makes up gasoline. It was found that the chemical is a known human carcinogen for all routes of exposure. Studies have found that high levels of benzene exposure have been linked to leukemia. Immediate signs of high levels of benzene inhalation include dizziness, rapid heartbeat, tremors, and confusion. High levels of consumption of benzene include headaches, convulsions, irregular heartbeats and irritation of stomach. For gas station workers who spend alot of time around gasoline, it is recommended they wear gloves when handling station tools. It would also be recommended to have workplaces in...

Lead exposure, especially in children, is a particular public health concern because it's effects can be subtle when exposure levels are low. Since it is inhumane to conduct experiments with lead in children, we can only conduct observation studies. Though these are not the "gold standard" in research studies, it is not difficult to see that constant low exposures of lead in children is very detrimental to their overall health and developmental growth. The low exposures are difficult to identify early on because there aren't any manifestation of physical symptoms. In the Nigeria study, children who were exposed to to lead were given chelan treatment and their overall blood lead levels dramatically decreased. I found this as an interesting piece of information because I was naively unaware of possible treatments for exposure. I do not know if this is currently being offered to children and residents of Flint, MI, but I certainly hope it is. This could help reverse so...

I have heard of the great garbage patch prior to this module, but I still find the situation to be shocking each time I read/hear about it. Green chemistry would eliminate the accumulation of waste, like what we see in the garbage patch. I have not read much into green chemistry and this is one of the first times I have heard of it, but I love what it all stands for. There is no reason to create products that can not be degraded. Our Earth is running out of resources and space for landfill. The urgency to protect our Earth has greatly risen over these past few years. More people are aware of our climate and sustainability issues. People are getting smarter with their choices and will choose to support sustainable/environmentally safe choices. The main barrier for consumers is the higher cost for these "green" items. All industries will need to make the switch over to green chemistry before these items can be affordable for all. There is no doubt that green chemistry will requ...

The six classes of chemicals presented by the Green Science Policy Institute bring awareness to the dangers of our daily products. They encourage avoiding using products containing the six main classes of harmful chemicals: highly fluorinated chemicals, antimicrobials, solvents, flame retardants, phthalates & bisphenol, and certain metals. Things I don't normally think about being harmful, like a rain jacket, is discussed in these series.  In these videos, they discuss how alternatives were being made/used in lieu of the original chemicals used in products. For example, the solvents used in nail polishes were banned but an alternative was derived from the same class of chemicals. We are making slow progress in taking chemicals off of the market and replacing these with similar chemicals does not benefit anyone. The best way is to use/buy naturally derived products. These don't always "work" in the same way as the original products and are often more expensive. H...

An ideal chemical policy would be a universal policy to include all industrialized nations that use chemicals for any kind of use. A universal policy is the most effective way to implement chemical policy change, however it would be the most difficult way. It is known that chemicals have it's way of moving through the air, soil, and water and ultimately effecting communities that do not use such chemicals. Our chemical use in one city, one plantation, or one factory, ultimately has an effect on the whole world. I applaud the countries that are taking the individual step to place bans and implement chemical policy/regulations. They are moving the world towards change. We need all countries to participate, otherwise we will continue to always be exposed to these chemicals. There are many ways to attack the chemical policy problem, such as implementing chemical approval processes and chemical testing requirements. I think that the main priority for countries right now is to ban new ...

The Louisville Charter does an excellent job of encompassing on all important aspects of effective management of chemicals. On of the background papers for this charter focuses on phasing out persistent, bioaccumulative, and highly toxic chemicals. I am still trying to wrap my brain around why governments still allow chemicals that are persistent and bioaccumulative chemicals to be available. Humans are the individuals that suffer the most from these chemicals from being widely available. I think that people are beginning to become more aware of the environment and how the choices they make can have an impact on the Earth. In recent news, climate change has been a hot topic and it is widely agreed among scientists that unless we clean up our act now, the Earth is in for very drastic changes. Changes not in favor of humans. We need governmental organizations and lobbyists that it is time to look away from profits and look at the future of the planet, or there will not be one left for ...

For dinner last night, I had raw cucumbers, raw carrots, and veggie chili soup. I first looked up the raw cucumbers because I had consumed this the most last night. Looking at the webpage, http://www.whatsonmyfood.org, I fond that 86 possible pesticides are potentially used for growing cucumbers. I was disappointed to see that 24 of these are toxins to the honeybees, which are facing an ongoing issue of colony collapse all over the US. Endocrine disruptors were the most common pesticide found, with a total of 32. The other ingredients I looked up were: carrots (26 pesticides found), kidney beans (1), black beans (1). Prior to this little exercise, I had thought cucumbers and carrots were the best option because they are vegetables and normally deemed as "healthy". I am disappointed to find that there are so many possibly associated pesticides to cucumbers because there are few alternatives to eating nutritious foods. This just further emphasizes the need for my family and I...

Safe cosmetics is becoming a hot topic of discussion as consumers are becoming more aware of carcinogenic ingredients found in their products. There is a Safe Cosmetics Act that is pending to be passed on the national level. Approval of the act would allow the FDA to have more oversight of cosmetic products and the chemicals used. Additionally, testing of chemicals will be allowed and would hold manufacturing and cosmetic companies accountable for their products. California has their own Safe Cosmetics Act (2005), which requires manufacturers selling products in California to provide their ingredient list to the CDPH and make them publicly available. Through the act, CDPH has created data bases of the information of ingredients provided by cosmetic companies. The data base is open for all to use and should be used when one is considering purchasing a new product. Though there is no testing done through the act, it is a great start for better regulations of cosmetic and personal produ...

Looking at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) website, it is quickly apparent that the agency works on a wide range of projects affecting the environment. They fund/work on projects relating to the arctic ice melts, monitoring algae bloom, measuring aerosol levels, and the ocean's changing chemistry make up. We have all heard by now, about the melting ice caps in the arctic. The ice is melting faster than ever before and this has great implications for the wild life in the arctic and also has the potential to drastically increase global sea water levels. Scientists and researchers with the NOAA are looking at cloud formation in the arctic to better understand the changing Arctic climate. It has been found that there have been consistent cloud coverage over the past 2 decades, which is troubling as the clouds trap the warm air.

Immediately opening up the website for California's Department of Public health, I saw an environmental health service it provided. It currently is assessing the radiation found in Hunter's Point Naval Yard, which is on EPA's superfund list. They are currently looking at 'Parcel A-1' for abnormal radiation readings. This parcel of land has already been cleared by the EPA with previous scans and tests. However, recent allegations regarding falsification of data around the land surrounding Parcel A1 has prompted CDPH to do additional testings. Testing begin back in July for Parcel A1, and they post progress updates on the information found during their scans. Thus far, there have been no major findings that would endanger the residents in the area. Scans are ongoing and are expected to encompass the land surrounding Parcel A1.

Seasonal/local foods on hospital menus is a great way to change the way the food industry is organized. Hospitals produce large amounts of food for it’s guests and patients every day. Each city has multiple hospitals and a change in the way they source their food can greatly reduce the food miles and further support local farmers. Universities would be another great place to initiate change since it serves thousands of students and faculty each day. As we read from the article, there are potential cost savings to switching local. As consumers are more educated today, I doubt that there would be major backlash from these large organizations trying to implement seasonal menus. I am moving to NYC in a few months so I was interested in learning more about the Harvest Calendar for the state. I will admit that there are some items I commonly use year round, which include broccoli and tomatoes, but they are only in harvest during the summer months of the year. It looks like there are far...

Antibiotics are often thought of as beneficial as we have seen the drug eliminate illnesses and infections that were previously deadly. However, we have gotten to the point where it is used a little too often. One of the items we find it in is in our meat and poultry. These are not given to animals because they have infections, they are given to animals because it changes their metabolism and increases their size. This allows farmers to sell more product. Taking these antibiotics in constant low doses as we consume meat can cause health implications later when we actually need antibiotics for health reasons. It does not surprise me that there are increasing antibiotic resistance in areas near CAFOs. CAFOs rely heavily on antibiotics to supply them with adequate meat/poultry to sell. The more that they can sell, the more profit they will get. When farmers use antibiotics, they do not think about the implications the use has downstream. The antibiotics do not stay contained in the a...

The story of the vanishing bees is something I have been aware of for a while now but I never fully understood the full scope of the phenomena. From the video, I have learned that there is a name for this: colony collapse disorder. I find it absolutely baffling that the thousands of bees just disappear with no trace of deaths. Some thousands of bees disappear within hours! Prior to this video, I had just assumed it was a slow decrease. I have always understood the implications of bee loss but now that the bees are vanishing faster than ever, it makes me wonder what options we will have when the bees are all gone? I also did not know that commercial bee keepers kill the queen bee to replace it with a younger one. It is time to consider more holistic ways to maintain bee colonies. Dirt! changed the way I viewed the soil. It contains so much more life than most would like to think about. The dirt shapes the way our produces are grown and it is crucial that we take care of this. We do ...