I remember the day I first became aware of our chemical struggle. It was January 31st of this year. We were moving into a new rental house the next day. Chris and I had been apart for 6 weeks. He was driving a U-Haul full of new mattresses and other belongings from Colorado, to meet us in Tucson the next morning. We spent the day packing. We decided to go to the park before heading out to dinner. The kids rolled in the grass at the park. I'm not sure what game it was, but the 3 youngest were rolling in the grass.
Gathered around the table at Olive Garden, I noticed the kids' eyes redden. Really redden. Brandon looked pale and put his head on the table. Kaitlyn was groaning, and Colin had a severe headache. I couldn't figure out what was wrong. Our spirits were high. Eating out was a rare treat, and Dad was coming! Finally, I looked at Megan and we both knew: chemicals on the grass.
Thus I now hope to bring awareness to the hazards of chemicals as well as indoor mold. Remember, everyone can benefit from lightening their toxic load. If you're in good health you will be in better health by using less toxic products and eating a healthier diet. If you are experiencing baffling symptoms and struggling with your health (or your children are), it may be worth a look at chemical and environmental issues.
My favorite resource on this subject is a tiny book titled "Chemical Sensitivity: Environmental diseases and pollutants - how they hurt us, how to deal with them" by Dr. Sherry A. Rogers. Dr. Rogers is board certified by the American Academy of Family Practice and the American Academy of Environmental Medicine and is a fellow of the American College of Allergy and Immunology.
I recently bought another one of her books, "The E.I. Syndrome - An Rx for Environmental Illness." Unfortunately I bought it used (online). I ought to know by now that we can't buy used books. Books attract mold spores and hang on to chemicals. I opened it last week, smelled it, and immediately and ironically tossed it onto our back porch. There it sits, a book on environmental toxins that I can't read.
Dr. Rogers' explanation of toxic overload is the best I've read. "Each of us has the ability to metabolize (or break down or get rid of) foreign chemicals (xenobiotics), a process known as xenobiotic detoxification." Glutathione is a big part of the detoxifying, conjugation process. (I nebulize glutathione while working on my blog each day.) Rogers continues, "It costs the body energy and nutrients in order to make glutathione. The bottom line is that the work of detoxification uses up, and loses forever, energy and nutrients in the process of detoxifying chemicals that we breathe and eat each day. But much of the time we are unaware of even being exposed to any chemicals."
This is why I'm grateful for our symptoms upon exposure. It helps us avoid things that could be harming us without our awareness. And it brings me back to our role as canaries. We can help the coal miners of the 21st century.
You all ARE canaries. You could totally get exclusive work just by walking though people's homes. I'd want you to walk through my 120-yr old Chicago home to give me an idea of what is here, except that I would not at all like that you would physically suffer (not as badly as the canary) to uncover evidences of toxins that are not readily apparent to me.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog. Brings back all those happy memories of dragging those mattresses down here, putting them in a house that had been sprayed for termites, and having to abandon them there. You go, girl!
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This morning I lasted 30 minutes in a new women's Bible study that a friend has going...thought I would give it another try. The women had a good bit of hair product, lotions, perfumes, and I knew quickly that my time with them would be very short. The discussion was stimulating, so nice to be among other Christian women...but alas, my lips began to burn, my lungs got that familiar tightness....and I had to excuse myself yet another time. Went to the car and sat with the windows rolled down...talked to God about how I felt...cheated again!...but wanting to know what He had in mind by allowing me to go through this chemical minefield....I think His answer was this: "stay tuned!"
ReplyDeleteAnd so I shall.
We had a similar experience in Nashville on vacation some years ago. My husband and children rolled down the steep lawn of the state capitol. I did not because I was quite pregnant. As we picniced nearby, they all began to scratch their arms and legs and cry. My husband took ice from the cooler and rubbed them to get rid of the herbicide traces. We just thought it was a funny memory, but obviously these products are harmful to humans. My neighbor had a landscaper come recently and I watched him spray the yard with poison and I could feel it in my throat for a couple of days after that. How do people not see the danger? Thank you for sharing your horror story. You are helping in ways you may never know.
ReplyDeleteThis has nothing to do with mold (at least I don't think it does) but brought to my attention in a very personal way toxin sensitivity. Yesterday I had an appt. with an ear, nose, throat dr. to see what is causing my stuffy nose for the past 20 years. To be brief, he ended up giving me a shot in both nostrils to reduce swelling. Within 60 seconds of the shot I went into shock, passed out, threw up 3 times, my body was beet red and had burning/tingling from head to toe, my lips, hands, and feet swelled to 2X their normal size. It took 3 hrs to bring me back with Benedryl so they could wheel-chair me out to the car and 5 hours before I wasn't sick and could carry on a conversation. The dr and staff in the office said they had never seen such a severe reaction to a common shot they use all the time. The side effects of the most common meds are scary to read! Modern medicine is wonderful and very helpful but just be very careful what goes into your body.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrea,
ReplyDeleteBelow referenced is another book you might find helpful. It is the book our doctor provided for us to read so we could understand what he was about to explain to us regarding what was making my husband ill in 1985. The diagnosis back then was called Environmental Illness, today it's more often called MCS.
The book is entitled, "An Alternative Approach to Alllergies." The author is Dr. Theron Randolph. The book (in paperback)can be purchased from Share, Care, and Prayer, a non-profit Christian organization offering spiritual encouragement and helpful information for those dealing with this isolating and complicated illness.
The cost is $16.00, plus $2.13 shipping (or it was in March of 2008). The address is: Share, Care, and Prayer, P.co. Box 2080, Frazier Park, California. Janet Dauble is the Executive Director and writes their very helpful newsletter.
Thanks, Emma
My favorite book by Dr Rogers (which I believe EVERY medical student should read) is "Detox or Die".
ReplyDeleteI also purchased the EI Syndrome (although I haven't had time to read it yet).
I noticed that the one in your picture is an older edition. The newer/revised edition is available at:
http://www.needs.com/product/The_EI_Syndrome_Revised/htc_books_environmental_health
I think that everyone who knows anyone about to start medical school or in medical school already should purchase "Detox or Die" for the med student as a gift, and ask them to pass it on to their fellow students when they're done reading in an effort fill in the HUGE gap by the medical schools.
Med schools will NEVER agree to teach doctors the actual cause of illness and how to treat it (not in the USA), because, sadly, they and their very close buddies in the pharmaceutical industries would be out of business! So it's up to us to do whatever we can to steer the soon-to-be doctors in the right direction!
I truly believe that if med students read this book (either just before starting medical school or in between semesters), we'd have more physicians specializing in Environmental Medicine -- the ONLY specialty that offers the truth about the cause of illness AND how to treat (detoxification methods, etc...).
We need more physicians to specialize in Environmental Medicine (like Dr Sherry Rogers). And for those of you wondering if Toxicologists have any clue about mold (or other toxins) being a common cause of illness AND how to treat it, the answer it is (sadly) ... they have no clue about mold or how to get rid of it once it's inside the body.
I know this b/c I recently called local 2 hospitals E.R. units -- an adult and a Pediatric Emergency Room in South Florida, and asked them how they would address a patient who comes in with symptoms after being exposed to mold (and who/which doctor would they call to address it?) and was shocked at their reply:
"We'd call Poison Control and have them walk us through what to do."
So I asked them "Do you have any specialists in Environmental Medicine that can be called in to evaluate the patient?"
They're reply went something like this: "What? Environmental what? We don't have any local doctors who specialize in mold or the environement. We'd have to contact poison control. And chances are, if a patient was having breathing problems, we'd either call a Pulmonogist or an Alelrgy Specialist." (with a VERY defensive attitude)
After hearing this, I decided to see "what kind" of help Poison Control would offer. So I called them myself...mainly to see HOW they would address the issue. Unfortunately, what I got was an arrogant Toxicologist who was claimed (and insisted) that mold does NOT cause illness, unless it's used by terrorists in massive amounts. (I happen to have read your post, Andrea, about the military knows more about how to address mold than the civilian doctors, so I was tempted to print / send him the article...printed it, but haven't had a chance to send it YET).
The Toxicologist from Poison Control actually said that there's no treatment to remove mold from a person's body. To make matters worse, when I asked him if they have any Environmental Medicine doctors on their staff, he didn't know that speciality existed. I told him that I know one of one Environmental Specialist (now retired) who's in South Florida (Poison Control for FL is in South Florida area too), and he was surprised at hearing this.
That phone call to P.C. was SO disappointing. Imagine, a Toxicologist not knowing that the Environmental Medicine speciality even exists! So sad. So VERY sad.
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ReplyDeleteSo again, if you know of anyone who is thinking about becoming a Dr, or is about to start medical school or is in medical school already, please do them (and all of us) a favor and buy them the book:
"Detox or Die" , and ask them to pass it on to their fellow students when they're done reading in an effort fill in the HUGE gap left behind by the medical schools...and remind them that...
"The primary attribute of the scientific mind is humility, not intellect. Only when intellectual curiosity is stronger than the fear of being wrong or humiliated will science grow rapidly and positively. A scientist, and especially a clinician, must always have both the mind and the heart open, or the suffering will continue." Source: "Uninformed Consent" by Dr Hal Huggins, D.D.S. , M.S.
(Dr Huggins is known as the "Father of Mercury Free Dentistry"; he also has a Master's in Toxicology and has done a massive amount of research in treating illness brought on by toxins, not just from mercury in amalgam fillings, or from root canals, but other sources as well).
BTW - the book "Uninformed Consent" (quoted above) written by Dr Huggins DDS, MS and Dr Levy, M.D., J.D. would be the other book I would gift to a medical (and dental) school student.
Blessings to you all,
Cary