Here are 4 subjects from our latest Feb 25 2012 newsletter:

1) Is My Orange Juice ‘Fresh’ and Untainted?
2) Fukushima Groundwaters Massively Contaminated, Running
Out Into Pacific Ocean
3) Agent Orange Corn For YOU & YOUR FAMILY! (You can
stop this by acting before or on Monday Feb 27th 2012
4) BPA in Your Plastic Bottles, But Surprisingly High
Concentrations From Your CANS & Canned Food!

 

 

1) Is My Orange Juice ‘Fresh’ and Untainted?

Let’s start with good old OJ or orange juice.
What would you buy: ‘fresh,’ or OJ from concentrate? I
know the obvious answer, which we’ve probably made over
and over again. But get this about what is supposed to be
‘fresh’ when it comes to OJ lately:

The oranges are peeled and the juice squeezed and then
stored ‘aseptically’ in tanks that hold up to a million gallons,
and the juice is ‘deaerated’ – that is, the oxygen is removed so
the juice ‘doesn’t oxidize in the million gallon tanks in which
it can be kept for upwards of a year.

When the juice is stripped of oxygen it is also stripped of
flavor-providing chemicals. Juice companies therefore hire flavor
and fragrance companies, the same ones that formulate perfumes for
Dior and Calvin Klein, to engineer flavor packs to add back to the
juice to make it taste fresh.”*

Isn’t that wonderful? My wife was wondering why she couldn’t drink
orange juice anymore, as she would get a rash and hives and itch
after she did so, but only in the recent past.

Remember that the perfume companies have to worry that their new
compounds will not kill or adversely affect their users. But, why
aren’t these ‘flavor packs’ part of the ingredients on the label
of your OJ?

‘The reason you don’t see any mention on the label about added flavors is because these flavors are derived from orange essences and oils. However, the appearance of being natural doesn’t necessarily mean it is. As Alissa Hamilton states:
“[T]hose in the industry will tell you that the flavor packs, whether
made for reconstituted or pasteurized orange juice, resemble nothing
found in nature.”

The juice is also typically designed to appeal to the taste preferences
of the market, and will therefore contain different flavor packs or
chemicals depending on where it will eventually end up. According to
Hamilton, the juice created for the North American market tends to contain high amounts of ethyl butyrate, which is one of the most commonly used chemicals in both flavors and fragrances. Aside from being versatile in creating a number of different flavors, including orange, cherry, pineapple, mango, guava, and bubblegum, just to name a few, it’s also one of the least expensive.

Other markets, such as the Mexican and Brazilian, tend to contain different chemicals, such as various decanals or terpene compounds.’

Overall, some experts recommend not drinking orange juice, or juices at all – the whole fruit being much better for you because it has fiber
and anti-oxidants in it that are not there once the juice is processed
and pasteurized. Of course, if you need your OJ every day, be wise and get it the organic way. Buy the organic oranges and squeeze the juice yourself! See the reference for this story with more details at:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/16/dirty-little-secret-orange-juice-is-artificially-flavored-to-taste-like-oranges.aspx

P.S. There also is an OJ problem with contamination with Carbendazim, a USA-illegal fungicide declined to be allowed into the USA by our Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

‘Carbendazim is illegal on all citrus in the United States, but commonly used in Brazil, the world’s top orange juice exporter, to combat mold on orange trees. It is permitted in juice imports to the European Union, Brazil’s biggest buyer.’

For you who invest in futures, hark: ‘Orange juice futures have been on a rollercoaster ride since the FDA began testing orange juice imports after Coca-Cola alerted the agency to the presence of carbendazim, which was banned in the United States in 2009.’ **

The Pesticide Action Network (PAN) lists carbendazim as a possible
carcinogen [could cause cancer] and a suspected endocrine disruptor [endocrine refers to your hormones and the glands that produce them, like your ovaries, thyroid, adrenals].
See more at http://pesticideinfo.org/Detail_Chemical.jsp?Rec_Id=PC32862#Toxicity

One last thing on labeling and ingredients: so the flavor additives made with the orange skin, plus whatever other secret chemicals that compose the flavor – – which can cause allergic symptoms, as with my wife, and, I’m sure, in many thousands or millions(?) of you – – do NOT have to be labeled on our mass produced orange juice. Then, there are other secret flavor (and color?) additives produced, for example, by a former Swiss perfume company, now called Givaudan, that are in so many of our processed foods from pretzels to chips to gravy packs to packaged meat products, that for some reason also do not have to be labeled. There was a very uncritical segment on this Givaudin story
on the TV show 60 Minutes in late 2011. How many of us are adversely affected by whatever these secret chemical additives are? Why is the world not ensuring that these additives are labeled? What is happening to our food supply, as it moves further and further from the raw and natural, to the synthetic and impractical? When will
President Obama fulfill his campaign promise to label GMO’s [Genetically Modified Organisms – – like 90% of all USA-grown soy] in our food, as they are labeled in 50 countries already, including all of the European Union, Russia, New Zealand, and China, as examples? GMO Labeling initiatives are getting onto the ballots in 17 states as we still live and breathe today. See the webpage ‘State Legislation To Label GMO’s’ to get the particulars and do your part in the battle at

http://www.organicconsumers.org/bytes/ob315.htm

Remember that you are not alone in wanting GMO’s labeled. 93% of Americans polled want them labeled. It’s about time! (Yes, of course, there could be GMO corn, canola, soy or cottonseed included in those secret flavor concoctions that so many of us are allergic to.)

2. Fukushima Nuclear Plant Catastrophe Is Fixed and Over (Allow The Tokyo Electrical Power Company (TEPCO) Mislead You…), Reactors (Remaining) Are In ‘Cold Shutdown’ Now

Sounds great, doesn’t it!? But ‘cold shutdown’ is a term that means that the water in the reactor cores is only below 212 degrees Fahrenheit or 100 degrees Celsius. Not really ‘cold.’ No. Plus these temperatures can (and probably do, and will in the future) bounce back up over boiling temperature, to possibly cause more production of radioactive radionuclides and havoc over the next 30 years as TEPCO tries to bring the melted down Fukushima reactor cores and cooling ponds under control, then eventually decommissioned, taken apart,
isolated somewhere forever at a place to be named later…

We now know that the groundwaters and rivers around Fukushima are massively contaminated, due to the devastating accident at the plant almost one year ago (March 11, 2011). This contamination is SEVERE: the rivers are spilling 20 BILLION Becquerels* per hour each day of just cesium (one of more than 500+ radionuclides produced by fissioning uranium in a nuclear power plant to boil water to produce steam to turn a turbine to produce electricity) into surrounding waters and ocean. Amidst the sadly vulnerable Pacific Ocean, cesium and
other radionuclides from plutonium to strontium to iodine, etc., are now concentrating amidst, and contaminating, fish, plants, life in general, out to the far reaches of our largest ocean, for centuries to come. And yes, there are still thousands of tons of radioactive water in the basements of the reactors. Deadly exposures at ‘hot spots’ where any of the radioactive radionuclides produced by nuclear fission are intensely concentrated – but not smellable, tasteable, or feelable – are all too possible. Both about the plants and in the area surrounding the plants to perhaps 50 miles from the plant – that radius of danger is
just a guess, but the USA did warn American citizens in Japan that they should stay away from Fukushima to that distance after the March 11 accident occurred.

For an idea of the seriousness of the hot spot danger, the NY Times reported on August 1, 2011 that workers found an area near Reactors No. 1 and 2, where radiation levels exceeded their measuring device’s maximum reading of 10 sieverts per hour — a fatal dose for humans.
Remember that 10 SIEVERTS = 10,000 millisieverts = 1000 Rems per hour in this case >> when 500 rems or rads is considered to be the fatal dose that causes radiation sickness and death within 2 weeks!

 

We do NOT know if that hot spot is ‘cleaned up’ yet or will persist for millennia. Because we humans are not geiger counters and cannot detect radiation with our five senses, we could dangerously expose ourselves for a few fatal minutes to just the edge of this hot spot without being aware of what we have just done, to soon die an agonizing death where we bleed from all our orifices as our immune system implodes, our hair falls out, lesions break out all over our
skin and within our vital organs…TEPCO estimated, according to the August 1 article, that this hot spot probably has existed since the early days of the March 11 tsunami/earthquake and nuclear accident that includes meltdowns at reactors 1-3, destruction of reactor 4, leaving reactor 4’s fuel pool exposed to the elements, repeatedly releasing radiation to the environment, both air and water that yes, does circulate around our little globe that we call Earth.

And people like 23 year old fisherman Abe Hiroto, staying in the evacuation zone, eating the local fish to show how safe they are and how safe it is to be there, maybe because he thought radiation is some phony thing that can do nothing to you….died from acute lymphocytic leukemia in latter 2011. He is featured reportedly in the January 2012 edition of Rod and Reel magazine if you want to get yourself a unique view of the scene around Fukushima Prefect, and the
rationalization humans use for their ignorance about things they wish to deny. Like the dangers of radiation, and nuclear power.

Is there an absolute link between the rather rare acute lymphocytic leukemia and radiation, one wonders? No, there is no proof the radiation produced Mr. Hiroto’s fatal cancer (at such a young age). But then, if he wasn’t very ill too from the same disease, receiving chemotherapy, you could ask 63 year old TV newscaster Norikazu Otsuka how he possibly came down with the very same cancer,
perhaps related to his promoting Fukushima produce, eating such for all his viewers to see, during his morning TV show? Yes, he had been in Fukushima on March 15, 2011, four days after the nuclear catastrophe began. There are about 1.5 cases of this cancer per 100,000 people and about 11% of cases are in people over 55.

Actually, the danger of further complications and contamination from Fukushima is not really over. Fairewinds.org reports that the piping to cool the reactors is “jury-rigged” and not “seismically qualified” to withstand a next earthquake. The plant could be back to disaster status within 40 hours, should another powerful enough earthquake occur.

Fairewinds also reports that solid nuclear waste from Fukushima prefecture would fill up 33 stadiums the size of the New Orleans Superdome. An example of this waste is a tarp found at a school near
Tokyo that had been open in March/April before being rolled up. Its radioactive disintegration count/exposure was measured at 90,000 disintegrations/second/kilogram of weight of the human body
(for example). Each disintegration can hit your DNA and cause a mutation and possibly the start of a cancer.

Frighteningly, it looks like the current initial Japanese solution to the radioactive waste contamination problem is to dilute the solid waste – like the tarp – at a 1000-1 dilution/concentration with other waste material, per kilogram, and then INCINERATE IT!!!! – In the USA such waste is required to be buried deep and ‘safely(?)’ isolated essentially forever in a nuclear waste facility.

Remember that with incineration: some of the radioactive waste goes up the stack, and gets out into the environment – not all of it is successfully filtered; while some remains in the waste ash [radioactive] that then must be disposed of.

So, what do the Japanese then intend to do with their incinerated radioactive ash, you might wonder??? Why, they are going to SPREAD IT IN TOKYO BAY!!!!!! It’s being dumped into landfills about Tokyo Bay! To then run out into the Pacific Ocean, wherever that may lead the radionuclides that could concentrate in fish and shellfish, especially. Especially fish higher up the food chain, like seals and whales and tuna, etc. And what about the kelp and coral calcium many of us treasure? We should beware of what we eat henceforth that comes out of the Pacific Ocean! You may want to deny the danger, but isn’t that human nature? The magnitude of the Fukushima accident is humongous, perhaps poisoning half of our planet
irrevocably for centuries, including our genetic code including plants and animals. Not to mention the air we must breathe that could have radionuclides like plutonium floating around in it that originated at
Fukushima. Plutonium-239, with its 24,000 year half life and 240,000 to 480,000 year ‘hazardous life’ during which we have to worry about it causing lung cancer with just a microgram being the cancer-causing
dose (one MILLION micrograms in one gram; 454 grams in one pound; meaning: one pound of plutonium, if dispersed in small enough particles, could cause 454 MILLION lung cancers if inhaled into our lungs). And plutonium is just one of over 500 + radionuclides produced by fissioning uranium in nuclear plants – or by a nuclear disaster like the one at Fukushima – that can cause mutations and cancers of various sorts.

Here’s 4 facts on the nuclear/Fukushima front to leave you with, before we go on to the possible approval of ‘Agent Orange Corn:’ Our media keeps calling the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) ‘a
watchdog agency of the United Nations.’ However, as quoted on the fairewinds.org site: ‘Article 2 of the IAEA charter states that: ‘The agency shall seek to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic
energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world.’ meaning the IAEA’s primary focus is to promote nuclear energy, not regulate it.

Perhaps that jives with both TEPCO and the IAEA determining what is an acceptable level of risk to citizens in Japan who might wish to move back into their homes around Fukushima. They are in agreement
that an annual exposure of 2000 millirems is OK. Be aware that the common ‘background radiation’ exposure we get in most of America is 200 millirems per year (not including radon exposure). So, the extra 1800 millirems could be OK? And how closely will that be measured anyway, what with all the groundwater contamination, and the hot spots that could exist anywhere there?

Plus the IAEA is also condoning the dumping-in-Tokyo-Bay practice!

Plus the current head, or Director General, of the IAEA, is a Japanese former nuclear regulator for the Japanese government – Yukiya Amano. ***

3) Agent Orange Corn?!?

Agent Orange Corn!!? Yeah, this is from the newest Horror Movie…Well, no, it isn’t, unfortunately. This genetically altered mutant life-form could be in our fields any day now, along with untold tons
of toxic herbicide from the Agent Orange concoction – UNLESS YOU fight it, and you can, very easily, by signing onto a letter to stop this sick sick next step in brazen biotech craziness.

Go to this link and you can sign on and do your deed:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/gelink.cfm

Here’s more of the hideous story:

Many of you out there served in Vietnam and know the dangers of Agent Orange first-hand to your body and soul. Cancers, infertility, mutational damage, rashes, hormonal imbalances are just some of the
side effects our soldiers and the unfortunate Vietnamese had to experience as a result of inhumane Agent Orange use during the war waged in Indochina – – as it used to be called. Now, Dow Chemical
wants to make money by introducing their genetically altered corn product that is engineered to be resistant to their chemical/herbicide 2-4-D, a major component of Agent Orange.

The way the GMO, or genetically modified organism world usually works is, they gene gun in genetic sequences that disrupt and change the DNA make-up of a plant that they can then patent, while purposely ensuring that the design includes resistance to an herbicide they also happen to manufacture, that they can spray and spray on the GMO plant, that will survive the spraying, while weeds are killed around it, and when they sell lots and lots of the toxic herbicide, they can
maximize profits of both plant and herbicide.

(Dow Corporation hasn’t the patent rights to use gene gunning, so they use a technique that causes tumor growth on plant leaves that can lead to the production of a unique transgenic product/plant.
Please see the one paragraph addendum at bottom of this newsletter.)

After all we hear and know about Agent Orange, who would believe even Dow or Monsanto, or any of our wonderful ‘Gene Giants’ corporations, would possibly even consider the use of 2-4-D for widespread usage to despicably contaminate our fields, water and bodies?? This stuff will be used everywhere the Agent Orange Corn is grown, and be in the corn itself that you might eat, as would any pesticide. And, at this stage, it probably won’t be labelled, so you won’t know what kind of corn it is, nor that it’s been sprayed with 2-4-D. As the 2-4-D is sprayed in the fields where the corn is grown, it will get into the groundwater that runs into the creeks and rivers, get into the soil and air. This could be THE worst biotech nightmare of corporate greed (up to now, anyway).

Scientists researching the toxicity of pesticides and herbicides have found that ‘exposure to 2-4-D itself and to myriad “inert” ingredients contained in 2-4-D products have been linked to many health harms. The common weedkiller is listed in California as a reproductive and developmental toxicant, defined as a chemical that interferes with fetal or child development or reduces fertility. Researchers have also found a link between 2-4-D exposure and birth defects of the heart and circulatory/respiratory systems. The association is especially strong among infants conceived between April and June — the time
of greatest herbicide application in many parts of the country.

Many studies also link 2-4-D with developmental neurotoxicity, findings that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has repeatedly failed to adequately consider in its regulation of the herbicide.

2-4-D has been linked to cancer for years For more than two decades chlorophenoxy herbicides (including 2-4-D) have been classified as possible human carcinogens.

In recent years, more data have emerged linking 2-4-D with non-Hodgkins lymphoma and other cancers. A 2000 study in the Midwest wheat growing region, where 2-4-D use is high, showed increased mortality for cancer of the brain and leukemia in both boys and girls, as well as increased rates of many different cancers linked with increasing wheat acreage. A more recent study of California farmworkers showed an increase in gastric cancer associated with use of 2-4-D.’ ****

Organic Consumers.org additionally points out that ‘in mammals, 2-4-D disrupts energy production, depleting the body of its primary energy molecule, ATP.

2-4-D contains dioxins, environmental pollutants belonging to the “dirty dozen,” a group of extremely toxic chemicals known as persistent organic pollutants.

2-4-D was banned in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Quebec and scores of Canadian municipalities after numerous epidemiological studies linked 2-4-D to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma among farmers and members of the general public.

2-4-D causes significant suppression of thyroid hormone levels. Thyroid hormone is known to play a critical role in the development of the brain. Slight thyroid suppression has been shown to adversely
affect neurological development in the fetus, resulting in lasting effects on the child’s learning and behavior.

Male farm sprayers exposed to 2-4-D had lower sperm counts and more spermatic abnormalities compared to men who were not exposed to this chemical. In Minnesota, higher rates of birth defects have been observed in areas of the state with the highest use of 2-4-D and other herbicides of the same class. This increase in birth defects was most pronounced among infants who were conceived in the spring, the time of greatest herbicide use.

2-4-D also interferes with the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine. In young organisms, exposure to 2-4-D results in delays in brain development and abnormal behavior patterns, including apathy,
decreased social interactions, repetitive movements, tremor, and immobility.

This herbicide impairs normal deposition of myelin [coats our nerves] in the developing brain. The neurotoxic and anti thyroid effects of 2-4-D mean that fetuses, infants, and children are more susceptible to longterm adverse health effects from exposure to this chemical although they may appear normal at birth.

2-4-D is excreted in breast milk, thereby resulting in potentially significant exposures to the nursling. 2-4-D residues have been detected in stomach contents, blood, brains and kidneys of 4-day-old neonates fed by 2-4-D exposed mothers. When maternal exposures stopped, the chemical continued to be excreted in maternal milk for a week. Postnatal exposures to this chemical during the critical period for development of the infant brain are of serious scientific concern.

Deregulation of 2-4-D tolerant crops would only increase our exposure to this dangerous pesticide.’ *****

Enough information? Enraged? Disgusted? Time to Sack our Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, former ‘biotech governor of the year,’ for promoting everything and anything biotech?? Yes, you can do something about this latest corporate/chemical/GMO/government approved and facilitated assault on our dignity and health! But you have to do your part before or on February 27th!! Just sign your name and address to the following letter. It’s easy. And send the link to your friends too, who wouldn’t want 2-4-D slathered
all over our country and biosphere, would you?

http://www.organicconsumers.org/gelink.cfm

Three last paragraphs from Organic Consumers.org – a terrific organization, I might add, that gets things done with its approximately one MILLION subscribers who are active and activist on issues like this assault on our food and crops!

‘”Although dioxins are environmental contaminants, most dioxin exposure occurs through the diet, with over 95% coming through dietary intake of animal fats.”

The food industry doesn’t want you to know that you can easily exceed the daily dioxin limit proposed by the EPA by consuming a single large meal of non-organic animal products. Most of all, the food industry doesn’t want to have to take responsibility for the dioxin contamination. If they did, they would have to submit to common-sense food safety measures, like those embraced by the organic industry, that ban toxic pesticides and slaughterhouse waste from animal feed.

Tell the EPA to release its report on schedule and to not bow down to food industry lobbyists who don’t want us to know what we’re eating. Then watch this NutritionFacts.org video to learn which foods are
most likely to contain dioxin.

And, if you haven’t already, please take action on our “Stop Agent Orange Frankencorn” campaign to stop the new generation of genetically engineered crops designed to withstand being drenched with 2-4-D, the 7th-largest source of dioxin pollution in the US.’****** PLEASE DO THIS BEFORE or ON FEB. 27TH 2012!!

Again, go to http://www.organicconsumers.org/gelink.cfm to do this.

*****************************************************

4) BPA in Your Plastic Bottles, But Surprisingly High Concentrations From Your CANS & Canned Food!

Who woulda thought? Most of us who are conscious about what we put into our and our children’s bodies are concerned about BPA causing cancer, obesity, infertility and behavioral problems. We know it’s in plastic bottles, especially baby bottles. What with the information of what havoc it could wreak on our babies’ health, it has been banned from baby bottles in many areas.

‘Nalgene, which makes popular water bottles, quit using BPA when customers began complaining about it. Sunoco, one of the companies that makes BPA, said it would sell the chemical only to buyers who
guaranteed that they would not use it in food or drink containers meant for children.

Consumer fears have made the words “BPA-free” a marketing tool. Wal-Mart, Whole Foods, Sears, CVS and other retailers have said they will stop selling baby bottles made with BPA, and major formula
and baby-bottle manufacturers have also scrapped it.’ *******

Bisphenol A or BPA can be an endocrine disruptor, like dioxin and 2-4-D, and PCB’s. It attaches to estrogen receptors in the body. Linda S. Birnbaum, director of the National Institute of Environmental
Health Sciences (part of the National Institutes of Health), stated in a September 6, 2010 New York Times article: “What’s estrogen associated with?…Breast cancer, uterine cancer, obesity, behavior, the immune system. If BPA can have some estrogenic-like properties, it is scientifically plausible that it might have a wide spectrum of effects. We need to move beyond the idea that an environmental chemical or a drug is only going to do one thing, and need to understand that what happens to an infant may be different
from what happens to an adult.”

The results from a new round of studies [on BPA] are not expected for at least two years [article written 9/6/2010]. “We are in some ways using BPA as a model for an endocrine-disrupting compound,” she said.
“What can happen when you perturb fundamental homeostatic processes in the body?”

Impersonating Hormones?

The idea that drugs or chemicals could act like hormones has been around for decades, but advocacy campaigns in the 1990s drew public attention to the issue. Such effects can be subtle and delayed.
Hormones act on receptors in cells, structures to which they attach — the standard comparison is lock and key — and orchestrate growth, differentiation and all sorts of biochemical activities. Many cells
have receptors for estrogen, and BPA can bind to those receptors, though far less strongly than the body’s own estrogen can.

R. Thomas Zoeller, a biology professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, said BPA could also bind to receptors for male hormone and thyroid hormone. “I don’t know of a single other molecule that does this,” Dr. Zoeller said.’*******

That’s pretty scary, isn’t it? ‘The Endocrine Society issued a 34-page report expressing serious concerns about endocrine-disrupting compounds, including BPA, dioxins, PCBs, DDT, the plasticizers known
as phthalates and DES.

The society has about 14,000 members from more than 100 countries, who work in medicine, biology, genetics, immunology, industry and other areas.

The report said there was strong evidence that endocrine disruptors could harm the reproductive system, causing malformations, infertility and cancer. It noted that the chemicals could affect all endocrine
systems, and said there was mounting evidence for effects on the thyroid gland, brain, obesity and metabolism, and the body’s ability to regulate insulin and glucose levels. It also said that fetuses exposed to chemicals in the womb could experience effects later in life, and pass those abnormalities to future generations.

Scientists call such effects “the fetal basis of adult disease,” and say they probably result from epigenetic changes — meaning that the chemicals alter the functioning of genes, turning them on or off,
but do not cause mutations, which are changes in the actual structure of the genes. Some scientists said that they had doubted that low doses could cause harm, but changed their minds after seeing the data.’ *******

Be aware that ‘BPA is found in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. Polycarbonate plastics are often used in containers that store food and beverages, such as water bottles, and baby bottles and cups. They may also be used in toys and other consumer goods. Epoxy resins can be used to coat the inside of metal products, such as food cans, baby formula cans, bottle tops and water supply lines. Some dental sealants and composites also may contain BPA. And certain thermal paper products, such as cash register receipts, may contain BPA – this is really scary, just to show how ubiquitously this terrible chemical is spread about amidst our society.

Some research has shown that BPA can seep into food or beverages from containers that are made with BPA or into your body when you handle products made with BPA. BPA remains controversial, and research studies are continuing. The American Chemistry Council, an association that represents plastics manufacturers, contends
that BPA poses no risk to human health.’ *********

Then there was published in mid November 2011 ‘in The Journal of the American Medical Association, the first [study] to measure the amounts [of BPA] that are ingested when people eat food that comes directly out of a can, in this case soup. The spike in BPA levels that the researchers recorded is one of the highest seen in any study.

“We cannot say from our research what the consequences are,” said Karin Michels, an associate professor of epidemiology at Harvard Medical School and an author of the study. “But the very high levels that we found are very surprising. We would have never expected a thousand-percent increase in their levels of BPA.”

As part of the study, Dr. Michels and her colleagues recruited a group of 75 staff members and students at the Harvard School of Public Health, split them into two groups, and then followed them for two weeks. During the first week, one group ate a 12-ounce serving of vegetarian soup from a common brand of canned soup
every day for five days; the other group, meanwhile, ate 12 ounces of vegetarian soup made from fresh ingredients each day. Then, after a two-day soup-free “wash out” period, the groups switched roles and were followed for five more days. At the end of each five-day period, the subjects provided urine samples.

Dr. Michels noted that all the participants were fed amounts of soup that were smaller than what people probably would consume on their own. “One serving of soup is a not a lot,” she said. “They were actually telling us that that wasn’t even enough for their lunch.”

In general, most studies have found that urinary BPA levels in typical adults average somewhere around 2 micrograms per liter. That was roughly the levels the Harvard researchers found in the subjects after a week of eating the soup made from fresh ingredients. After eating the canned soup, though, their levels rose above 20 micrograms per liter, a 1,221 percent increase.

Dr. Michels pointed out that the findings were probably applicable to other canned goods, including soda and juices. “The sodas are concerning, because some people have a habit of consuming a lot of them throughout the day,” she said. “My guess is that with other canned foods, you would see similar increases in bisphenol-A. But we only tested soups, so we wouldn’t be able to predict the absolute size of the increase.”

Many companies began phasing out BPA in baby bottles and other plastic food containers in recent years to ease public anxieties, but it is still widely used in the linings of metal cans because it helps prevent corrosion and is resistant to high heat during the sterilization process.’ ********

‘Animal studies during the past decade or so began raising concerns about BPA, which is used to harden polycarbonate, a clear plastic that makes nice-looking food containers, bottles and sippy cups. It has
been widely used since the 1960s and is also in some medical devices, dental sealants, thermal paper for cash register receipts and the epoxy resin that lines most food and drink cans. The United States produces about a million tons of it a year.’ *******

So, Very ubiquitous then. Plus being almost everywhere, especially in your supermarket, your lotto print-outs, credit card receipts, etc.

Gail S. Prins, a professor of physiology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and an author of the Endocrine Society’s report mentioned above, said ‘“I could see there was some consistent data…I started
thinking, ‘Hmm, maybe there could be something there.’ It was still curious to me. This is not a regular toxicant. It’s acting like a hormone, and hormones can act at extremely low doses. If you think the dose
makes the poison, it doesn’t make sense. But if you think about it as a hormone — and I’m an endocrinologist — it does make sense.” ‘ *******

So, if you are concerned about BPA, besides drinking henceforth from bottles and steel and/or porcelain containers, and avoiding plastic bottles or cans that are not certainly BPA-free, take these five tips from Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.

• ‘Seeking out BPA-free products. This may not always be easy to do, of course. Some manufacturers label their products as BPA-free. If a product isn’t labeled, keep in mind that most aluminum cans or bottles have linings that contain BPA, while steel bottles or cans don’t. Polycarbonate plastic is generally hard, clear, lightweight plastic. It often has the No. 7 recycling symbol on the bottom.

• Microwave cautiously. The National Toxicology Program advises against microwaving polycarbonate plastics, although the American Chemistry Council says this is safe. The plastics can break down over time, possibly causing BPA to leach into food.

• Wash safely. The National Toxicology Program advises against washing polycarbonate plastics in the dishwasher using harsh detergents, although the American Chemistry Council says this is safe.

• Use alternatives. Use glass, porcelain or stainless steel containers for hot foods and liquids instead of plastic containers.

• Cut back on cans. Reduce your use of canned foods since many cans are lined with BPA-containing resin.’

These tips come from this link that you can check:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bpa/AN01955

I hope this information helps you watch your orange juice and cans and plastic bottles and gets you out there to help stop 2-4-D ‘Agent Orange Corn’ from being feisted upon us by the corporate powers that be. Remember, hit that link at the end of section 3 of this newsletter and do your part to protect yourselves from the GMO/chemical industries’ assaults on our health. Plus spread the word about what’s really going on at Fukushima. Note that cesium (plus strontium) by volume makes up most of nuclear power plants’ radioactive waste. Cesium is recognized as if it is potassium by the body, potassium is the most plentiful electrolyte in our cells, so that’s where the radioactive cesium goes to beep and mutate and cancerize possibly just about any part of our body as it leaks out of the groundwaters and rivers around the Fukushima TEPCO complex into the Pacific Ocean and into our
vulnerable Earthly biosphere to potentially affect us all, but children moreso than old geriatric adults.

All the Best,

You have the knowledge now; You are the witness to what is going on; isn’t it your duty to not ignore your responsibility to help your fellow human being or dog or kelp lying on the side of the road? Call up that ambulance or supermarket or Congressperson and tell her/him to get it right and help us all do the right thing, not the corporate thing that is ruining our civilization in the name of money and exasperating bonuses and radioactive particles produced in fleeting electricity that is gone in a moment while the cancer causing
waste mounts and continues killing and mutating our DNA until we all are gone from memory or existence….

Keep up the Love

That’s one thing we all have and can share and multiply very easily for everyone’s benefit,

Conrad Miller M.D. © 2012

P.S. If you wish to receive the newsletter check on the home page to sign up. Also, if you have been receiving the newsletter in the past but for some reason are not getting it now, and have signed up in the past, please put Conrad Miller M.D. in your contacts in your email address/place and my email address of darnoc@crestofthewave.com

See You Next Time ……………………..

* A becquerel (symbol Bq) is a unit of radioactivity, defined as the activity of a quantity of radioactive material in which one nucleus decays per second. It is therefore equivalent to s-1. The older unit of
radioactivity was the curie (Ci). 1 Bq = 2.7×10-11 Ci, i.e. 27 picocuries. These disintegrations produce energy in the form of alpha, beta or gamma rays that can hit DNA and change its make-up, sometimes causing what are called ‘mutations’ that can lead or produce cancers.

It was named after Henri Becquerel, who shared a Nobel Prize with Marie Curie for their work in discovering radioactivity.

** http://news.yahoo.com/u-wont-allow-more-fungicide-orange-juice-fda-220834002.html?ugc_c=zt8goU_12QBi5rzfvbZ_Zm0u3WceJvOlTCxsWFURTNxvdINnSISv2xP8HvM5Vu48S789hnsHhm86ja1S3DPErZCZptoJnN8Yn5Akq4whHefG_znkrRUTP2OdQz2ifSDi1OFA_EsFy4lgIc1RRmIa6KWKfQO4yjKwShxn04T2VfOUPH1KY4fW_ZVBO5EynT2UTaGa16CdtPb6tV4zQsurc66fSOst242BP9WkXR_fGi8LIFPLh7RW9VSa9CFgQGy2z69cAttrpVyNbQ8oouP2Pli7CuaYYo6D&bcnv_s=e&uh_id=e2495b462p5uj5dpvji9

53pq4bbuh&ugc_scnv=1&ll=2

*** See fairewinds.org for the video on this subject, including the transcript of the verbiage.
http://fairewinds.com/content/tepco-believes-mission-accomplished-regulators-allow-radioactive-dumping-tokyo-bay

**** http://www.panna.org/blog/24-d-corn-bad-idea-and-heres-why

***** http://www.organicconsumers.org/gelink.cfm

****** http://www.organicconsumers.org/bytes/ob313.htm

******* http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/07/science/07bpa.html?pagewanted=print

******** http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/11/22/bpa-lurks-in-canned-soups-and-drinks/

********* http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bpa/AN01955

Addendum for Section 3) Agent Orange Corn from Jenessa Stemke:

There are two main ways to perform genetic engineering. One way is the gene shotgun method, a process monopolized and patented by DuPont. A gene shotgun shoots microscopic gold pellets coated with DNA sequences containing the gene of interest into plant cells. The other method that the rest of the genetic engineering world uses is called Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. In this process, a
naturally occurring bacteria that causes tumors in plants called Agrobacterium tumefaciens is exposed to the gene of interest (e.g. a gene from arctic fish to allow frost tolerance in corn). Not all
bacteria cells assimilate the DNA, so scientists have included a gene encoding for antibiotic resistance along with the fish gene. The bacteria are then exposed to the antibiotic. Those that survive contain the fish gene, as well as the antibiotic resistance gene. The corn plants are exposed to the surviving transgenic bacteria, and the bacteria infect the plant and cause tumors on the leaves. In this process, some DNA migrates from the bacteria to the plant cells. This process is also highly inefficient, so scientists have also included herbicide resistance genes (along with the fish gene and antibiotic
resistance gene). Plants are then propagated from the tumor and then exposed to the herbicide. Those that survive are transgenic. 2-4-D transgenic corn doesn’t even have a fish gene, since the entire
objective is 2-4-D-resistant corn, but it will have the antibiotic resistance gene, because Dow does not have patent rights to the gene gun method, which bypasses a step in the transformation process. The result? A plant that Dow can then can then patent, while purposely ensuring that the design includes resistance to an herbicide they also happen to manufacture, to maximize profits.