Tag Archives: health care

MCS/ES: Societal Neglect = No More Fun and Games for Life on the Planet

 

Please take a moment to feel your heart beating.
Not everyone can do this anymore.

While some progress has been made, it’s still too little,
too late for far too many people.

This will not change until more people who have MCS/ES come forward with their stories, and more  healthy people start advocating and helping us in daily life, as well as pushing governments and medical institutions to pull their heads out of the sand (and industry pockets) and get into (at least) the 20th century as far as the very serious environmental and related health issues are concerned.

 

“Business as usual is a disaster”
Robert Watson

 

“Unfortunately, many physicians, employers, family, and friends
are in effect assisting in suicide through their disbelief.”
(and neglect)

“The Consequences of Disbelief”

“Twelve years as an advocate for the chemically sensitive has led me to the sad realization that a large number of chemically sensitive people have taken their own lives and many others are inching ever closer to that decision because they find it such a daunting task to locate a safe place to live or work and are rapidly running out of money. And at the same time that they are engaged in this herculean struggle, far too many of them are facing a discouraging skepticism from those about them.”

 

From
“Amputated Lives: Coping with Chemical Sensitivity”
2008
By Alison Johnson
With a Foreword by L. Christine Oliver, M.D., Harvard Medical School

 

Links to several chapters of the book, where stories about people’s lives are featured are available here:

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Ontario’s Task Force Releases its Phase 1 Recommendations to help people suffering from chemical sensitivity but health ministry abdicates again. Here’s a new take on that report.

An important update on the situation in Ontario, from Varda Burstyn, one of the original members of the Task Force on Environmental Health.

Please read and share, and find a way to put pressure on the elected reps, and if possible, get much needed media attention on this travesty of justice!

Note too that it’s not just for us, it’s a public health issue when over 50% of children have chronic health problems (including preschool kids with disabling anxiety), and something like 2/3 of the population on at least one pharmaceutical drug. We know that removing the cause of the problem results in better health than ineffectively trying to manage some symptoms!

When the canaries are ignored, public health suffers!

Dispatches from The Chemical Edge

Hundreds of thousands are sick – and after 33 years, Ontario government again declines to implement basic measures of care

 Extracted pages from task_force_on_environmental_health_report

“These three environmental health conditions typically have a devastating impact on the individuals affected. Unfortunately, our health care system too often has not helped them to the extent they need. The report of the Task Force sets out a course that will begin to remedy this. I look forward to seeing the Minister’s response to our report, and urge him to respond quickly and decisively. There is a need for strong leadership.“ Neil Stuart, Vice-Chair of the Task Force.

Few people have any idea of the number of people in Ontario afflicted with the debilitating, painful, often co-occurring and even life-threatening conditions of Environmental Sensitivity/Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (about 310,000), Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (about 215,000) and Fibromyalgia (about 196,800). But it turns out that, in total, there are a…

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2015 – A Retrospective

I was hoping to be able to share some good news with you all, and here it is. We ARE making progress! It is unfortunate that it has taken this long, but I believe we are almost at the point where we will see an “overnight” shift happen.
Here’s what Dr John Molot (the author of “12,000 Canaries Can’t Be Wrong”) has to say:

John Molot

2015-summaryIt’s the end of 2015, a time to celebrate the promise of the coming year but also a time to reflect on the 12 months that have just passed. It was an incredibly exciting year for me professionally. As a physician who advocated for my patients for so many years, I no longer feel that I am paddling upstream against the hardline, medically conservative current that has discredited environmental medicine for decades. The patient groups that I work with have realistic hope for improved care in the near future.

My 2015 :: Science :: Media
Medical Profession :: Insurance Companies :: The Canaries
What’s to come?

My 2015

This year, I have had several opportunities to effectively represent the people with environmentally linked conditions. I have been actively involved with the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care in the development of the promised (2014) Task Force on Environmental…

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I Love Pollution

 Said No-one Ever

said no one ever 3.

Although, come to think of it, maybe someone HAS said they love pollution!

Those who profit while creating it are no-doubt not complaining about pollution, and some of  those who sell us things like inhalers and  drugs are actually loving pollution’s effects on their bank balances:

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Ottawa environmental doctor disciplined for treating suicidal teen with vitamins

Bad news!

I wonder how many people commit suicide due to pharmaceutical drugs that are prescribed?

How many of the doctors whose patients commit suicide due to the pharmaceuticals they prescribed are disciplined?

Dr. Armstrong has helped a lot of people over the years, people that other doctors were unable to help, or worse, subjected to harm.

Finding doctors that don’t harm people with environmental and chemical “sensitivities” (from ignorance, disbelief, or even inadvertently, while others take their oath to do no harm as an excuse to do nothing) is nearly impossible. Too many of us are forced to go without health care as a result.

Although it seems that her approach was lacking in this case (we don’t have all the details), and my condolences go out to the family who lost a loved one, in addition to the hypocrisy of not disciplining other types of doctors after patient suicides, the closing statement in the article is propaganda that will inflict harm on people whose needs are not being served by the current system:

“Critics, including many doctors, say sometimes there’s no evidence that something is dangerous because it actually isn’t dangerous, and trying to find environmental sources for particular afflictions can mean ignoring real problems.”

The critics are usually from the petroleum/pharmaceutical industry and have a lot to lose if MCS/ES is officially understood.

All too often now, ignoring the man-made environmental sources of adverse health effects means ignoring the real problems, and countless people, including children, are suffering as a result.

(continued in the comments, I don’t have the reblogging format down yet)

MCS/ES Awareness Month 2014

 It’s that time of year again. Welcome to MCS “Awareness” Month!

People with disabilities have the right to equal treatment and equal access

Barriers to access can be physical, attitudinal or systemic. Conveniences can also create barriers. If you are unable to remove a barrier to accessibility, consider what else can be done to provide services to people with disabilities. No-one should live without safe access to the necessities of life.

What is disability? (Ontario Human Rights Commission)

“Disability” covers a broad range and degree of conditions, some visible and some not visible. A disability may have been present from birth, caused by an accident, or developed over time. There are physical, mental and learning disabilities, mental disorders, hearing or vision disabilities, epilepsy, drug and alcohol dependencies, environmental sensitivities, and other conditions.”

Removing barriers and designing inclusively

Persons with disabilities face many kinds of barriers every day. These can be physical, attitudinal or systemic. …

Identifying and removing barriers also makes good business sense. As well as meeting the needs of customers or employees with disabilities, removing barriers can also help other people…

Employers, unions, landlords and service providers can start by doing an accessibility review of their facilities, services and procedures to see what barriers exist. You can then make an accessibility plan and begin to remove the barriers.

It is also helpful to create an accessibility policy and a complaints procedure. These steps will help you remove existing barriers and avoid making new ones. The best way to prevent barriers is to design inclusively

Barriers aren’t just physical. Taking steps to prevent “ableism” – attitudes in society that devalue and limit the potential of persons with disabilities – will help promote respect and dignity, and help people with disabilities to fully take part in community life…

The duty to accommodate

Even when facilities and services are designed as inclusively as possible, you may still need to accommodate the individual needs of some people with disabilities. Under the Code, unions, landlords and service providers have a legal “duty to accommodate” persons with disabilities. The goal of accommodation is to allow people with disabilities to equally benefit from and take part in services, housing or the workplace.

Accommodation is a shared responsibility. Everyone involved, including the person asking for accommodation, should work together, exchange relevant information, and look for accommodation solutions together…

 

Some Resources: Continue reading

Women’s Voices for the Earth Report on “Secret Scents”

Women’s Voices for the Earth recently released a new report, called “Secret Scents“. It  highlights the need for ingredient transparency by the companies that create fragranced products, since right now we have almost no way of knowing what is causing the fragrance allergies and other serious health effects people experience when exposed to  fragrances. These adverse health effects are increasing, especially in children.

Amazingly, companies are not required by the FDA or EPA to disclose fragrance ingredients, so it is difficult for anyone to pinpoint specific fragrance allergens and sensitizers among the hundreds of ingredients that can make up a scent.

Another report  was also just released, this one on endocrine disrupting chemicals. Some fragrance ingredients, like phthalates (see below) are also endocrine disruptors, while others are known carcinogens and/or neurotoxic!

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