SuperSize Toxicity - French Fries under Fire

French-fry chemical may go on toxic list

Worries that Canadians might be inadvertently ingesting too much cancer-causing acrylamide from French fries, potato chips and other processed foods has prompted Health Canada to recommend adding the chemical to the country's toxic substances list.

Acrylamide is an industrial chemical that isn't naturally found in foods, but is produced accidentally when sugars and other items in potatoes and grains are exposed to high cooking temperatures.

It has also been detected in breakfast cereals, pastries, cookies, breads, rolls, toast, cocoa products and coffee, although at levels far below those in fried potato products.

The decision to recommend placing acrylamide on the toxic list is being announced in today's Canada Gazette, and is part of an ongoing review by the federal government of nearly two hundred potentially harmful substances in widespread commercial use that have never been subject to extensive safety assessments.

The gazette notice on the chemical, which was posted on the Internet yesterday afternoon, said the toxic listing was based on the "carcinogenic potential" of acrylamide and the lack of an adequate safety margin at current exposures for causing reproductive and developmental harm during fetal and early life development.

The government didn't announce specific steps to control exposures to acrylamide in fries and chips, but said that it planned to use the Food and Drugs Act "to reduce the inadvertent production of acrylamide in certain processed foods intended for human consumption."

Acrylamide is also used to make polymers found in grout, cement, waste water treatment, pesticides, cosmetics, and diapers, among other products. The data posted by the government didn't give any indication that these non-food uses would be regulated.

The toxic announcement was greeted positively by environmentalists, who have been arguing that potentially dangerous chemicals in consumer goods need to be limited.

"We think it's particularly important to list the chemicals that are in common, everyday items," said Aaron Freeman, a spokesman for Environmental Defence, a Toronto-based advocacy group. He said the government should move quickly to introduce control measures.

Source: theGlobeandMail.com

Canada Adds 8 Chemicals to Toxic List

Government adds 8 chemicals to list of harmful substances

Ottawa has designated eight chemicals as being of concern to human health or the environment following its latest assessment of potentially dangerous substances.

The designated chemicals include silicon-based D4 and D5, which are used in a wide range of cosmetic products.

The joint assessment by Health Canada and Environment Canada means the chemicals can now be regulated. The latest assessment is part of a process of reviewing 200 chemicals in batches of up to 30 to determine whether they pose a risk to human health or the environment and should be more closely regulated.

It's the same process under which the federal government announced it would ban the import and sale of baby bottles made with bisphenol A.

Interested parties now have 60 days to comment on any risk management that may be required in the case of the eight newly named chemicals.

Of the eight chemicals placed on Ottawa's list, D4 and D5, along with TTBP, a fuel and oil additive, are not considered a threat to human health but are listed as of concern to the environment, including wildlife.

The ministers of health and environment issued a joint news release Tuesday stating "regulations will be developed to set a concentration limit for siloxanes D4 and D5 in products and for wastewater generated during the manufacturing process.

"The third substance [TTBP] will be managed so that releases to the environment will be reduced below levels that can be measured."

Harm to environment, carcinogenic effects among dangers

D5 is used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and cleaners as well as inks, textiles, rubbers and fuel additives. It is considered bioaccumulative and can harm aquatic organisms at low concentrations.

D4 is another silicone fluid used in types of rubbers, plastics, soap, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics — including creams, lotions, hair care products and antiperspirants — as well as pesticides, paints, lacquers, varnishes, inks, textiles, leather goods and fuel additives.

Ottawa has said experimental data shows that D4 is persistent in the environment and can harm aquatic organisms at low concentrations.

Tuesday's release also lists five other chemicals as of concern to human health. They are thiourea, Pigment Yellow 34, Pigment Red 104, isoprene and epichlorohydrin.

Thiourea is used to extract silver and gold from ore and occurs naturally in some plants and fungi. Europe and the U.S. have classified it as a compound that should be examined as a possible carcinogen.

Pigment Yellow 34 and Pigment Red 104 contain chromium and lead and are used to colour plastics, inks, paints, coatings, adhesives, textiles and sealants. In addition, the European Commission classified Pigment Yellow 34 based on concerns that it may be carcinogenic and toxic to the reproductive system.

Isoprene is used to make medical equipment, toys, tires and paints, inner tubes, and some rubber adhesives and glues. The federal government decided to take a closer look at this chemical after other jurisdictions classified it as a possible human carcinogen.

Epichlorohydrin is a synthetic chemical used to make other chemicals and is classified as a possible human carcinogen by the European Commission and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Source: CBC.ca

Biphensol - Additional Concerns Part 2 - Canned Food

Source: Men's Living Jan 2009

Fish Finder

Source: Men's Health April 2008

Lower Fluoride Levels In Water - Panel Recommendation

Fluoride levels should be lowered, panel tells Health Canada

A panel of experts convened by Health Canada is recommending new optimal concentrations of fluoride in drinking water and suggesting the levels of fluoride ingested from a variety of sources by children and infants be lowered and monitored.

The authors suggest Health Canada adopt a level of 0.7 mg/L as the optimal target for fluoride in drinking water, to limit exposure. This level, they say, balances the need for dental cavity protection with the risk of dental fluorosis, which leads to staining or pitting of the teeth if too much fluoride is ingested.

The report, which was released in January of last year, was posted on Health Canada's website in April.

The panel notes in the report that the overall intake of fluoride in recent years has decreased, as have the concentrations of fluoride in infant formula.

It also does not find any link between fluoride and cancer, a decrease in IQ or reproductive, immunological or developmental toxicity. Previous studies have raised concerns about the toxic effects of fluoride and made connections between excessive consumption and such diseases as bone cancer.

The panel does acknowledge that excess fluoride intake, which constitutes 10 mg/day after 10 or more years of exposure, can lead to skeletal fluorosis, which is caused by too much accumulation of fluoride in the bones and leads to brittle and deformed bones.

However, "the current maximum acceptable concentration of 1.5 mg/L of fluoride in drinking water is unlikely to cause adverse health effects," reads the report.

The report does caution however, that infants are particularly vulnerable if they ingest powdered infant formula reconstituted with fluoridated water. "The risk of excessive intake of fluoride is higher for infants consuming larger quantities of infant formulas," reads the report.

The panel subsequently calls on the manufacturers of infant formula to lower and standardize the fluoride concentration in infant formula.

Source: CBC.ca

Toxic Car Seats

Chemicals used on car seats 'toxic' to children, study warns

A new study suggests that "toxic" chemicals used in the materials to make car seats can put children in danger of developing health problems if ingested or inhaled.

The study, released Wednesday by the Michigan-based environmental group Ecology Center, provides analysis of more than 60 different car seat models for chemicals including bromine, chlorine and lead.

"These chemicals can be associated with developmental disorders, learning impairment, liver disease, cancer, as well as other allergic type diseases," said Jeff Gearhart, lead author of the report.

"This report shows that the same toxic chemicals that are used to make interior auto components are also used to make child car seats," the report said.

Car seat manufacturer Graco, whose TurboBooster Emily and TurboBooster SafeSeat were named in the report as having high concentrations of chemicals in the booster seat category, said they are currently examining the study's methodology and findings.

"At Graco, we take claims such as this very seriously," the company said in a statement. "Safety is always a top priority and nothing is more important than the well-being of the children who use our products."

The company Britax, whose Marathon Platinum seat was found to have the highest levels of chemicals in the convertible car seat category, did not return calls.

Health Canada, which evaluates the use and safety of chemicals used in products sold in Canada, said in a statement on car seat safety that the presence of a chemical does not necessarily mean it poses a health risk.

Keep window ajar, car seat out of sunlight: report

Gearhart recommends that owners of car seats that tested poorly should keep the window ajar when travelling in the car. He also says the seat should be kept out of direct sunlight and use of the product should be restricted to use in the car.

"We do recommend that you limit the time your child spends in the car seat," he said. "It should be used exclusively in the vehicle, and not used to transport your baby outside the vehicle."

The authors of the report caution that parents should always use a car seat, despite the presence of potentially harmful chemicals.

In March, the Ecology Center released a report saying that plastics and materials used inside the car, from the steering wheel to the dashboard to the carpets — can expel gas or leach into the environment.

Source: CBC.ca

Plastic Bottle Health Concerns

BBQ Beware

Toxic products found in blood of BBQ lovers

As barbecue season gets underway, a new study suggests a class of toxic chemicals released by grilling, broiling and frying meat may increase the risk for life-threatening diseases.

"Advanced glycation end products," also known as AGE products or AGEs, are produced and absorbed into the body when meat or cheese is cooked at high temperatures, or foods are sterilized or pasteurized, researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York said.

When AGEs build up in the body, oxidative stress — damage linked to aging — results.

In a study appearing in the April issue of the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, Dr. Helen Vlassara and her colleagues tie AGE products to heart disease, diabetes and kidney disease. The results are an indicator of a link between high-temperature cooking, AGEs, and activation of the immune system that triggers inflammation.

"A sustained and chronic inflammation damages the tissues," Vlassara told CBC News. "Therefore it will damage the heart, it will damage the kidneys and the brain

Put levels on labels: researcher

The study involved 172 healthy men and women who were divided into two age groups, those 18 to 45 and those 60 to 80. Participants had their body weight and body fat measured, completed a three-day food diary, and had blood samples collected.

AGE levels tended to be higher in older people, whose bodies seem to have less ability to remove the chemicals, the researchers found.

"Excessive intake of fried, broiled, and grilled foods can overload the body's natural capacity to remove AGEs," said Vlassara, who called for the levels to be put on nutrition labels, just as trans fat, calorie and sugar content are identified.

The researchers also found that the more people ate foods rich in the compounds, the higher their blood levels of AGE and markers for inflammation such as C-reactive protein. Levels of AGEs in some healthy adults were similar to those seen in people with diabetes in earlier studies, according to the researchers.

Cooking alternatives

It is clear that AGEs are another factor in the aging process, said nutrition researcher Dr. David Jenkins of St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.

Jenkins joined Vlassara in suggesting that boiling, steaming and stewing are the safest ways to cook food, not only because of AGEs, but also given warnings about cancer-causing byproducts of high-temperature cooking such as acrylamide.

"I'm a great one for recommending people have a pretty, pretty drab life," Jenkins said. "So I like them having things that are boiled, tofu, all sort of things that everyone sort of turns up their nose at."

The occasional barbecue is probably OK, Vlassara said, noting AGEs also give foods desired tastes and smells.

There is currently no readily available clinical test to measure AGE levels in the blood.

For people who enjoy their steaks marinated, there is some evidence that adding acidic liquids such as lemon or vinegar might help to counteract some of the AGEs, Vlassara said.

Source: CBC.ca

Toxic Labels Initiative

Ontario NDP wants product labels to warn people about toxic chemicals

Canadian Press: KEITH LESLIE

TORONTO (CP) - Armed with tests that suggest the body of every Canadian carries trace evidence of dangerous chemicals, Ontario's New Democrats are spearheading an effort that would help them learn exactly what carcinogens or toxins they are exposed to on a daily basis.

Toxic chemicals are in many everyday products, from household cleaners and laundry detergents to hair dyes and cosmetics, said NDP environment critic Peter Tabuns, who is pushing for a new law that would compel manufacturers to disclose dangerous ingredients in their products.

Consumers would demand changes if labels told them exactly what a product contains, Tabuns said in an interview.

"Right now, most people don't know whether or not products that they buy have cancer-causing agents in them."

Tabuns hopes to convince Ontario to follow the example of California, where community right-to-know legislation has helped get arsenic out of bottled water and lead removed from some candies. Manufacturers there opted to find alternatives rather than list carcinogens on their labels, he said.

"They are not going to want to have that label on their products," Tabuns said. "They know that consumers, especially parents, don't want to subject themselves to exposure."

He cited the example of Gillette, which reformulated Liquid Paper correction fluid to eliminate trichloroethylene, a suspected carcinogen, rather than comply with California's 15-year-old law to label the product with a warning that the ingredient could cause cancer.

The members of Canada's Chemical Producers Association believe in right-to-know legislation, but "the devil is in the details," said Michael Bourque, the association's vice-president of public affairs.

He cautioned against labelling products that contain only a few parts per billion of a certain chemical - levels that scientists say are safe.

"One problem (is) where you provide a fire hose of information that no one can drink from it, or you provide lists of things that are in such minute quantities that we don't know whether there's an impact," Bourque said.

"Do we support giving people information that's going to confuse them, alarm them unnecessarily? No, we don't."

The lobby group Environmental Defence has issued three reports since 2005 detailing tests on Canadian children, adults and even four federal MPs that found evidence of 68 different chemicals, including pesticides, PCBs, stain repellents, fire retardants, mercury and lead.

Environmental Defence policy director Aaron Freeman said legislation like that proposed by Tabuns is "absolutely essential" in order to help protect consumers.

"You're seeing consumers making environmentally sound choices when they're given information, (such as) the slow-motion explosion toward organic food and non-toxic alternatives in areas like pesticides and cosmetics," he said.

"It's true that some chemicals are only in certain products at very small amounts, but for some chemicals, those small amounts are still very toxic. At a very basic level, if something is toxic, we have a right to know."

Tabuns' private member's bill, dubbed the Community Right to Know act, has received second reading in the Ontario legislature, but there's no indication the Liberal government will agree to hold public hearings on the bill or allow it to come back to the legislature for third and final reading.

Anne O'Hagan, the senior communications adviser to Environment Minister Lauren Broten, said the government supports the general idea behind the bill. "More information can only be a good thing when it comes to the environment."

Tabuns' bill also calls for better worker access to warnings about harmful chemicals they are exposed to on the job, and he plans to introduce companion legislation, a Toxic Use Reduction act, to force companies to cut the use, waste and spillage of toxic chemicals.

The European Union and the state of Vermont have similar product-labelling laws, and Tabuns said it's time Canada started catching up with those jurisdictions that help protect consumers from dangerous chemicals.

"This issue really has arrived, and the political momentum among the public is there," he said. "If the (Liberals) don't act, they will face the loss of support from environmentalists and public health advocates in the next election."

Source: CBC.ca