Healthy Children Project Monthly e-News

Feel free to let your friends, family and colleagues know about this valuable new resource. Instructions to subscribe or unsubscribe are at the end of this e-newsletter. MI Healthy Children's e-newsletter is part of a collaborative effort with the Learning Disabilities Association of America's Healthy Children Project, the Michigan Network for Children's Environmental Health website, and the Institute for Children's Environmental Health with support from the Beldon Fund. 

http://www.ldaofmichigan.org/conf.cosponsorships.pdf

Several years ago LDA of Michigan joined as a LDA Healthy Children Project (HCP) state partner. The HCP project is dedicated to helping families learn about existing and emerging science linking certain chemical exposures to learning, behavioral, and developmental disabilities. LDA would now like to partner with other organizations to help inform families throughout Michigan about toxic substances in the environment, how they may impact children’s health, and to find out how they may join with others to make a difference in protecting the health of our children. Specifically, LDA would like to co-sponsor up to three (3) statewide conferences of 501(c)3 non-profit organizations which are dedicated to children’s health issues and family memberships. Those selected will receive $500 from the LDA HCP to help support their overall conference. To learn more, download the PDF information sheet and Microsoft Word application form.

The World at Home: A Household Guide to Building Green
http://www.cectoxic.org/
As this guide shows, homeowners, renters, architects, and contractors can all contribute to the positive changes necessary to bring our society into balance with the natural world. And, as if that good news were not enough: our contributions can also be healthy, economical, innovative, and just plain fun!
 

From Asthma to Teflon … From Cosmetics Safety to Pesticides … Concerns Mount About Chemical Risks; IEHN Unveils “Fiduciary Guide” as 2007 Proxy Season Heats Up
http://iehn.org/?q=node/41
In the wake of costly litigation, product sales bans, and reputational damage arising from asbestos, toxic materials in cosmetics and toys, and Teflon-related chemicals, U.S. investors are becoming increasingly wary of toxic chemical risks – in products, in supply chains, and in their own portfolios.

Scientists Urge Action Against Prenatal and Early Infancy Exposures
http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/esthag-w/2007/june/policy/bw_faroe.html
A scientific consensus statement targets pervasive chemicals. Faced with a cumulative body of evidence that links serious health problems with prenatal and early infancy exposures to various chemicals, an international assembly of scientists, doctors, and researchers says it’s time to take action.
 

Nearly All Babies in Baltimore Study Found to be Exposed to PFCs

http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/newscience/2007/2007-0422apelbergetal.html

Scientists report that almost all babies measured in a large study in Baltimore had been exposed to perfluorinated contaminants -- PFCs -- while in the womb. PFCs are widely used in consumer products like Teflon and Gore-Tex. They are extremely persistent. The levels observed were well beneath those shown in most experiments to be necessary to cause developmental harm in animals.

New Lindane Fact Sheet from Michigan Network for Children's Environmental Health
http://www.mnceh.org/mnceh-lindane%20fact%2006.07.pdf
HB 4569 has been introduced to restrict pharmaceutical use of lindane in Michigan. Check out the new lindane factsheet (pdf) from the Michigan Network for Children's Environmental Health.

Cheap and Nasty: Toys That Harm on the Rise
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/cheap-and-nasty-toys-that-harm-on-the-rise/2007/06/24/1182623748474.html
The importation of cheap and potentially dangerous toys has increased fivefold since 2000, with scores more presumably slipping under the authorities' radar. An analysis of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's recall data shows 56 imported products designed for toddlers and babies were removed from retailers' shelves over the past 12 months, compared with just 10 products in 2000.

Body of Evidence: A Study of Pollution in Maine People
http://www.cleanandhealthyme.org/
A new study finds that Maine people are polluted with dozens of hazardous chemicals found in the products we use every day: furniture, water bottles, televisions, non stick pans and personal care products like shampoo and perfume. Thirteen Maine people just like you discovered that flame retardants, plasticizers, and heavy metals are building up in their bodies. Learn more about the participants, the chemicals found, and what Maine can do about it.

Teflon is Forever
http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature/2007/05/teflon_is_forever.html
For decades, DuPont has sold the answer to crud, gunk, and grime. What the company didn't advertise was that its nonstick wonder sticks—to us. Teflon, it turns out, gets its nonstick properties from a toxic, nearly indestructible chemical called pfoa, or perfluorooctanoic acid. Used in thousands of products from cookware to kids' pajamas to takeout coffee cups, pfoa is a likely human carcinogen, according to a science panel commissioned by the Environmental Protection Agency.

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Status of Michigan Bill Package: Lead in Children's Products

On June 26th, the majority of Members of the Michigan House of Representatives voted to pass the three bills addressing lead in children’s products - HB 4132, HB 4240, and HB 4399. For a detailed analysis of the bill package, go to http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2007-2008/billanalysis/House/htm/2007-HLA-4132-8.htm.

Lead Exposure Heightens Sensitivity to Allergens and May Contribute to Asthma
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/newscience/2007/2007-0625gaoetal.html
Lead exposure heightens the sensitivity and response to allergens of important immune signaling cells -- called dendritic cells -- that develop in bone marrow. The results from culture cells and in mice are the first look at how lead impacts these defense cells and demonstrates one way the heavy metal can alter the immune system to increase allergies and asthma.

High-stakes Trial Weighs Autism Claims
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-autism25jun25,0,108413.story
Theresa and Michael Cedillo, the parents of an autistic child, sat behind their three attorneys on one side of the courtroom. On the other side were three federal lawyers armed with a shelf full of scientific studies and legal briefs. Behind them were more rows of lawyers and scientists, some of them representing the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world. It was a lopsided gathering, but the Cedillos had been waiting for the confrontation since they came to believe years ago that their daughter's autism may have been triggered by a combination of childhood vaccines and a mercury preservative used in them.

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Children Sicker Now Than in Past, Harvard Report Says
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a4xmH.aERohk&refer=world
The number of American children with chronic illnesses has quadrupled since the time when some of their parents were kids, portending more disability and higher health costs for a new generation of adults, a study estimates.

Birth Defect-antidepressant Link Found
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-sci-ssri28jun28,1,2363102.story?coll=la-news-a_section&ctrack=1&cset=true
Infants born to mothers using common medications have a slightly higher risk of serious developmental problems, new studies say.

Father’s Day Report Notes Greater Environmental Risks to Boys; Urges Precaution and Increased Awareness
http://www.healthyenvironmentforkids.ca/english/news/index.shtml?x=3257
We know that the time of greatest vulnerability for children is in the womb. It appears that boys are even more vulnerable than girls during these critical developmental stages. Brain development in boys is of particular concern.

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Fish Oil Showing Promise in Kids' Brain Disorders
http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/chi-0612_health_omega_rjun12,0,3823303.story
European cardiologists routinely give heart attack survivors fish oil, one of the richest sources of omega-3 fatty acids. But researchers suspect that omega-3's benefits extend beyond the heart. Now psychiatrists are wondering: Could omega-3 also help children suffering from attention deficit or bipolar disorder?

Green Chemistry in Jeopardy in Michigan!
http://www.mnceh.org/take.grnchemistry.php
Michigan's budget crisis threatens to derail the enormous promises of Green Chemistry. Tell Gov. Granholm to move Michigan forward with Green Chemistry.
 

Exposure to the Phthalate DHP May Alter Thyroid Hormone Levels in Men
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/newscience/2007/2007-0611meekeretal.html
The first study to examine the connection between human exposure to phthalates and changes in thyroid hormone levels reports that men with higher levels of a phthalate breakdown product called MEHP in their urine had lower levels of two major thyroid hormones, thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3), in their blood. MEHP is a breakdown product (metabolite) of DEHP, one of the most commonly used phthalates.

New Rules Expected on Safety of Nanotechnology Products
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/21/technology/21nanotech.html
DuPont and Environmental Defense, one of the nation’s largest environmental groups, plan to release jointly developed guidelines today for evaluating the safety and environmental risks of nanotechnology products. The guidelines are the most extensive effort yet to address a vexing issue surrounding the rapidly expanding field of nanotechnology: the lack of information about whether materials in such minute sizes can pose novel or unexpected hazards.
 

Resource: Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT)
http://www.epeat.net/
EPEAT is an environmental procurement tool designed to help institutional purchasers in the public and private sectors evaluate, compare and select desktop computers, notebook computers and monitors based on their environmental attributes. EPEAT also provides a clear and consistent set of performance criteria for the design of products and provides an opportunity for manufacturers to secure market recognition for efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its products. [Source: LDDI Weekly Bulletin]

Resource: Ask the Researcher
A valuable new environmental health resource is now available.  Ask the Researcher can be accessed online at http://www.busbrp.org/ask.html. This interactive web tool allows readers to pose questions and have them answered by researchers involved in the Boston University Superfund Basic Research Program (BUSBRP). The BUSBRP consists of 9 research projects that study the effects of exposures to some common toxic substances on reproduction and development in humans and wildlife. Every few months a different project leader is featured. This month's featured leader is Mark Hahn, PhD, who is researching the mechanisms and impacts of dioxin resistance in fish. Why is researching toxins in fish important for people? What can we learn from fish that would help us understand how PCBs and dioxins may affect human health? Ask the Researcher and find out. [Source: LDDI Weekly Bulletin]

Upcoming Event: NADD 24th Annual Conference & Exhibit Show

Dates: October 24 - 26, 2007

Location: Renaissance Atlanta Hotel Downtown in Atlanta, Georgia

Description: The conference will include presentations related to promotion of wellness, prevention of illness, common symptomology in physical and psychiatric disorders, environmental health, interdisciplinary collaboration, cross systems collaboration, Autism Spectrum Disorders and family issues, and skill building.

Contact: For more information, visit http://www.thenadd.org/pages/conferences/24th/index.shtml or contact Conference Assistant Brenda Reuss at 800-331-5362 or breuss@thenadd.org.

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The Learning Disabilities Association of Michigan is pleased to offer grants to 501(C) 3 non-profit organizations located in Michigan for educational programs/events/materials which will help inform key stakeholders of the existing and emerging science linking certain chemical exposures to learning, behavioral, and developmental disabilities. Priority will be given projects which target families and disability groups and/or promote action towards creating a healthier environment for all children. Grantees will be responsible for submitting a final project report, documentation of all expenditures, and copies of materials produced. Maximum award $400. Click here to download an application (PDF).

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Call toll free at 888-597-7809 or 517-485-8160
 

Email us at info@ldaofmichigan.org
 

Write to us at 200 Museum Dr. Ste. 101, Lansing, Michigan 48933

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For more information on The Learning Disabilities Association of Michigan's Healthy Children Project visit http://www.ldaofmichigan.org/healthychild.htm.

 
For more information on The Healthy Children Project visit http://www.healthychildrenproject.org/index.html.

 
For more information on the Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative, coordinated by the Institute for Children’s Environmental Health visit http://www.iceh.org/LDDI.html. To join the the Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative (LDDI), please complete the form at http://www.iceh.org/LDDImembers.html.

 
For more information on The Beldon Fund visit http://www.beldon.org/.

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