Petrochemical Workers Show High Brain Cancer Rate
A “high incidence” of brain cancer among the nation’s petrochemical workers has federal work safety officials suspecting chemicals as the cause.
An increased risk of brain cancer has been confirmed in at least seven petrochemical plants in Texas. Investigators for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have discovered 25 brain tumor cases, 24 of which were fatal, at a Dow Chemical plant in Freeport, Texas. Authorities also discovered 18 fatalities at a Union Carbide plant in Texas City. The risk of brain cancer at those two plants represents twice that of the general population.
Spokesmen for the two agencies cautioned that results remain tentative, however, and that no scientific conclusions could be drawn yet
Government Says Nearly Everyone Is Exposed to Carcinogens
Virtually every American has been exposed to some type of cancer-causing agent, says the Department of Health and Human Services in its first annual report on chemicals associated with cancer. The report identifies 26 cancer-causing agents and tries to pinpoint the level of human exposure and to assess the public health regulations on each one.
One agent, asbestos, is so widely used that the entire population is exposed to some level, says the report, adding that 2.5 million workers have some occupational exposure to asbestos daily. Among other things, inhalation of asbestos has been shown to increase lung cancer.
Research Finds Toxins in Human Excrement – Says Bran Lowers Level
Cancer-causing chemicals in human stool? That’s the verdict from a Canadian researcher.
In an address to the 17th annual convention of the American Chemical Society. Dr. William Robert Bruce of the University of Toronto reported finding potent mutation-causing chemicals in human excrement. Bruce speculated that this is a result of the typical Western diet and he believes that they may be linked to cancer of the colon.
Interestingly enough he noted that the addition of one tablespoon of pure bran greatly reduced the amount of mutagens found in the stool. (Ed. note: Use whole grain which includes the bran; it’s healthier.)Decreasing fat intake to under 50 grams a day brought an even sharper decline.
At last research is beginning to prove what our instincts have told us all along. You cannot dump all kinds of garbage into your system day after day, year after year and expect impunity from disease.
These poisons collect in two key places – the liver and the colon. It doesn’t take much scientific background to see how dangerous toxic food additives are that appear in fecal matter and then rest against the walls of the colon for several hours. Is it any wonder that cancer of the colon is one of the highest occurring forms of cancer today?
Water Pollution Problem Could Be Big
Chemical pollution of America’s ground water could be the number one environmental issue in the 1980’s, says Robert H. Harris, a member of the president’s Council on Environmental Quality.
Contamination of ground water by industrial facilities, agricultural chemicals and other manmade sources finally has the attention of federal agencies, he told a House subcommittee on environment, energy and natural resources. “We are worried that what we see now is just the tip of the iceberg,” he told them.
Nearly half of all Americans rely on ground water as their main supply of drinking water. Wells where chemicals have seeped in could expose many of them to potential health hazards, he said.
Four of the town wells in Bedford, Massachusetts, which provided drinking water to 80 percent of the residents, were found to be polluted with toxic chemicals in 1978, Harris said. Town officials shut the wells down. (Ed. note: Use distilled water.)
