M10.2: MSDS and ToxNet

Sodium hydroxide MSDS

• What are the health risks associated with this chemical?

Very hazardous when it comes in contact with skin (corrosive, irritant, permeator), eyes (irritant, corrosive), ingestions, or inhalation. Eye contact can result in corneal damage or blindness. Skin contact can result in inflammation and blistering. Severe over-exposure can result in lung damage, choking, unconsciousness or death. 

• Is the chemical a carcinogen?

No, it's not a carcinogen

• What personal protective equipment or special precautions should be taken when working with this chemical?

Precautions include: keeping container dry, never add water to the chemical, and not breath in dust. It's advised to wear respiratory equipment when there is insufficient ventilation. The chemical should be kept away from oxidizing agents, reducing agents, metals, acids, alkalis, moisture. 

• If this is a chemical found in your workplace, what training/education were you given about any risks associated with this chemical?

This is one of the chemicals used at my mom's lab. I believe she was trained/educated during med school and by a coworker when she first started working in labs. 

M10.8: Occupationally related disease

I chose to research on byssinosis because I had never heard of it before.

Byssinosis is an occupational lung disease that mainly affects workers in cotton processing, hemp or flax industries (American Lung Association, n,d). Byssinosis causes asthma-like breathing difficulty, usually at the beginning of the work week and improves as the work week progresses or dust exposure decreases/stops. Prolonged exposure may cause lung damage that is similar to irreversible chronic obstructive lung disease.

OSHA issued the Cotton Dust Standard on June 2, 1978 and amended it on December 12, 1985. The Cotton Dust Standard is to reduce the significant risk of byssinosis (U.S. Department of Labor, 2000). Before the establishment of the Standard, more than 50,000 cotton textile workers suffered from the disease at any one time. The Standard sets maximum permissible exposure limits (PELs) for cotton dust which vary by operation. The Standard contributed to increased industry productivity growth, from 2.5% per year in 1972-79 to 3.5% per year in 1979-1991. States with cotton textile industries have adopted cotton dust standards which are virtually identical to the Federal standard.

To date, the Federal Cotton Dusts Standard is still in effect to protect workers from risk of byssinosis.



References:

American Lung Association. (n,d). Lung health & diseases: Byssinosis. Retrieved from https://www.lung.org/lung-health-and-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/byssinosis/

United States Department of Labor. (2000). Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/federalregister/2000-12-07-1

M10.5: Occupational safety & health organization

I looked up Cal/OSHA's Valley Fever safety information program, which is more of an informative guide for employers than an actual program.

I didn't know what Valley Fever was so I was interested to find out. Valley Fever is caused by a microscopic fungus called Coccidiodes immitis and lives in the top 12 inches of soil. When soil is distributed by digging, driving, or high winds, fungal spores can become airborne and be inhaled by workers. Work-related cases of Valley Fever at solar installation plants in the Central Valley have become a health risk for workers.

The page mentions how Valley Fever can be prevented, what activities increase the risk of Valley Fever and what employers need to do when workers report symptoms of Valley Fever symptoms. What is evidently lacking from this information guide is a description of what the symptoms are so employers can look out for and inform their employees. 

M8.5: Ideal Chemical Policy

An ideal chemical policy would ensure all chemicals meet a safe level exposure test. It would require that all chemicals degrade safely within a certain period of time to reduce prolonged risk of exposure. One thing that sticks with me since I learned about it is the persistence of chemicals in the environment. It shocks me that decades later, some of the harmful chemicals that have been banned are still detected in our bodies and in newborns as well. Just like compost is good for the environment, chemicals in the environment should be able to safely degrade too.

M8.4: Chemical Policy Reform

Background paper #3: Give the public and workers the full right-to-know and participate

Since this class, I've learned about so many environmental hazards and issues that I didn't know before. We are all exposed to toxic chemicals in our daily lives that we are not aware of. Our "right-to-know" in this paper refers to the routine, systematic, public reporting of chemicals rather than access to government documents. A few examples listed in the paper include: lead paint right-to-know, in which sellers/landlords must let buyers/renters know about known lead paint hazards. Drinking water right-to-know ensures water utilities provide consumer confidence reports included in water bills to customers.

Right to participate is the opportunities to be involved in decisions that affect people's health, safety, and environment. For example, under OSHA, workers have the right to request a workplace inspection and participate in the inspection process. Right to participate is just as important as right-to-know because it is being engaged and involved in decision making, not only being informed about the hazards.

M8.3: Pesticides

Foods I ate last night:

• spinach (organic)
• bok choy 
• broccoli 
• tofu (organic)
• pork 
• mix of white/brown rice & quinoa (last two are organic)

Pesticide residue results:

broccoli

• 33 pesticide residues found
• [top pesticide residue] imidacloprid is found 67% of the times in broccolis and has a high level of bee toxins 

rice

• 15 pesticide residues found
• [top pesticide residue] piperonyl butoxide is found 16.2% of the times in rice and has suspected hormone disruptors, possible carcinogen, and has a moderate amount of bee toxins 

pork

• 3 pesticide residues found 
• [top pesticide residue] carbaryl is found in pork 2.8% of the times and has known carcinogens, neurotoxins, developmental/reproductive toxins, suspected hormone disruptors, and high levels of bee toxins

We need better pesticide regulations. I'm surprised to see such a high chance of bee toxins present in broccolis. I also thought there would be a higher percentage of pesticide residue found in pork. 

M6.7: Obesogens

• Discuss what is locally grown and what is currently in season in your area.

There are tons of produce in season in California right now. These are a few of my favorites:

• basil
• chestnuts
• dates
• okra
• persimmons
• spinach 

• Discuss your thoughts on seasonal/local foods and hospital menus. 

I love that the UK NHS brought together a group of leading chefs to create a database of over 300 recipes that use seasonal local ingredients. Food is medicine so I completely believe that hospital menus that incorporate seasonal/local produce will find positive correlation in patients' health. 

• Find a Harvest Calendar for your state (or a state you are interested in) utilizing the link in the first article.

• What are your thoughts on the second article? Have you heard of obesogens before?

I hadn't heard of the term obesogens before but I've learned about many of them separately. The article mentions that obesity is strongly associated with exposure to risk factors during fetal and infant development and the list of potential obesogens are growing. Which is concerning... 

Dr. Blumber at UC Irvine says "eat organic, filter water, minimize plastic in your life," to reduce exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals which is a doable statement for some but sadly easier said than done for many others. 

• Pick one of the potential obesogens discussed in the article and using your resources from earlier modules (such as toxnet), do some research on this potential obesogen. Share what you found! 

BPA (Bisphenol A) is a chemical used to make polycarbonate plastic for some food and drink containers and epoxy resin used to coat metal, such as in canned foods. Some of the health risks of BPA include childhood asthma, abnormality of reproductive organs, coronary artery disease, and change in structure in mammary glands (used for lactation). 

M6.6: Use of Antibiotics

• Antibiotic Resistance 101

The infographic nicely summarized the process of how antibiotic misuse on factory farms can make people sick. The scare factor for me is that some antibiotics no longer work to treat patients who are exposed to antibiotic-resistant bacteria through handling raw meat and/or consuming undercooked meat, which is a huge portion of the population. 

• ABX resistance associated with proximity to CAFOs

The article didn't go into the health risks of MRSA infection which I am curious about. I also wonder how the bacteria became more associated with infections outside of healthcare facilities since MRSA was traditional used in medical settings. 

• Blog on antimicrobial soaps

I had learned in high school that not all hand sanitizers are good for us. I can't remember what differentiates the "good" from the "bad" anymore but only vaguely remember ones from Bath & Body Works are no good...I carry a bottle of generic Walgreen brand hand sanitizer with me everywhere and offer to friends whenever we're out eating. What I got from the article is that if we're healthy, using antibiotic wipes/sanitizers will not make us sick but if we're constantly sick, using them would make us sicker. Makes me think that I need to be mindful who offer my hand sanitizers to. 

• Antimicrobials in hospital furnishings 

This is completely news to me. After reading the article on antimicrobial soaps, it makes complete sense that hospitals should not have antimicrobials in its furnishings because it's a place filled with sick people! I appreciate that the report has recommendations for different audiences/stakeholders on ways to move away from having antimicrobials in hospitals. 

M6.4: Industrial Farming

• Your thoughts about the vanishing of bees (what else have you heard/seen about this issue?)

I was shocked to find industrial bee farms are using unnatural tactics to mate queen bees and add syrup into the bee hives. They are killing queen bees who can live up to five years and introducing artificial queen bees into the hive. Of course problems are going to come up because bees are not intended to live that way. Humans are the ones twisting and changing things up out of greed and in the end we are negatively affected. 

• Dirt!: The Movie 

A huge theme I was getting from the movie is the relationship between the person and the dirt. I've never thought about dirt as more than as dirt so the movie was pretty perspective changing for me.  

• Were you able to discover if there is a factory farm near you? Were you already aware of farms near you? What do you think about this? 

The closest factory to me according to the factory farm map is in Fresno County which is about 200 miles away from SF. Most updated data from 2012 shows on average there are 1,787,706 broilers at a site. That's a tremendously amount of animals on one site. People often say there's nothing to do in Fresno which makes sense because there are so many industrial farms there. Residents of Fresno are exposed to factory farm health risks that come from spread of diseases from overcrowded conditions. 

• Composting: Do you currently compost? Have you composted in the past? Do you know anyone who composts? 

I have been composting for many years but I didn't always compose. When I lived in China, every household only had one trash bin where everything went into. No one was sorting the garbage. But when I lived in Japan, the trash system was so thoroughly organized (ex: different colored glass bottles go into different bags)and everyone adhered to it. My mom is super on top of trash sorting and would call out on me or my dad if we threw something away in the wrong bin.