What are the Health Effects of Fiberglass?

The main sources of fiberglass particles in indoor environments includes, but are not limited to, ceiling tiles, debris from renovation projects, or degradation of HVAC system liners. Washington 3/12/2013 04:18 PM GMT (TransWorldNews) Pure Air Control Services, Inc. Recent Submissions What are the Health Effects of Fiberglass? Staphylococcus aureus Poses Threat for Indoor Environments Mold, Taxes and Death – What is the Commonality? Fiberglass is a type of fiber primarily composed of glass that is used in a wide variety of applications, and is predominantly used as a residential and commercial thermal insulator. As an insulator, it maintains a resistance to the spread of heat (known as the R-Value), cold and sound in structures, vehicles, aircraft, etc. By trapping pockets of air, it keeps areas warm in the winter and cools in the summer and thereby serves as a excellent way to increase energy conservation all the while maintaining comfort. Glass has been woven into small amounts of coarse fibers for many centuries, even by the ancient Egyptians, but fiberglass did not exist in its modern (insulation) form until 1932 as a result of an accident. An Owens-Illinois researcher named Dale Kleist was attempting to create a vacuum-tight seal between two glass blocks when a jet of high-pressure air turned a stream of molten glass into fine fibers. He had unintentionally discovered an effective method to produce large amounts of fiberglass particles, a method that he would refine in later years. In the United States, the first commercial production of fiberglass was started by Illinois Glass Company and the Corning glass work in 1939. The main sources of fiberglass particles in indoor environments includes, but are not limited to, ceiling tiles, debris from renovation projects, or degradation of HVAC system liners. These particles are very important from health and hygiene point of view. OSHA regulates fiberglass particles as a nuisance dust since 1991. Health implications from these particles may vary depending on the fiber size and type of exposure. Skin/eye irritation, rashes, soreness in nose and throat, asthma like symptoms, upset stomach etc. are some common symptoms due to contact, inhalation and ingestion of relatively larger fiberglass fiber although the smaller fragments (less than 0.5 micron) are capable of reaching the lower part of the lungs increasing the chance of adverse health effects. Health effects from exposure to fiberglass can be different depending on the fiber size and type of exposure. Larger fibers have been found to cause skin, eye and upper respiratory tract irritation. There are other possible health effects: •A rash can appear when the fibers become embedded in the outer layer of the skin. No long-term health effects should occur from touching fiberglass. •Eyes may become red and irritated after exposure to fiberglass. •Soreness in the nose and throat can result when fibers are inhaled. Asthma and bronchitis can be aggravated by exposure to fiberglass. •Temporary stomach irritation may occur if fibers are swallowed. Little information is known about the health effects caused by small fibers. Smaller fibers have the ability to reach the lower part of the lungs increasing the chance of adverse health effects. People who work with fiberglass or who have worn-out duct work lined with fiberglass in their homes or workplace may have long-term exposure to fiberglass. There is no evidence that fiberglass causes cancer in people. Animal studies have shown an increased risk of cancer when fiberglass fibers were implanted in the lung tissue of rats, but these studies are controversial because of how the fibers were implanted. Under a microscope, fiberglass appears as a smooth-walled, colorless or slightly pigmented surrounding, entire margin, elongated tube-like structure with varying size ranges, 1 to > 1000 microns. Ideally, there should not be any air or surface-borne fiberglass fibers in indoor environments. An independent study performed by EDLab at Pure Air Control Services Inc., utilizing over 10,000 indoor air samples, reveals that 99% of the air and surface samples collected were deemed negative for the presence of fiberglass fiber. Samples deemed positive for these particles indicated that the concentration of fiberglass fiber is greater in surface samples (up to 176 cts/cm2) in comparison to air samples (66 cts/m3). Additionally, this independent study suggests the concentration of fiberglass fiber in the air should be less than 5 cts/m3 and 4 cts/cm2 in surface samples.

Lead in Spices; Ct DPH

The Connecticut Department of Public Health, Lead and Healthy Homes Program (LHHP) would like to make you aware of an investigation recently conducted by a local health department (LHD) in collaboration with the LHHP, and the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP). During the LHD’s investigation of a childhood lead poisoning case, no environmental lead hazards were found at the child’s home. However, spices were identified as a potential source of lead exposure, and the LHD collected and analyzed a common Indian spice known as Asafoetida. Lab results indicated the sample of Asafoetida taken from the child’s home contained 31.2 ppm of lead. The brand name of the Asofoetida was LG, manufactured by Laljee Godhoo & Co., Mumbai, India. The LHD in collaboration with the DCP and LHHP, collected six samples of Asafoetida powder which included one sample from the lead poisoned child’s home, three samples from the store where the child’s family purchased the spice, and two from an Asian grocer in a neighboring town. In summary, two different brands and lot numbers of Asafoetida were tested. The sample results ranged from 0.072ppm - 31.2 ppm. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which oversees the safety of food products imported into the U.S. does not have specific guidelines for screening lead in dried products like spices. As a result, the FDA has not set a recommended maximum lead limit for spices or developed regulations to remove lead contaminated products from retail sale. However, it’s common knowledge that there is no safe level of lead in food. As such, if you are conducting an epidemiological investigation as the result of a childhood lead poisoning case and there are no common environmental lead hazard sources found on the property, you should consider imported spices, home remedies, medicines/supplements, Ayurvedic products, and cosmetics as other potential sources of lead exposure. Samples of these products should be collected and submitted to a laboratory for analysis. We advise LHDs to work with the LHHP and the DCP to remove food that is suspected or confirmed as contaminated from retail sales on a case-by-case basis. A director of health may utilize Connecticut General Statutes sections 19a- 206 and 19a-101 for this purpose. If you have any additional questions regarding ethnic remedies and other sources of lead exposure, please contact your regional lead case manager. Laboratory analysis questions can be directed to the DPH laboratory. cc: Suzanne Blancaflor, M.S., M.P.H. Chief, Environmental Health Section Ellen Blaschinski, R.S., M.B.A., Chief, Regulatory Services Branch

The Canary: Innovation in Digital Radon Gas Monitoring

The Canary: Innovation in Digital Radon Gas Monitoring by Corentium AS The Norwegian company Corentium AS has developed a novel digital radon gas monitor for homeowners, workplaces and the public sector. Compared to traditional technology, the battery powered monitor ‘Canary’ makes it much easier to locate the radon entry in the buildings. .The new digital and battery powered monitor ‘Canary’ is a paradigm shift in radon gas measurement procedures Oslo, Norway (PRWEB) March 12, 2013 There are epidemiological evidences that indoor radon exposure is responsible for a substantial number of lung cancers in the general population. The development of the monitor ‘Canary’ (http://www.corentium.com/eu) is largely a response to the 2009 UN World Health Organization report ‘WHO handbook on indoor radon. A public health perspective’ which provided detailed recommendations on reducing health risks from radon gas. (http://www.who.int/ionizing_radiation/env/radon/en/index1.html) Many countries have over the last few years developed national radon programs, also demanding more appropriate technologies for radon measurement and monitoring. This has inspired the Norwegian company Corentium AS to develop accurate and affordable digital instruments for homes, workplaces, schools and kindergartens. In most fields, technology has for long moved from the analogue to the digital age. Not so when it comes to radon gas monitoring technology. The traditional technology – track edge film – is still the most prevalent in the market. The film has to be placed for 2-3 months in the room to be measured, and has then to be sent to a specialized laboratory for development. The new digital and battery powered monitor ‘Canary’ is a paradigm shift in radon gas measurement procedures. It enables people to monitor radon continuously themselves – making radon gas diagnostic much easier, and reducing dependency on third-party services and consultancies. After measuring for a few days, one gets indications about the radon level. Canary gives the possibility to read the average value for 1 day, for 7 days, and the accumulative average up to a year. The Canary is also ideal for measuring the effect of simple mitigation measures – for example increased ventilation. The radon monitor Canary is tested in renowned laboratories like NIRS in Japan, BfS in Germany and SURO in the Czeck Republic, and proved to be within the laboratories' own measurement uncertainty. It is estimated that up to 14% of lung cancers is attributed to radon gas radiation. Radon is the second cause of lung cancer after smoking. Analyses indicate that the lung cancer risk increases proportionally with increasing radon exposure. As many people are exposed to low and moderate radon concentrations, the majority of lung cancers related to radon are caused by these exposure levels. This indicates that in countries where radon is found, most buildings should be monitored for radon as part of general preventive health care. The name Canary emanates from older times, when canary birds were used in mines to warn the workers against dangers. If the level of dangerous gases was too high, the canary birds stopped to sing. The mine workers then had to get out of the mine. To learn more about Canary, visit http://www.corentium.com/eu. About Corentium AS: Corentium AS was established in 2008, and is based in Oslo, Norway. Corentium is researching, developing and manufacturing technology for radiation monitoring. Behind Corentium stand researchers and developers from CERN in Geneva, The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and the Department of Physics at the University of Oslo.

The dirty truth on green cleaning products

By Deirdre Imus Green Your World Published March 11, 2013 FoxNews.com When a product becomes trendy or appealing to consumers, manufacturers respond. It’s why over the last few years, you’ve probably noticed a proliferation of “all-natural” this, “organic” that and “green” as far as the eye can see, whether on food packaging, cleaning product labels, clothing, or furniture. It can be difficult – almost impossible – for the average person to make sense of it all, and to decipher between the good, the bad and the truly awful. After all, the terms “all-natural” and “organic” can easily refer to substances that are indeed both natural and organic – and also bad for your health. For nearly 15 years, I have been manufacturing green cleaning products, which are derived from plants and minerals; free of harmful chemical ingredients; made from biodegradable ingredients; effective; and safe to use in your home, school or office building. I take my responsibility to consumers very seriously, and have had our product line third-party tested and verified so that you can trust they are as healthy as we say. But not all cleaning product manufacturers take this extra step, and some are downright dishonest about being natural, organic, or green. Cleaning product manufacturers are not required by federal law to disclose ingredients on their labels or websites, so the only way for consumers to discover what’s inside is to read each product’s material safety data sheet (MSDS), a federally mandated list of ingredients provided so that workers are aware of chemical hazards in cleaning products used on the job. It is practically pointless, however, for anyone without a working knowledge of the cleaning products industry to read an MSDS, because they are chock full of long, complicated ingredient names that give no indication of whether a product is safe or not. You may know that ammonia is dangerous, but can you identify – or even pronounce – an ingredient called 2-butoxyethanol?But, it is contained in some products that are touted as 'green.' Actually, 2-butoxyethanol is a solvent that can cause eye irritation and damage red blood cells, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), one of the nation’s leading environmental health research and advocacy groups. It is hardly a green ingredient, as the product’s name implies. Such misleading nomenclature is exactly why we need a more concise, easily accessible system to help consumers make informed decisions about which cleaning products to buy, and which to avoid like the plague. Currently, you can locate healthy products by searching databases like the EWG Guide to Healthy Cleaning, or checking to see if your favorite product is recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Design for the Environment Program. This can be helpful, but is not entirely effective: Each database, listing or guide requires different criteria to meet its set of unique standards for green validation. Which leads me to this: How can you find the best, healthiest and safest cleaning products to use in your home? Here are some helpful hints of what to look for, regardless of a product’s name, labeling, or database rating: • Full disclosure of all ingredients • Ingredients should be derived from plants and minerals • Must not contain petroleum-derived or petro-chemical ingredients • Label must stipulate the origin of fragrance and whether it is naturally derived or not • All ingredients should be biodegradable • No animal-testing, no animal-derived ingredients • Finished product must be safe for septic tanks and grey water • Must not be corrosive • Must not contain compounds that cause or contribute to the creation of greenhouse gases or ozone depletion • Must be free of any known human carcinogens, mutagens, teratogens, and endocrine disruptors Deirdre Imus, Founder of the site devoted to environmental health, dienviro.org, is President and Founder of The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center™ at Hackensack University Medical Center and Co-Founder/Co-Director of the Imus Cattle Ranch for Kids with Cancer. She is a New York Times best-selling author and a frequent contributor to FoxNewsHealth.com, and Fox Business Channel. Check out her website at dienviro.org. 'Like' her Facebook page here. Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/03/11/dirty-truth-on-green-cleaning-products/#ixzz2NFRA5Y6m

PCBs in Schools

BRIDGEPORT, CT -- The city is prepared to have ventilators in every Columbus School room taken apart and cleaned, and then test every classroom to make sure it is PCB-free. The decision late last week by the city's School Building Committee comes after the latest round of testing, received Thursday, still shows levels of polychlorinated biphenyls in some air samples higher than the federal Environmental Protection Agency says is safe for young children. Ray Wiley, an official from O&G, the city's school project manager, said he did not yet have the test results in hand but characterized them as "no worse" than three previous tests conducted randomly throughout the school. Attempts to obtain copies of the report Friday were unsuccessful. The building committee, made up of city and school officials, agreed unanimously to go to the City Council and ask for $253,000 to take apart, clean and reassemble the vents, along with the costs for testing done to date, and another $19,250 to air test all 35 rooms in the school. Officials haven't decided what to do about the thousands of boxes of supplies stored at the school during the renovation or moved in on the first day of school. Testing each one could cost the city $1.1 million. Decontaminating them and their contents would run about $125,000. Complicating the issue is that the budget for the project has run dry, necessitating the return to the city for money. While the cost of the process may eventually be charged back to the contractors or subcontractors, City Attorney Mark Anastasi said the city must foot the bill upfront. PCBs were discovered two years into a protracted three-year code update at Columbus when it was decided to add window replacement to the project. Window caulk was found to contain PCBs, which, under relatively new EPA regulations, must be removed. Wiley said the failed air tests come after several "wholehearted" cleanings of rooms and vents. A test that occurred when vents were turned off is the only one to come back clean. The next step is to take the ventilation units off the walls, clean and reinstall them. Robert Trefry, the school board's new chairman, told the committee at its Thursday meeting he doesn't want to put a child in a room if there isn't certainty it is safe. "I think if the test came back negative, we wouldn't be having this discussion, but there seems like a lingering thing in the air. That has people very concerned. It hasn't gone away," Trefry said. He got no argument. There was discussion, however, about the boxes, none of which have tested positive for PCBs in random testing. Some wondered if cleaning them all, and testing a sample, might be sufficient, if all test negative. City Councilman Robert Curwen Jr. wondered if the school supplies and books in the boxes are worth the money it would cost to test them. Assistant Schools Superintendent Robert Henry promised to get back to the group with an idea of the value. Officials also have no idea how soon Columbus students can move back to the school. They are scattered between five sites, in settings some describe as less than ideal. Mayor Bill Finch, who was not at the meeting, weighed in on the situation via a written statement. In it, Finch said he is outraged with the situation and shares the frustration of Columbus School parents. "We were assured by construction manager O&G that the school would open on time, and I have made it clear that this delay due to contractor error is unacceptable," he said.

4- Phenylcyclohexene

New Carpet, Odors and Health Concerns over 4-Phenylcyclohexene & Formaldehyde Thursday, February 14, 2013 Homes and offices with recently installed new carpeting are usually easily identified by the “new carpeting” smell that is associated with the flooring. This smell is the result of various volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are emitted from new carpeting. One chemical associated with carpeting that has come under increasing scrutiny over the years is 4-Phenylcyclohexene. 4-Phenylcyclohexene, also known as 4-PCH, is a by-product formed during the polymerization of some carpet backings. There have been some reports that exposure to very low levels of 4-PCH after new carpeting has been installed could result in health complaints from building occupants. There have also been reports that 4-PCH and other volatile carpet compounds can react with ozone in indoor environments to produce formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a colorless, strong-smelling chemical that is used in the manufacturing process of numerous other building materials and even some household products. “Formaldehyde exposure can cause burning, watery eyes, irritation of the nose and throat, nausea, headaches, and difficulty in breathing in some humans exposed to elevated levels,” said Vincent M. Daliessio, CIH, Project Manager at EMSL Analytical, a leading indoor air quality (IAQ) and formaldehyde testing laboratory. “High concentrations may also trigger asthma attacks in people who suffer from the condition.” The National Toxicology Program, an interagency program of the Department of Health and Human Services, named formaldehyde as a known human carcinogen in its 12th Report on Carcinogens. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, or IARC, also classifies formaldehyde as a human carcinogen.

News Drought could mean more radon leaking into KC homes By RICK MONTGOMERY The Kansas City Star Updated: 2013-03-04T13:06:32Z March 3 By RICK MONTGOMERY The Kansas City Star Five years of a wobbly economy and 20 months of Midwestern drought have some health officials worried about a silent intruder lingering in your basement. Order Reprints File photo by JOHN MUTRUX | Special to The Star Do-it-yourself testing kits are available for about $10 at hardware and home improvement stores. Some are free from county extension service offices and state websites. Once kits have been obtained, you might need to send $10 to $30 more for results to be tested by a lab. Check for radon in your home • Do-it-yourself testing kits are available for about $10 at hardware and home improvement stores. Some are free from county extension service offices and state websites. Once kits have been obtained, you might need to send $10 to $30 more for results to be tested by a lab. • Professionals can inspect your home for $100 to $200. Look for companies certified by Kansas for radon inspection. Missouri has no certification requirement. • If radon levels exceed 4 pCi/L — a baseline set by the EPA — shop for mitigation piping systems that run between $700 and $1,400 for installation. Again, look for radon mitigation firms certified by Kansas or by professional trade groups. More NewsRead more NewsIt’s radon gas, whether or not you care to think about it. Don’t look now (because you can’t see radon or smell it), but conditions this winter are said to be perfect for furnaces to suck in and cough out cancer-causing alpha particles, drawn from parched soil and through drought-driven cracks in foundations. And don’t be fooled by our recent snowstorms. No handful of wet-weather events cancels scientists’ predictions that drought is apt to afflict the Kansas City region at least into spring — all the while reconfiguring underground pathways for natural but slightly radioactive gases to travel. Real estate agents say a sluggish housing market aggravates the situation: Homeowners tend to put off simple radon testing, which can cost less than a bottle of wine, until they’re ready to offer up their houses for sale. When they re-enter the market, they’re thrown by an accumulation of odorless gas that can botch a transaction. “We recommend,” said Kim Steves of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s radon program, “that you re-test your home every two years.” The best time to test is right now, when the home is sealed up and furnaces are churning. Here, in one the nation’s hottest spots for indoor radon levels above what federal authorities consider OK, most people pooh-pooh the threat even when buying a house, said Gary Hodgden of Midwest Radon. His Overland Park company tests homes and pipes radon out of them. “We’re seeing a higher percentage of homes coming in with higher readings, and we’ve been seeing it for a year and a half,” he said. Gary Martin of Lee’s Summit-based Integrity Building Inspections sees something similar setting in: “I know of someone who, four years ago, had low levels of radon when he tested. More recently, the test came in at four times that amount.” For the past quarter-century, experts have argued over the harm caused by exposure to radon gas — an everyday reality attributed to the natural decay of uranium present in almost all kinds of soil. We’ve been breathing it in forever. The U.S. surgeon general’s office and the Environmental Protection Agency link indoor radon to 20,000 lung-cancer deaths annually, but the risk is far greater for smokers than for nonsmokers. Even then, the threat in cases of moderate exposure — under 4 picocuries per liter, according to the EPA — is marginal. Outdoor levels commonly are below 1 picocurie per liter. “There’s a whole mess of factors that can affect radon levels,” said geologist Paul Hilpman, a University of Missouri-Kansas City professor emeritus. “Long and short of it, the death rate from lung cancer is much more closely linked to people exposed to smoking, particularly secondhand smoke, than to radon gas.” What seems a big point of agreement, however, is that local homeowners consider testing for radon — especially if they haven’t through these last several years of extreme weather events. Dry weather over several months, along with heavy snows and flooding, can change ground conditions and stress home foundations. For as low as $10, do-it-yourself radon test kits can be purchased from hardware and home-improvement stores. They’re available free from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services website. High radon exposure probably would take many decades to kill you, say scientists and federal studies. Still, as the spring season of house-shopping approaches, “can high radon muck up a real-estate sale?” asked John Moffitt, a local agent of Coldwell Banker Real Estate. “Absolutely, it can.” Drought can and will create radon problems — or, in some cases, reverse them. Home foundations fracture, sometimes letting in gases routed through underground channels that open up when water tables drop. The opposite often is true when water tables rise, because moisture is a barrier to radon gases leaking into houses. “We know from flooding that occurred in Kansas City in the 1990s, the percentage of homes with elevated levels (of radon) dropped significantly,” said Bruce Snead, director of engineering extension at Kansas State University. Indeed, indoor radon levels fluctuate daily — higher in the winter, lower in pleasant weather, up and down depending on how often windows are opened, attic fans are running or traffic comes in an out of a house. Homes that aren’t constantly sealed tend to gather lower measurements of radon gas. In the Kansas City region, between a third and 45 percent of homes that are tested harbor radon levels higher than 4 picocuries per liter, the level at which the EPA recommends corrective action. (Nationally, the average home tests at a safe 1.3.) For roughly the price of installing a new water heater, or about $1,000, radon mitigation companies can run piping from the ground beneath a basement through a fan that blows radon gas above the roof. Health officials caution against assuming that radon levels measured more than five years ago — say, when you had your house inspected before purchasing it — still hold true. Soils and basement footings shift, especially through weird weather patterns. A new furnace or air conditioning system, altered plumbing, improved insulation and structural additions to a home also can affect the circulation of radon gas. Still, the science of radon is wildly inexact. The World Health Organization calls for dwellings to be fixed when indoor radon levels reach half of what the EPA recommends. And if the EPA’s standards are lax, geologist Hilpman notes they’re predicated on someone spending 18 hours daily in the same home for 70 years. A bill introduced this year in the Kansas Legislature would make radon testing mandatory for every home sale. Laws enacted in Kansas since 2009 have set new standards for certifying radon inspectors and reporting properties where high indoor levels exist. The legislation largely is driven by companies that relocate employees and, in many cases, stand to be held liable if a home tests high for radon. “Employers relocating will demand thorough home inspections partly for liability protection,” said Bill Rounds of Illinois-based HomeBuyer’s Preferred, a relocation company. “High radon is the most serious thing (they’re looking for), because it’s known to be a carcinogen.” Legal protection aside, the Kansas standards allow officials to track radon levels to precise addresses — ultimately enabling the state to compare the reported levels to health problems diagnosed in residents, said Steves of the Kansas Radon Project. “We’re really at the very early stages of this,” she said. “The state has more data than we had a few years ago, and the data we have is better.” Missouri is less vigilant in requiring that home radon levels be reported and that inspectors be certified. But that hasn’t kept one family from doing all it can to reduce radon levels in a house once occupied by a Northland woman — a nonsmoker — who died last summer from lung cancer. After her mother’s death, Linda Jensen and her siblings had the ranch home tested for radon and discovered readings surpassing 20 picocuries per liter, five times the level considered a health concern by the EPA. The mother died at 80 and had lived in the house since the 1950s. “We all agreed, 100 percent, that nobody would acquire the house until it was treated and brought to safe levels,” Jensen said. The family is still working on it. Last month, a radon-mitigation crew visited the house for a fourth time to bring levels down to something as close to nil as possible. To reach Rick Montgomery, call 816-234-4410 or send email to rmontgomery@kcstar.com. Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/03/03/4097720/drought-could-mean-more-radon.html#storylink=cpy