Question from Sandy

We may have to put new sheetrock on a bedroom wall. Do you find sheetrock, tapping and mudding that would have to be done, to be inert as far as bothering those with EI.

Thanks

Sandy

Debra’s Answer

I can tell you that I have installed many walls with ordinary sheetrock, tape and mud, and never had a problem with it.

Some people with MCS prefer using Murco products,  but these need to be ordered by mail. They are totally fine, I just in the past haven’t had time for a special order, and found that once the mud dries and it is painted there is no odor.

The concern with regular sheetrock is that it is susceptible to mold growth.  Some alternatives that are more resistant magnesium oxide boards such as Dragonboard and MagBoard.

Question from Leslie Beck

Hi Debra – do you know of a safe, non-toxic way to clean bird droppings off of a concrete patio?

Thanks so much.

Debra’s Answer

Here are some instructions that are nontoxic and written by bird specialists who are familiar with special handling of bird droppings.

7 Tips for cleaning pest bird droppings

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A new building has been in the news recently. It was built by Swiss Healthy Life and Living Foundation for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) patients in a remote part of Leimbach, on the outskirts of Zurich, Switzerland

They don’t allow products that contain toxic chemicals, or cell phones.

15 apartments.

I’m happy this has been built, but I would like to see ALL buildings built this way. Because nobody should have to live with toxic chemicals.

I would like to see toxic-free homes built and have them be available to anyone and everyone. It should just be the norm.

The Telegraph: The Swiss flats where smoking, painting and mobile phones are banned

New York Daily News: Switzerland apartment bans perfume, cell phones and smoking

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Question from Chris

Do carbon blankets work to protect against off-gassing? We need to protect against a 3 yr old latex mattress with a memory foam topper? My wife is chemically sensitive and is afraid to try it. Does anyone have any experience with the use of carbon blankets? Any other remedies for off-gassing of mattresses? Thank you!

Sincerely,

Chris

Debra’s Answer

Carbon blankets will absorbs offgassing chemicals from something like a mattress or a car seat.

I don’t have any experience with using one for that purpose, but I’ve been told they work.

My best recommendation to you is to get a toxic free mattress as soon as possible. The rule of thumb for best results is to eliminate toxics at the source whenever possible, rather than try to block them.

You can get carbon blankets at Nirvana Safe Haven

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Question from Susaninnyc

Thank you Debra, and hello everyone!

My question is this: My very dark eyebrows are starting to go gray. I use light mountain color the gray henna to color my hair, but was wondering if anyone else has a better idea for eyebrows. I have pretty severe MCS.

Thanks!

Debra’s Answer

I have no experience with this. Readers?

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Question from Anne Castile

I have been a follower for the last 10 years.

I have a question regarding the Grand Legacy Mattresses. They are advertising a “green ” component. I’m curious if these are really green. They say they are formaldehyde free.. They use soybean and natural latex as part of the matttress.

Made in Cleveland Ohio and carried at the Levin stores.

I’m in the market for a new mattress and suffer from MCS.

Thanks for any info you can send me.

Debra’s Answer

I took a look at the product description at www.levinmattress.com/index.php/grand-legacy/

There are plenty of toxic chemicals in this mattress.

In addition to the gel memory foam and high density foam, the “BioFlex™ foam…

They says “BioFlex™ eliminates the use of harmful chemicals and is extracted from soybeans grown in Ohio.”

I’m sorry, but this just isn’t true. The soybeans may be grown in Ohio, but there is no soy foam in the world that “eliminates the use of harmful chemicals.” Soy foam is, at best, 30 percent soy, the remaining 70 percent is the same polyurethane foam used to make toxic mattresses.

There are many online sources of natural beds at Debra’s List: Textiles: Beds

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Question from Kathleen

Hi Debra. I read your first book when it came out. That means I am probably older than you. However, my oldest daughter is pregnant. I wondered if you were aware of any non-toxic natural remedies for morning sickness that actually work.

Nothing worked very well for me back in 1980. I took the Bendictin and it helped a little. I know it was safe.

When I was about 4 months pregnant, we had our house weatherized. Urea formaldehyde foam blown in, and storm windows and doors, and a heat pump. Because the house was already so tight, not much foam came into the house.

However, enough got in that within 18 months, I had health issues that have never gone away. My daughter shares the chemical sensitivities and has some allergies as well.

Sincerely,

Kathleen

Debra’s Answer

I’ve never had morning sickness (no children) but I know that ginger calms nausea. An old doctor told me that a long time ago.

People drink ginger ale for nausea, but it’s not the fizz that calms the stomach, it’s the ginger. So you could make ginger tea and drink it hot or cold, or even mix it with fizzy water to make ginger ale.

Readers, what worked for you?

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Question from Cindy

I have MCS and have been trying to create a better home environment. I also have pain issues and fibromyalgia, so I replaced my worn out comfy chair with a new one. Of course, it bothers me, even after letting it air out on porch for 3 weeks. I have zeolite rocks in bags but not sure how they could help with this. Any input? Love your website and have enjoyed a couple of your earlier books.

Thank you!

Debra’s Answer

I’m afraid it’s going to continue to outgas for quite a while. In addition to polyurethane foam, synthetic fabrics, and formaldehyde fabric protectors, there are also toxic chemical fire retardants required by law.

If you need to keep this chair, you might try covering it with a carbon blanket.

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Question from Dave

Hi Debra:

I know you’ll love this one:

Los Angeles Times: For branding, many places adopt signature scents

“Marketing using scent is catching on among retailers, sports stadiums, banks and others that seek to distinguish themselves via the influential sense of smell.” a list of stores I won’t be going to.

best wishes

Dave

Debra’s Answer

Thanks for the warning!

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Direct Action in Response to Heavy Handed Wireless Industry Crackdown on Democracy- Attacking City Ordinances and Cell Phone Labeling Efforts in Maine, Hawaii, and California

SAN FRANCISCO – Health advocates from the California Brain Tumor Association and Stop Smart Meters! have affixed health warning labels on cell phones for sale in Verizon’s Market St. store in San Francisco in defiance of the wireless industry’s legal bullying of cell phone safety ordinances across the nation. Store management removed the labels but did not summon police, possibly out of concern that potential arrests may highlight a health risk the industry would rather keep quiet. Further embarrassing the company, one of its employees stuck one of the labels to his own phone in an apparent act of defiance against his employer’s suppression of health information regarding its products.

In 2011, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a “right to know” law requiring cell phone retailers in the city to issue at the point of sale a fact sheet to each consumer including the World Health Organization classification and the manufacturer’s own language hidden in the phone or manual instructing phone users to keep phones 5/8 inch away from the body at all times when turned on. The Wireless Association (CTIA) sued the city (saying such “forced speech” represented a breach of the company’s First Amendment rights) and withdrew its annual conferences from San Francisco like whiney cry-babies. According to then Mayor Newsom, “their behavior makes me even more concerned as to what they are hiding.” The City did not lose the lawsuit but under the leadership of tech friendly Mayor Lee the Board of Supervisors was coerced into repealing the law, leaving customers in the dark about the health effects of routine cell phone radiation exposure.

Last month the state of Maine passed a cell phone labeling law. The next day the CTIA swarmed the halls of the Augusta Capitol. When the bill went back for the typical rubber stamping, many legislators changed their votes and the bill that had passed was killed. In Hawaii recently State Senator and Dr. Josh Green got a cell phone labeling bill passed through the state Health Committee. It then went to Sen. Roz Baker of Maui who refused hearing the bill and killed it. She also refused hearing the GMO labeling bill the same week. California State Senator Mark Leno has also tried to enact a cell phone labeling bill in California and has been shut down by industry contributions to state Senators. Many cities and states have attempted legislation and all received threatening letters of litigation from the CTIA.

This radiation has been correlated not only with brain tumors but with breast cancer, leukemia, salivary gland tumors, damage to fetuses, damage to sperm, an increase in autism and electro-hypersensitivity. In 2013 the American Academy of Pediatrics stated “Current FCC standards do not account for the unique vulnerability and use patterns specific to pregnant women and children. It is essential that any new standards for cell phones and other wireless devices be based on protecting the youngest and most vulnerable population to ensure they are safeguarded throughout their lifetimes.” The WHO classification included all wireless radiation including that emitted by smart meters. At least 15 other nations have taken action concerning the negative health implications of wireless radiation while the U.S. does nothing to protect Americans.

In February the U.S. Department of Interior in a letter to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, cited studies showing detrimental effects from cell tower radiation on protected migratory birds and stated“ the electromagnetic radiation standards used by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) continue to be based on thermal heating, a criterion now nearly 30 years out of date and inapplicable today”. Those same guidelines have been correlated with deleterious health effects in humans.

Ellen Marks, whose husband was diagnosed with a cell phone related brain tumor in 2008 said,

“Cell phones were never pre-market tested for safety. My husband and thousands of others have developed cancer because of industry greed. FCC Chair Wheeler buried the truth about the risks of cell phones and now families are burying the dead. I am outraged that honest legislators throughout the U.S. are being shut down by the majority who put campaign contributions ahead of the health and safety of their constituents concerning a radiation emitting device used daily, even by children. Getting the hidden warnings, which tell people to limit their use and carry them away from their body, to the consumer at the point of sale should not be this difficult! This madness must stop.” Marks has testified to Congress and worked on a federal cell phone Right to Know law and laws in many cities and states which, even when successful, were never enacted.

According to Josh Hart, Director of the grassroots group Stop Smart Meters!:

“Our labeling action is on behalf of the people of the City of San Francisco and those everywhere being harmed by wireless radiation. We will not sit idly by while the wireless industry takes advantage of a population that remains largely unaware of these deadly serious health risks. Placing warning labels on wireless devices is a reasonable and long overdue public health measure delayed by the collusion between government and industry. The cell phone and ‘smart’ grid industries are covering up the health risks from their products and people lack the information necessary to determine safe exposure levels for themselves and their families. Families are not only being evicted by tech-related gentrification, they are increasingly being subjected to serious health risks, even toxically evicted by the tech industry’s microwave radiation. The situation is unacceptable and intolerable, and these actions will continue until the industry ceases fighting reasonable, fact-based health warnings on their products.”

Media outlets are free to use footage of this demonstration with credit to StopSmartMeters.Org and the CA Brain Tumor Association. Do-it-yourself cell phone labels available at StopSmartMeters.Org

Joshua Hart MSc
Director, Stop Smart Meters!
http://stopsmartmeters.org

Stop Smart Meters! is grassroots-funded.
http://stopsmartmeters.org/donate

Sent from my wired computer