Tag Archives: Healthy Living
Jacki and John are married!
Posted on Feb 14, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Healthy Living, Susie Collins
Jacki reports she and John married yesterday in the midst of a snow-covered forest! Their dear friend Coleen officiated.
The ceremony
Exciting news from Jacki!
Coleen did a great job making it very special and full of love. Thank you to all my friends that wrote a email for her to read during the wedding. You were all there in love and words. THANK YOU for making John & my day so special…
LOVE,
j & j
Videos to follow soon! Read more about Jacki and John’s story of love here.
Congratulations, Jacki and John! The Canary Report community wishes you both all the happiness in the world in your new life as husband and canary! xoxo
~~~
02/17/10 UPDATE: Video now posted here.
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CFL bulbs are not a safe choice for people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
Posted on Feb 09, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Products, Susie Collins
Lighting can be a difficult issue for people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, but compact fluorescent bulbs are not the answer.
Compact fluorescent lighting (CFL) is a classic example of something being touted as green but in fact being anything but. While CFL bulbs use less electricity, and therefore are lessening the burning of fossil fuels at power plants, they contain trace levels of mercury, which can be released into the environment if they are accidentally broken, like in your home. In many states, CFL bulbs are regarded as hazardous waste, and in those states it is illegal to just throw out the old bulbs with the regular trash; they must be recycled at hazardous waste recycling centers. Of course the problem with this is that most people are not doing that, they just toss out the bulbs with the trash.
But getting back to the topic of CFLs in regards to people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. Here are my thoughts on the topic:
CFL bulbs are toxic, period. If one breaks, trace mercury is released into the environment– that means if the bulb breaks in your bedroom, the mercury is in your bedroom and you are at risk for breathing vapors. Mercury is a potent neurotoxin. Clean up would be an expensive nightmare. Here’s an article “objectively” arguing that if you break a CFL bulb, there’s really nothing to worry about because only trace amounts of mercury vapor are released and so it probably won’t do any harm– the problem with that argument is that people with MCS can be made seriously ill from trace levels of toxic chemicals, especially neurotoxic.
The very first rule for someone with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity is to limit exposure to toxic chemicals, limit risk. I don’t care how much electricity you save with a CFL bulb, it is not worth the risk to have a bulb break inside your home.
Further, many people with MCS also have problems with the flicker of fluorescent bulbs. It’s simply not the best choice for someone whose body is stressed from chemical injury.
Right now, Light Emitting Diode or LED (at left) is the best lighting choice if you can afford it. While some people with light sensitivity may have problems with the brightness of LED, there are things you can do to lesson that brightness like shades, filters, or fixtures that create indirect light in the room. Otherwise, halogen or plain old light bulbs are best for canaries (you can play with full spectrum to see if it works for you or not). Try to stay away from fluorescent and CFL lighting as much as possible; I do not recommended that you bring CFLs into your home at all.
Thanks to Dennis, Connie, Hank, Linda, and Katrina for their contributions to this report!
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Professor of chemical engineering urges students to go fragrance-free
Posted on Feb 03, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, MCS, Susie Collins
Chemical engineering professor at the University of New Hampshire encourages students to “be considerate to human canaries and help them to enjoy life to the fullest.”
Ihab Farag, professor of chemical engineering at the University of New Hampshire and member of our Canary Report community, wrote a letter to the editor at his school’s student paper to raise awareness about chemical sensitivity. And they published it! I’m a huge supporter of letters to the editor. Bravo, Ihab!
Many of us are familiar with canaries, the beautiful, colorful birds that tend to sing most of the time. Canaries also saved many human lives in coalmines. This is because canaries are much more sensitive to toxic gases than humans. Miners would take canaries with them in the coalmine. If the canary stopped singing and fell (or died), the miners knew to leave the coal mine quickly to safety.
There are individuals who have developed a very strong sensitivity to many common chemicals. These people can be very negatively affected and irritated by fumes, chemical cleaners, disinfectants, cigarette/cigar smoke, engine exhaust, solvents, etc. These people are often called “Human Canaries” of the modern world, because of the chemical sensitivity similarity to that of Canaries. Human Canaries of the 21st century tend to be very strongly irritated by everyday chemicals like perfumes, hair products, shampoos, shower gels, after shave lotions, antiperspirants, deodorants, hand sanitizers, chap sticks, finger nail polish, etc. Human canaries look the same as other people, and when you see one you probably will not recognize he or she is a human canary until an offensive toxic chemical triggers his or her sensitivity.
Please be considerate to human canaries and help them to enjoy life to the fullest. One way you can help the human canary and at the same time lower your exposure to undesirable chemicals, is to go fragrance-free: avoiding perfumes, and fragranced personal care products.
Ihab Farag
Professor, Chemical Engineering Department
Link to Dr. Farag’s home page at the University of New Hampshire.
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Chemically-safe building practices: what we did when we renovated our bathroom
Posted on Jan 29, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Guest Bloggers, Products
Many of the resources used were environmentally-friendly, but it should be noted that “green” does not always mean “chemically safe.”
By Guest Blogger Catherine Ockey
Background
In the spring of 2009 we discovered a leak in a shower faucet in our home. Upon further investigation it was determined that water had been leaking down an inside wall for some time and had caused damage to the bathroom walls and subflooring. The process of repair and reconstruction occurred over a three-week period in the fall of 2009. Before the actual work began, however, I did a lot of research into chemically-safe (or safer) building products and found a contractor willing to follow my instructions explicitly. I am happy to share more details of my experience with anyone by phone or through email. Following is a summary of what we did.
Contractor
We found a contractor with experience in environmentally friendly building practices. He had previously built an entire house for a person with MCS, so he had some familiarity with the issues. However, every person with MCS has slightly different issues, so I micro-managed the entire project myself from start to finish. I let the contractor know upfront that this is how it would be done and also had this written into our contract with him.
Resources
Books
Prescriptions for a Healthy House, 3rd edition: A Practical Guide for Architects, Builders & Homeowners by Paula Baker-Laporte, Erica Elliott and John Banta. (Both my contractor and I had a copy of this book. It was our most valuable resource.)
The Healthy House by John Bower. (I have an older edition of this, but I believe it has been updated.)
Magazines
Fine Home Building
Green@Home
Mother Earth News
Care2 Green Living
Safer Building
Various manufacturer’s Web sites
Lassen Technologies
Ecohaus
Healthy House Institute
Guide to Less Toxic Products
Safe Shopper’s Directory: Building Materials
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Short film: The People’s Grocery
Posted on Jan 29, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Food, Media/Videos, Organic Gardening, Susie Collins
Food justice: The People’s Grocery in West Oakland is an inspiration to communities everywhere about the importance of a healthy diet and about knowing where your food comes from. Director of the project Brahm Ahmadi is a hero!
In West Oakland, California, where liquor stores have replaced markets, People’s Grocery is creating a healthy alternative, offering access to organic produce. Through urban gardens and local farms, People’s Grocery supports a culture based on connection to the land, sustainable agricultural practices, and regenerating community.
Brahm Ahmadi is the co-founder and executive director of People’s Grocery. He has a B.A. in Sociology from the University of California and is an MBA candidate at the Presidio School of Management. Brahm combines social enterprise, cooperative economics, urban agriculture, public education and youth development to build healthy and stable inner city communities. He is also Executive Director of the North Oakland Land Trust, which preserves properties in North Oakland for the exclusive purpose of community gardening.
Link (A great site with oodles of online films to watch!)
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More blogging canaries
Posted on Jan 26, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, MCS, Susie Collins
A couple of blogs came up on my radar this week that I wanted to share with you.
Healthologist & well seasoned Nurse. Out of the box practical thinker with common sense. Fabric Artist – Quilter. Problem Solver.
My first find is Kathy AK’s Blog at Open Salon. Kathy is a new member of The Canary Report community, and among her topics at Open Salon, she blogs about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. In the post Visiting someone with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, she writes:
There are not any products that I am not neurologically reactive to. It is just a matter as to how reactive or sensitive to them I am and how ill a specific product will make me.
So, please leave them all at home.
Those “all natural” fragranced products are not safe around me either. While some products are worse than others, all WILL make me sick to some degree, probably too sick for you to even come into my home or to enjoy your company.
A nurse with over 25 years experience (and a quilter to boot), Kathy’s also encouraged her readers to Make the connection — Chemicals & Fragrances make you sick, and asked them to consider When Scented cleaners do not make good Cents.
~~~
Sundog –noun 1. parhelion. 2. a small or incomplete rainbow.
I also found Sundog Tales by Lisa, who describes herself as “a survivor of the devastation multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).”
Lisa writes a lovely blog, full of detail, emotion and tales of a survivor.
I was feeling energetic and alive. My brain fog was noticeably less and it felt like just out of the corner of my eye I kept catching glances of what it would be like to have no fog at all. That little glimpse you catch of something that is mythical and mysterious but no matter how quick you are to turn and look you always just missed it. But I knew it was there and almost tangible.
Lisa and her partner Jeremy are living in a tent in the foothills of Washington state. They are living in the tent through winter and several of her blog posts describe the harrowing experience of cold and freezing temps (while battling CFS and MCS). They are currently building a straw bale house.
~~~
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Xtrema cooking
Posted on Jan 20, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Food, Products, Susie Collins
Founder of Xtrema cookware says it’s made of nontoxic material that can be left on the heat indefinitely and not emit toxic fumes even if boiled bone dry.
This Xtrema cookware looks interesting, coated in a nontoxic ceramic glaze that will not emit toxic fumes even if cooked bone dry on high heat. The high heat safety factor is in comparison to Teflon, which studies show emits dangerous toxic fumes when overheated. Xtrema also claims their nylon lids and utensils are nontoxic.
Feature: High temperature, ultra-durable non- scratch finish, inside and out.
Benefit: Xtrema products feature a revolutionary and technologically advanced ceramic non-scratch ceramic glaze on the inside and outside of every vessel. This ceramic-glaze consists of 100% natural ceramic materials and is completely environmentally safe. The glaze will never emit gaseous or toxic odors (at any temperature), it will not be damaged by the use of metal cooking utensils, and will never peel or flake off into the food. The ceramic glaze on the outside of the cookware also provides faster clean-up and helps keep Xtrema cookware looking brand new, year after year.
The flash graphic on the header on their website is a little scary: thick black smoke curling and swirling. But they say their product is as nontoxic as they come.
The founder of Xtrema is Rich Bergstrom, a former Corning representative. I love my Corning baking dish–I’ve had it for 30 years–and I often recommend Corning to canaries asking about cookware. Bergstrom has something interesting to say about Corning:
Corning Ware manufacturing facility in Martinsburg, WV was closed and dismantled in 2002. Corning Ware is still being marketed today by World Kitchen but the product is now being made of stoneware and not the patented pyro-ceram material that made Corning Ware so recognizable.
Hmmm. Not sure I can recommend that product anymore, at least not until I am convinced the new material is as superior and nontoxic as the old Corning. Is anyone using Corning purchased after 2002?
Has anyone tried Xtrema? It’s not cheap. This darling tea set is $129 and their most basic skillet about $100. But I think it’s going on my wish list. Right after the new HEPA air filter and organic cotton futon for the bedroom.
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Short film: The Story of Food
Posted on Jan 19, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Food, Media/Videos, Susie Collins
The Story Of Food from USC Canada on Vimeo.
USC Canada’s new short, animated film will get you thinking about our broken food system.
It identifies what’s gone wrong with the modern food system, and what we can do to rebuild it.
Link to more info about the film.
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Linda Sepp launches a blog about her urgent housing needs
Posted on Jan 17, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Linda Sepp, MCS, Susie Collins
The main purpose of Linda’s blog is to send out a clarion call for help in securing safe water, clothing and place to live. Are you able to help?
Canary Report contributor Linda Sepp launched her own blog today! I am doing the admin on the site but the writing is all Linda’s.
As many of you know, Linda suffers severe Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and is housebound. She faces eviction on April 4. She’s using the blog to explain her urgent housing needs in the hopes of finding people who can help her in securing safe water, clothing and place to live. Other than a limited amount of support given by Canada’s social services, Linda’s basically been abandoned by her country’s safety net, even though Multiple Chemical Sensitivities and Environmental Sensitivities are fully recognized by the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
The urgency of Linda’s situation cannot be over emphasized given the looming eviction. Please visit her blog, read through the posts and pages, and if you are able to help her in any way, please do so! I’m especially interested in finding people in Toronto who can help Linda with everything from daily chores like shopping and shoveling snow, to the larger challenges such as installing a water filter and finding her a safe home.
Linda’s challenges are great but I’m convinced there are people out there who can help her. We just need to find them and enlist their help. Please do all you can to brainstorm about this, or more importantly, implement action!
From Linda’s “About” page:
I am disabled and housebound from severe Multiple Chemical Sensitivities / Environmental Sensitivities (MCS/ES) and chemically induced Fibromyalgia (FM) as well as some ElectroHyperSensitivity (EHS). My symptoms and abilities are directly, and often severely impacted by exposure to petro-chemicals, moulds, wireless technologies and high electrical fields, yet most resolve when I am able to avoid exposures. There may be some residual and permanent brain damage, but we won’t know until I have safe housing and the therapeutic supports required to repair and heal the damage.
My critical and urgent needs list includes: 1) a whole house water filtration system and installation, 2) a washing machine, 3) clothing, 4) a housing search and preparation, and 5) an advocate to help me navigate the processes to secure it all. Are you able to help me in any way?
Bloggers, please add Linda’s blog to your blogroll and share her story with your readers. Please do all you can to find people who can help her secure safe water, clothing and a place to live. You can also donate funds by check or PayPal, or purchase some needed clothing for Linda.
Together, we can make this happen!
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New website launched on fragrance-free living
Posted on Jan 15, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Products, Susie Collins
New website warns of the dangers of toxic fragrance in personal care products and other consumer goods.
A new website just came up on my radar about Fragrance-Free Living. It’s run by former auto mechanic David Tywoniuk, who now owns an auto body shop in Edmonton, Canada. He and Judy Sterling put the website together.
Here is a really good reason as to why you might want to try “Fragrance Free Living”. Did you know that the ingredient “Fragrance” used in most of the above products can indicate the presence of up to 4,000 separate, mostly man-made ingredients? Many compounds in fragrance are human toxins and suspected or proven to cause cancer. Symptoms reported include: headaches, dizziness, rashes, skin discolorations, violent coughing and vomiting and allergic skin irritation. Observations by medical doctors have shown that exposure to fragrance can affect the central nervous system, causing depression, hyperactivity, irritability, inability to cope, and other behavioral changes. 100% of perfumes contain toluene, which can cause liver, kidney and brain damage as well as damage to a developing fetus.
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Never surrender, never give up!
Posted on Jan 11, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Franny Armstrong, MCS, Susie Collins
Our very own Franny Armstrong, contributor at The Canary Report and author of steamy romance novels, is interviewed by Antonia Tiranth.
In the interview, Franny talks about what leads an author on the road to success when battling illness:
I have a chemical brain injury (called Multiple Chemical Sensitivity or MCS) that causes my body to react violently to simple things like fragrances, body products, cleaning products, gas fumes and much more. Since leaving the safety of my chemical-free home wasn’t possible, I became addicted to the Internet and to reading, however this wasn’t always possible due to the “mushy-brain-fog” I suffered which made it difficult to concentrate.
At the same time I was diagnosed with MCS, I was also told I had BiPolar II Disorder. Though the doctor assured me I wasn’t “nuts,” I was devastated, feeling like I’d just been given a death sentence since neither of the two illnesses had a cure. For years I could barely speak a sentence or remember a simple word. “I want tea,” though only three words, was difficult to say. I also slept up to twenty hours a day!
After losing so much time, I decided to do something with my life because I refused to allow illness to beat me! My motto became, “NEVER SURRENDER! NEVER GIVE UP!” and believe me, it worked. To date I have become a published author [with] my first book SMALL PACKAGES–A CHRISTMAS STORY released from Red Rose Publishing in December and what a feeling that was! I’d finally climbed past the limits of illness and accomplished what I’d never thought possible until now.
Author’s Demise comes out in March. Brava, Franny!
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How to travel with a little help from your friends
Posted on Jan 06, 2010 by Susie Collins in Blog, Guest Bloggers, Keith Carlson, MCS
Advance work when traveling: A letter to friends and family about how to prepare for a visit from loved ones with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.
By guest blogger Mary Rives.
(Editor’s Note: Mary is the wife of Canary Report contributor Keith Carlson. Mary and Keith are currently living full-time in their new RV, traveling the highways and byways of America, visiting intentional communities, and bringing Laughter Yoga and the benefits of health and wellness coaching to new and old friends along the way. Read more about their trip at Mary and Keith’s Excellent Adventure.)
This is a letter my friend kindly wrote for me. I edited it and then sent it to my parents yesterday. I am offering it to anyone as a prep tool should you go visiting with “chem people.” I plan to follow the letter up with an email and call. I suggest you find a friend who would agree to sign off on the letter. Here ya go:
Dear friends of Mary Rives, Keith Carlson, (and dog Tina),
Hi! My name is A.L., a longtime friend of Mary and Keith from Washington, D.C. I was at their wedding 20 years ago on July 2, 1989, and I have traveled and vacationed with them, visited each other long distances, met each others’ families and have been there for each other through many of life’s twists and turns.
As you know, our dear friends/family members are traveling the country in their RV (affectionately known as “Rigatina”) after simplifying their lives, including selling their home and letting go of most of their belongings. They will be experiencing the relief of permanently leaving the long, cold winters of New England that worsened Keith’s pain syndrome and increased Mary’s intermittent low back pain. They’re now living more simply in their radically downsized and carefully prepared non-toxic environment of their rig and have already visited more than a dozen intentional communities, perhaps to find one to live in near like-minded people in 2010. I know that visiting friends and family is an important part of their journey as they make a huge horseshoe trek, now completing the East Coast and soon to travel westward across the Gulf Coast. They will be in touch when they are nearer to your home.
I am writing to you because I’m concerned for Mary and Keith’s health. In addition to Keith’s Myofascial Pain Syndrome and Mary’s intermittent back pain, Mary and Keith have been chemically injured from a severe mold infestation in the attic of their previous home which has predisposed their bodies to being intolerant of many basic products designed for every day personal, home and office use. They have both been diagnosed, and are in treatment by environmental health specialist doctors, for what is known as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) or Environmental Illness (EI).
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Love in a blue moon
Posted on Dec 28, 2009 by Susie Collins in Blog, Guest Bloggers, Healthy Living, MCS
On Thursday, I will wed under the full blue moon.
Post by guest blogger Jacki.
Here is our story:
At around 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 31, JB and I will be married by my friend Coleen, an organic non fu fu great lady friend. She got her license to perform weddings in March of this year just for me, knowing I could not go into a public building or church setting. She is so excited that she will now be able to use her license.
My sister Laurie will be my witness. She is just starting to learn to be fu fu free. She loves using vinegar and baking soda on her clothes and Dr Bronners on her skin, and coconut oil on her food and body. She has come a long way, baby. Out of three sisters, she is the only one that has “made adjustments to her life” to accommodate my Multiple Chemical Sensitivity and to live a healthier lifestyle herself. She loves the change.
Laurie is now noticing dryer sheets in the neighborhoods, and automatic air fresheners in public restrooms. It is cute ‘cause now she calls me “complaining” about toxic items people use. It makes me feel so much more connected with her. I am so lucky after 10 years she finally “gets it.” Now if only the other two sisters would.
Today, JB and I went to the city to get our marriage license. JB did all the work, went into the public building, 6th floor, and filled out all the paper work. I’d called and begged the licensing officials to let me sign the papers outside due to my MCS, but they didn’t seem very cooperative so I brought my big respirator mask with me.
Sitting in the car waiting for JB to call me up to the 6th floor, I was so pleasantly surprised to see him walking a woman out to the car, in a blizzard snow storm! She was kind enough and compassionate enough to come outside in the blizzard to let me sign all the paper work outside. I was willing to meet her at the door but she said the building is full of scented air fresheners and sanitizers.
She recognized my name and remembered me from the old neighborhood where she lived two doors down from my sister. She said she wanted to help me out and not get me ill, so she came out with JB in a blizzard and let me sign all the papers from the safety of our car. I had tears of joy and gratitude streaming down my face to think she was so compassionate to let me sign my marriage papers from my car instead of the 6th floor of a toxic public building… wow. There is such a thing as compassion and kindness left in this world, and JB and I witnessed it today.
So on Dec 31st, at around 7:30 p.m., at the very spot where we met, JB and I will wed under the full blue moon. Snow, rain, sleet, clouds, or a clear night, we will be in the woods in the fresh air, with the heavens above and the wild creatures as our witnesses. But mostly we will be in love’s light and God’s light to start the new year, the new decade, 2010, as one in unity
as Mr. and Mrs.
Fifty-two years old and I am a blushing bride-to-be, amazing.
This is the lesson:
To write your own happy story even when all the odds are against you and all the challenges seem too big to take.
To take a deep breath and believe that all things happen for a reason to learn, to grow, to become better and more spiritual and more simple and more LOVE.
To re-write your story to have a HAPPY ending.
To remember it is your story and you are the creature of the illusion; some things we cannot change, but we can always change our attitude and our eyes about how we see things.
To make sure your glass is always half full, and the sky mostly sunny.
And to be grateful for every breath on this earth, no matter what.
Love,
jj
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The Christmas Egg
Posted on Dec 26, 2009 by Susie Collins in Blog, Organic Gardening, Susie Collins, Susie's Secret Garden
This is Betty, our new hen, a Rhode Island Red I was given by my neighbor. This is her first egg she laid after coming to live with us (not actually on Christmas Day, it was a couple weeks ago, but I just couldn’t resist the play on words). We were all so excited! After a bit of a rocky start when she first arrived– she picked on my littlest bantie, chased all the wild birds out of the gardens, pooped all over everything (and so named Betty Poop), and would not go to bed at night in the coops– she’s now all settled in, getting along perfectly with everyone else, ignores all the wild birds, snuggles in at night right alongside the others on the roost, and now gives us an egg a day. She still poops gigantic poops all over everything, but we love Betty!
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My Solstice
Posted on Dec 21, 2009 by Susie Collins in Blog, Organic Gardening, Susie Collins, Susie's Secret Garden
Happy Solstice!
I spent Solstice evening in the garden, puttering around, taking photos and planting a bed of vegetables and flowers (you can see the seed packets on one of the slides). After the series of storms that blew through here over the weekend, the evening was calm and peaceful, barely a whisper of a breeze. The melodious laughing thrushes sang and sang from the bamboo. It was one of those perfect evenings in the gardens.
Find more photos like this on The Canary Report
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Welcome to The Canary Report!
The Canary Report is a blog and social network about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.
We compassionately bring you unfiltered and uncensored news and information you can trust directly from the source: people who have MCS. Dedicated to sharing, supporting, and inspiring with the Aloha Spirit, The Canary Report gives all canaries a voice. Come join us!
Aloha,
Susie Collins
Founder and Contributing Editor
Hilo, Hawaii
Let’s Connect on the Social Web
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The false promise of miracle cures for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
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A statement from Lourdes Salvador about recent ad hominem attacks on Facebook
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DIY: Skip the chemicals, get a buzz
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The naked truth about Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
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Perfume blogger dismisses concerns from a member of our community
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International Multiple Chemical Sensitivity awareness project is launched
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