Not My Breasts

Fix our broken chemical system AND save health care costs AND reduce human suffering

 
Our friends at Safer Chemicals Healthy Families released a report today that's another nail in the coffin
of the antiquated law that governs our broken chemical management system, the Toxic Substances Control Act, or TSCA. Check out the Breast Cancer Fund's statement: 

Statement in Support of The Health Case for Reforming the Toxic Substances Control Act

The Safer Chemicals Healthy Families campaign, of which the Breast Cancer Fund is a member, released a report today:  The Health Case for Reforming the Toxic Substances Control Act. This report affirms that a growing body of scientific evidence links chemical exposure to a wide range of serious diseases and draws attention to the urgent need to reform how chemicals are managed in the United States. It points to the fact that, by reducing exposure to toxic chemicals, we will reduce disease incidence and the related health care costs.

This analysis supports the findings of the Breast Cancer Fund’s State of the Evidence: The Connection Between Breast Cancer and the Environment – a comprehensive report that aggregates the scientific evidence linking chemicals and radiation to increased risk of breast cancer and outlines research and public policy changes needed to reduce breast cancer risk.

The Breast Cancer Fund joins Safer Chemicals Healthy Families in calling for the overhaul of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the federal law governing chemical safety which has never been significantly amended since its adoption in 1976. By passing legislation to bring the toxics law into the 21st century, we will not only reduce disease incidence and health care costs, we will also achieve unquantifiable “human savings,” as we will prevent countless families from having to confront the suffering and death of loved ones.

As science confirms the links between chemicals and disease, it becomes an ethical imperative that we fix our broken chemical management system, which will help control skyrocketing health care costs and reduce human suffering.

Eight going on eighteen (Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families blog, 1/8/2010)

Is early puberty really cause for concern? Yep, it's a risk factor for breast cancer. And, like breast cancer, it may be triggered in part by hormone-disrupting chemicals in our everyday environment. If you have a daughter, today's blog post from the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition (of which the Breast Cancer Fund is a part) is a must-read:

A few years ago, I noticed that my beautiful, vivacious seven-year-old daughter had breasts. Wasn't this a little young? She was into Harry Potter, rainbow sherbet and puppies — not bras and pads. (Read complete post.)

For more information, access our free publication, The Falling Age of Puberty.

Bill sponsor sees support for BPA ban (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 1/6/2010)

Could Wisconsin become the latest state to ban BPA from baby bottles and sippy cups? The bill's sponsor thinks so, as reported yesterday:

The sponsor of a state bill to ban bisphenol A in baby bottles and sippy cups said Wednesday she is confident there is enough support to institute such a ban in Wisconsin.

State Sen. Julie Lassa (D-Stevens Point) said a Senate committee vote on the matter could come in the next few weeks. (Read complete article.)

Wisconsin is one of dozens of states, counties and cities nationwide that have considered laws to limit human exposure to this estrogenic chemical. Alongside these efforts, the Breast Cancer Fund is working on a proposal now in Congress that would enact a nationwide ban on BPA in food and beverage containers. So no matter where you live in the U.S., you can voice your support for protection from BPA.

Lead, chemicals found in toys despite stricter law (Washington Post, 11/25/09)

It's been nine months since a federal toy safety law took effect, but toxic toys are still available at major U.S. retailers, according to product tests released today by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group and reported in the Washington Post:

Despite a new law that bans six chemicals from children's products and lowers the lead limit for them, a public interest group has found a number of toys at major retailers that contain the chemicals and illegal amounts of lead.... [W]hile many manufacturers and retailers are complying with the new law, a handful are not, and it is hard for consumers to tell the difference. (Read complete article)

The Breast Cancer Fund supported an amendment to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act that banned six phthalates from toys and other plastic products for kids. Phthalates are chemicals that make plastic soft and pliable, but they're also linked to early puberty - a breast cancer risk factor. The law also bans lead in toys.

The law is good, but it requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to enforce it. We'll continue to push for the safety protections Congress intended.

In the meantime, here are a few tips for safe, phthalate-free holiday toy shopping:

• Soft plastic toys that young children might put in their mouths may contain phthalates unless they are marked "phthalate-free," "PVC-free" or "EU compliant," or they carry the CE mark (which indicates that the product is compliant with European Union regulations and therefore should be phthalate-free).
• Both teethers and pacifiers sold in the United States are supposed to be phthalate-free already, though parents should purchase these items from reputable retailers.
• Recycling codes (if toys have them) may help you determine if the items are made with PVC, which often contains phthalates. PVC plastics are marked #3. Better choices are codes #1, #2 or #5. The Breast Cancer Fund recommends that people also avoid plastics marked #6 (styrene) and #7 ("other," but often BPA-based).
• To be safe, we recommend that parents discard soft plastic toys and childcare articles that do not fall into one of the exceptions listed above. When purchasing new items, look for phthalate-free toys and make sure retailers know phthalate-free merchandise is important to you.

Join the million baby crawl

The babies are coming to D.C. Actually, they're virtual babies, and you can send one to Congress, too.

This spin on the traditional petition is organized by the Safer Chemicals Healthy Families coalition (the Breast Cancer Fund is a member) and Seventh Generation. Together, we're hoping to send a message to Congress that American families need better, more protective laws when it comes to deciding whether chemicals are safe or not.

Learn more and join the million baby crawl.

Weekly roundup: Tips for breast cancer prevention

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Breast Cancer Fund is putting our own spin on the observance by posting a prevention tip each weekday on our Facebook page, courtesy of Dr. Janet Gray and the Daily Green. They're all designed to reduce your family's exposure to toxic chemicals and radiation that increase breast cancer risk.

In case you missed them, we'll be reposting these tips each Friday here on our blog. So, welcome to our first roundup (with a bonus tip from last Friday):

1. Choose a bisphenol A (BPA)-free water or baby bottle.
2. Drink safe water (surprise, it doesn't come in a plastic bottle).
3. Choose truly "microwave-safe" containers -- no plastic containers or plastic wrap.
4. Avoid canned food -- fresh or frozen taste better, anyway.
5. Check your old foam furniture. Old foam mattresses and furniture can contain PBDEs, flame retardants that may be a breast cancer risk factor.
6. Use nontoxic cleaning supplies. Bonus: no terrible chemical smell.

If you sign on as a fan of the Breast Cancer Fund on Facebook, upcoming tips will show up in your feed every day.

Is prevention a priority for you? Ask your elected officials in Washington to make it a national priority, too: Send them our Prevention Platform.

Victory is sweet. Protecting kids from toxic phthalates is sweeter.

Months ago when the staff of the Breast Cancer Fund decided to launch a national campaign to secure passage of a federal ban on phthalates in kids' toys, lots of folks told us flat-out we were dreamers. Last week our dreams—and the dreams of a growing environmental health movement—came true. Congress passed (almost unanimously) the Consumer Product Safety Commission Reform Act, a massive toy safety bill that includes a first-ever federal ban on phthalates in toys. President Bush has indicated that he'll sign it.

Of course, this is significant because parents will no longer have to worry about their kids being exposed to these toxic chemicals, which have been linked to serious health problems including early puberty in girls, which is linked to breast cancer later in life. But there is a bigger story here.

With this vote, Congress took an important first step forward on what will be a long road toward reforming the way chemicals are regulated in the U.S. It's not that Congress is ahead of the curve: Washington, California and Vermont have already banned phthalates in toys, as have a dozen countries and the European Union. What's significant here is that federal policymakers are waking up to the reality that sweeping chemical policy reform is needed.

The other noteworthy—downright amazing—part of this victory is the movement behind it. The Breast Cancer Fund led a broad-based coalition of over 60 groups from around the country made up of moms, nurses, the faith community, health-affected groups, environmentalists, legislators and women's health advocates who organized press events, activated their constituencies and—in the process of doing so—helped make this victory possible.

And there were legislative champions: California State Assemblymember Fiona Ma, who introduced California legislation—co-sponsored by the Breast Cancer Fund and Environment California—that resulted in nation's first ban on phthalates in kids' toys; U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who authored the original Senate amendment on phthalates and was fierce in her support of the measure; Sen. Barbara Boxer, who led the Senate negotiations on the phthalate ban and tenaciously defended it throughout three long months of negotiation with the House; and Representatives Henry Waxman, Jan Schakowsky and Diana DeGette, who led the fight on the House side and who served as steadfast and tireless advocates for the ban among their colleagues.

This legislation is a victory for children's health and safety and a major blow to the chemical industry, which spent millions of dollars trying to defeat it. The coalition effort that convinced Congress to support the phthalates ban points to a growing movement calling for major chemical policy reform.

On behalf of the Breast Cancer Fund board and staff, I send out our deep gratitude to every parent, policymaker and public health advocate that helped make this remarkable success possible. We're not resting yet, but it's time to celebrate how far we've come together.

Congress Talks Phthalates

An important piece of legislation is moving through Congress that would ban toxic phthalates from children’s toys and childcare articles. Phthalates (pronounced “THA-lates”) are chemicals used in many soft, plastic toys like rubber ducks, teething rings and bath books that can leech out of these toys when children chew on them. Scientists have linked phthalates to early onset of puberty in girls (a risk factor for breast cancer) and birth defects in baby boys. Safe alternatives exist. So, it would seem like a no-brainer that Congress would pass this legislation, right?

We hope so.

Right now, a small, bi-partisan Congressional Conference Committee made up of members of the Senate and House is finalizing the legislation—known as the Consumer Product Safety bill. Their job is to reconcile the Senate version of the legislation—which includes a ban toxic phthalates from children’s toys and childcare articles—and the House version—which does not. The House members have a historic opportunity here to support their colleagues in the Senate and vote to include the phthalates ban and, in so doing, protect all kids from these dangerous chemicals.

Enacting this ban on phthalates in kids’ toys is far from a radical move. California and Washington State have already enacted the ban, as has the European Union and 14 other countries. So isn’t it time our U.S. Congress do the same? If you agree, tell them.

Industry influence exposed--finally

A front-page article in the Washington Post yesterday brought to light an alarming revelation: the FDA has relied on just two scientific studies, both funded by a chemical industry trade group, in declaring bisphenol A safe. The agency has ignored the more than 100 peer-reviewed, journal-published articles saying just the opposite: not only is BPA not conclusively safe, it is linked to increased rates of breast and prostate cancer, among other alarming diseases.

It's vindicating to see this in print, but it's been too long in coming. We've known that the FDA relied on industry studies for BPA safety data, as it does for other industries, including cosmetics. But far too many people for too long have blindly followed the FDA and industry party line on BPA, allowing additional years of unnecessary exposure to this dangerous chemical.

I'm not talking simply about individuals buying Nalgene water bottles or Gerber baby bottles; I'm talking about the opinion-makers in the media, regulators unwilling to take the first plunge and companies trying to maintain their brand images.

Rather than inspiring guilt and shopper's paralysis among parents, weekend athletes or fans of canned pasta, we're working to make sure government regulators do their jobs of protecting us all from toxic chemicals. The burden of proof of harm shouldn't be foisted on citizens, nor should advocates and scientists have to point out to the FDA that it's not looking at all the available evidence.

What Goes On Baby Goes In Baby, Too

On Monday, the respected medical journal Pediatrics published a study that could (should) change the way parents use and think about the lotions, powders and shampoos they rub on their babies.

The study showed a correlation between exposure to these typical personal care products and the levels of phthalates in the babies' urine. In other words, the babies who got the most lotion, powder and shampoo on their skin also had the highest levels of these toxic chemicals in their little bodies.

Phthalates, unfortunately for us and our kids, are not harmless. They've been linked to breast cancer, early puberty in girls, reduced testosterone levels, lowered sperm counts, genital defects in baby boys and testicular cancer.

Phthalates are often hidden in the ingredient "fragrance" because a loophole in U.S. law allows manufacturers to avoid disclosing the components of fragrance or perfume in products. The chemicals are also used to keep plastics soft and pliable--for use in products like baby toys and teethers, among other plastics.

In fact, phthalate exposure among kids is of such high concern that California recently banned them from toys intended for children 3 and younger (this bill was co-sponsored by the Breast Cancer Fund and Environment California in 2007), Congress has introduced a similar bill (the Children's Chemical Risk Reduction Act of 2007) and the state of Washington is considering a broader ban that would include phthalates, lead and cadmium in toys as well as personal care products for kids 12 and under.

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, of which the Breast Cancer Fund is a part, expressed concern for both babies and women of childbearing age--baby's first environment. But this groundbreaking study proves what we already knew: what goes on our skin goes in our bodies. With that in mind, it's time we closed the loopholes on cosmetic safety in the U.S.