Tag: chemicals

5 Truly Terrifying Things About Halloween

Posted on by robbie

Want to hear something really scary? According to the National Retail Federation, the average American plans to spend about $77 this Halloween — that’s an increase from $75.03 last year. In fact, the total spending on Halloween items this year will reach $7.4 billion. This insane amount of money is really great for the costume and decorations industry, but the sheer amount of waste it generates is terrible for the environment.
We know many of you are probably really looking forward to the haunted houses, parties and indulging your sweet tooth during this holiday favorite. However, before you bob for your first apple, there are a few things you might want to know first.

1. Costumes

Thanks to the Flammable Fabrics Act, most packaged Halloween costumes are made with (cheap, mass produced) flame-resistant fabrics that won’t catch fire or can be extinguished quickly. Of course, this is a good idea for children (or adults) who run around near candlelit Jack-o-lanterns in billowing capes or flowing garments. However, as Healthy Child Editorial Director Alexandra Zissu writes in a blog post, “growing evidence links flame retardants with adverse health effects, including hormone disruption, reproductive issues and neurological development concerns. Some of these chemicals have been banned or limited in the U.S. and other countries due to health concerns.” You might be thinking that because you’re only wearing it for one night, you won’t be negatively affected. However, since most costumes end up in the bottom of closets before they get sent to the landfill, these toxic chemicals end up leaching out into the environment.
The green alternative: Look for “PVC-free” or “phthalate free” costumes (the ones that don’t smell like a shower curtain). You might not win any costume contests, but consider swapping old ones with a pal, rummaging through vintage or thrift stores for items or scrounging your closet. You’d be surprised with how many clever costumes can be put together with simple items found in your home.

2. Makeup and face paint

A 2009 report from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found that 10 out of 10 (!) children’s face paints contained low levels of lead — ranging from 0.05 to 0.65 parts per million (no level of lead is good for you). Some paints might also contain nickel, cobalt and chromium, which can cause skin issues such as sensitization and contact dermatitis. The scariest part is that these chemicals were not even listed on the ingredient labels, even though they claimed to be “hypoallergenic” and “FDA compliant,” the report found.
The green alternative: The Sierra Club has a list of eco-friendly cosmetics as well as fake skin and face paint recipes made with natural food coloring and fruit or vegetable-based dyes.

3. Pumpkins

Millions of pounds of these Halloween icons turn up in the dump each year after they are carved up for a single evening. That’s just a huge waste — pumpkins are food and people are starving. A pumpkin also takes a huge amount of resources, energy and fertilizers to grow before it makes its way to your porch. According to ThinkProgress, pumpkin farmers in California (the second largest second-largest pumpkin producer in U.S. behind Illinois) are upping the price of pumpkins by 15 percent due to the devastating drought increasing costs of growing.
The green alternative: Compost it, slice up the flesh for soup or muffins, bake the seeds or blend them into a facial exfoliant instead of throwing it away. Pumpkins can also have a second life as fuel. There are facilities around the country, such as the East Bay Municipal Utility District in Oakland, Calif., that turn discarded pumpkins and other food waste into renewable electricity.

4. Decorations

Just like costumes, Halloween decorations are usually made of cheap, non-recyclable plastics that clog up landfills after use. Also, many decorative candles and the tea lights that are placed inside pumpkins contain petroleum-based paraffin that release out harmful chemicals when lit.
The green alternative: DIY decorations, or go outdoors and find pine cones, leaves and twigs (a fun family activity). As for candles, find ones made of soy or beeswax. For parties, use actual cups, plates and silverware instead of the disposable stuff. Even if you can’t be bothered with washing dishes, there’s compostable stuff that’s available. And please recycle those bottles and cans. The simple idea is this: the less you buy, the better.

5. Candy

If you care about rhinos, tigers or orangutans, then you want to shop smart for candy. Many Halloween treats (as well as other foods and products) are made with unsustainable palm oil, which is cheap to ship and produce but is absolutely no good for the planet. Besides emitting tons of greenhouse gases, the burning of forests for palm oil plantations are a leading cause of deforestation, air pollution and destruction of wildlife and natural habitats in southeast Asia.
The green alternative: Before you shop, check out this list from the El Paso Zoo of palm oil-free candy (or you can download their app). Also, if you can, choose treats that don’t come in excessive packaging. Better yet, make your own sweets.
DON’T MISS: 5 Very Simple, Practical Things You Can Do to Curb Climate Change

You’ll Never Believe What Those Popular Silicon Bracelets Can Do

Posted on by robbie

Ever since the iconic yellow Livestrong wristbands were introduced as a fundraising item in 2004 —one of the trendiest fashion fads of the past decade — these little silicon bracelets have become ubiquitous with cause marketing. Today, they come in every color of the rainbow, representing hundreds or even thousands of causes. You can even custom-order your own.
But now, researchers have found that these little rings of plastic hold another important purpose. They can detect air pollutants and chemicals that the wearer is exposed to every day. How’s that for awareness?
Researchers from Oregon State University provided 30 volunteers with sanitized, slightly modified silicon bracelets and asked them to wear the accessories for 30 days. At the end of the period, the scientists tested the bracelets for more than 1,200 chemical compounds. The results were shocking. Not only were the wristbands able to detect several dozen pollutants — 49 to be exact — such as pesticides, flame-retardants and pet flea medications, but they also absorbed common compounds, such as caffeine and nicotine. Because silicon is a porous material, it acts similarly to human cells. Once the chemicals come in contact with the wristband — or at large, human cells — they are essentially locked in. “We were surprised at the breadth of chemicals,” Kim Anderson, professor, chemist, and senior author of the study, which was published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, told Environmental Health News. “There was definitely some caffeine on mine!”
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Given the results of this initial study, these silicon bracelets may allow scientists to finally be able to quantify tens of thousands of chemicals and pollutants that humans are exposed to on a regular basis, a scientific experiment that has previously been impossible. “This study offers some real possibilities to address the weak link in epidemiological studies — which is the exposure science,” said Ted Schettler, science director at the Science and Environmental Health Network. “[These bracelets] can identify both chemicals and mixtures, and this could easily be applied to larger groups to see which compounds are showing up most commonly.”
To test this, the researchers asked eight roofers to wear the silicon bands for eight hours. At the end of the day, they tested the bracelets specifically for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) — chemicals in roofing tar that are thought to cause severe health effects, such as cancer and reproductive problems, after years of exposure. Not surprisingly, all the roofers’ wristbands tested positive for PAHs, as well as 12 other compounds that are on a federal priority list of harmful pollutants. And this after just eight hours of wearing.
While you won’t be able to purchase your own chemical-monitoring bracelets quite yet (more research needs to be done on which pollutants show up and which don’t), the idea that a simple, not to mention cheap, silicon band can track the chemicals we’re exposed to is a major breakthrough for scientists who are working in potentially harmful environments.
Sounds like this fashion trend has a lot of life left in it, after all.
ALSO: How Used Cooking Oil Can Have an Extraordinary Second Life