Health updates

The following is information regarding antibacterial cleaners, starving Americans, and ethanol and hunger.

Antibacterial hand cleansers

A new study published on the Environmental Science & Technology Research Web site found that triclosan, a widely used ingredient in antibacterial hand sterilization products, combines with chlorine in tap water to make chloroform, a toxic chemical and a probable carcinogen.

Research found that people using these products would be exposed to chloroform levels 40 percent higher than those found in tap water. Studies have shown that the overuse of antibacterial soaps produces “super bacteria” that are able to survive exposure to antibacterial products.

Starving by choice

More than two-thirds of Americans are starving themselves of necessary nutrients, indicates a new study published recently in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

The study, conducted by Johns Hopkins University on 8,900 U.S. citizens over the course of four years, found that less than a third of study participants ate the daily recommended servings of fruits and vegetables, even when less nutritious foods like french fries were counted among vegetable servings.

Feed the hungry at the gas pump

Automakers roughly doubled the fuel economy of cars between the 1970s and the late 1980s, but over the past 20 years, automakers have added more than 800 pounds to the weight of the average vehicle and nearly doubled the horsepower, while fuel economy has declined.

The grain required to fill a 25-gallon gas tank with ethanol would feed one person for a year. Every time you fill your tank, think about biking, walking, using mass transit or just relaxing at home. Live simply so that others may live.

Next year, 30 percent of U.S. corn will be used for ethanol. Instead, the same amount of fuel could be saved by increasing average fuel efficiency by just three miles per gallon.

Resource: www.organicconsumers.org.

Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 26, Number 4, August/September 2007.