Madison Area Lyme Support Group

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will ban the sale of flea and tick collars containing a chemical linked to neurological damage in children, the agency announced this week.

The collars, which contain the chemical tetrachlorvinphos (TCVP) make up more than half of flea and tick collars sold in the U.S., according to the EPA. They are much cheaper than many name-brand collars and are largely aimed at low-income pet owners.

Tetrachlorvinphos, often shortened as TCVP, is a type of organophosphate chemical, which were originally developed as nerve agents in World War II.  (See link for article)

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https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/covid-vaccine-miralax-polyethylene-glycol

The Pediatric Perils of PEG: From MiraLAX to COVID Shots, FDA and CDC Ignore Safety Signals

Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned that some ultrasound contrast agents contain polyethylene glycol (PEG) and therefore shouldn’t be administered to patients with known or suspected allergies to PEG — but there are no similar warnings for adults or children who get PEG-containing COVID-19 shots or MiraLAX, an over-the-counter laxative.

• the same day the CDC’s crooked vaccine advisory committee added COVID-19 shots to the Child and Adolescent Immunization Schedule  Indonesia’s Ministry of Health banned the sale and prescription of pediatric cough syrups and other liquid medications.
  • The reason? The ministry linked the cough syrups to kidney injuries that recently killed nearly 100 Indonesian children (government analysis detected three hazardous contaminants: ethylene glycol (EG), diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol butyl ether or antifreeze) and nearly 70 children in The Gambia in West Africa, which could be the tip of a much larger iceberg.
    
• Due to the deaths, the World Health Organization issued a medical product alert for four brands of cough syrup manufactured in India and imported into The Gambia through a U.S. company — warning of the products’ possibly global distribution and calling for the substandard products’ removal from circulation.
• the COVID-19 shots promoted by the CDC and the syrups prohibited by the Indonesian ministry both contain the chemical polyethylene glycol (PEG)
• Before EUA for the gene-therapy shots was granted, Children’s Health Defense (CHD) put the FDA on notice about PEG’s life-threatening anaphylactic potential — and sure enough, anaphylaxis was among the very first adverse events reported.
• The FDA is cavalier about anaphylaxis, PEG, and the COVID shots.
• The FDA is similarly cavalier about laxatives containing a form of PEG called PEG 3350 which has caused dramatic neuropsychiatric symptoms in children, ranging from seizures to psychosis. 
  • MiraLAX is one such laxative that I posted about it previously which has caused behavior issues including violent episodes in children.
• A 2012 citizen petition forced the NIH to assess PEG safety in children but the study, in collaboration with the FDA, has gone nowhere even though results were pledged to be available within a year.  Evidently they are still recruiting and now the completion date isn’t until 2024.
• Predictably, manufacturing companies describe PEG as “harmless,” but the manufacturing process is known to produce“degradation products” or “impurities” — that are not harmless, and compounds are in thousands of products, including drugs, cosmetics, healthcare screening products and pesticides.
  • Manufacturers praise PEGylation, a specific process of attaching PEG to biomedical molecules in order to impede the kidney’s attempts to clear drugs, forcing the body to hang onto them longer for a “half-life extension.”
    • An example of this process is in the mRNA gene therapy shots with the inclusion of PEGylated fats or lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) — designed to support “prolonged circulation”.  Researchers admitted that without the PEG-coated lipid nanoparticles, “COVID-19 mRNA vaccines would not exist,” and enthused that the LNPs “have the ability to alter the course of history.”
    • Ignored is the fact that a study shows a large portion of the population is sensitized to PEG making them susceptible to hypersensitivity reactions.  Also ignored is the potential for adverse immune reactions “entailing severe allergic symptoms with occasionally fatal anaphylaxis.”  Data is now reflecting this including a study showing anaphylactic reactions in three patients undergoing colonoscopy which contains PEG-containing bowel-cleansing agents.  All three got the Moderna shot in the previous 12-18 days and the researchers admitted a likely causal relationship, warning that healthcare workers should be aware of PEG allergies after COVID shots.
    • The FDA, due to 11 cases of anaphylaxis and two deaths in patients with known PEG allergies, has already warned that some ultrasound contrast agents contain PEG “and should not be administered in those with known or suspected allergies.”
• The NIH and FDA have conceded EG and DEG are neurotoxic for children, although the FDA allows trace amounts (0.2% total by weight) of both in PEG-containing medications.  A 2011 study concluded that DEG contamination is an inevitable outcome of some manufacturing processes.
• A retired pathologist, the first to describe poisoning by PEG in 1982, found that a severely disrupted skin barrier allowed PEG to be absorbed directly into the body.  He and many parents believe something similar probably happens in children with a damaged intestinal barrier who ingest PEG.  His studies on rabbits showed PEG’s metabolites include toxic aldehydes, demonstrating PEG’s potential damaging effects on the kidneys due to organ injury, pain and inflammation.

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https://anh-usa.org/pfas-found-in-tampons/

More disturbing evidence of the presence of toxic “forever” chemicals in common consumer products. Action Alert!

A new report has found that five of 23 tampon products tested positive for the presence of PFAS “forever” chemicals, including two brands labeled “organic.” This represents another route of exposure to these dangerous chemicals that seem to be ubiquitous in our environment and consumer products. How long will the EPA sit by idly and watch while Americans continue to be exposed to these dangerous chemicals?

The report, issued jointly by Mamavation and Environmental Health News, found that 22 percent of the samples tested positive for the presence of organic fluorine, an indicator of the presence of PFAS. Levels of PFAS varied from 19 parts per million (ppm) to 28 ppm. The products that tested positive for organic fluorine were:

• Maxim Hygiene Organic Cotton Cardboard Applicator Tampons — 28 ppm organic fluorine
• OrganYc Complete Protection Tampons (made with organic cotton) — 24 ppm organic fluorine
• Playtex SPORT Regular & Super Tampons — 19 ppm organic fluorine
• Tampax Cardboard Applicator Unscented Tampons — 23 ppm organic fluorine
• Up & Up (Target Brand) Regular Tampons — 23 ppm organic fluorine

As we noted in our coverage of hair dyes, the organic certification process is a USDA program for agricultural products. Its use on consumer products like tampons is meaningless, though individual ingredients like cotton can be organic. It appears the use of organic cotton in tampons is not a guarantee that PFAS are avoided.

There were products using organic cotton that did not test positive for organic fluorine:

• Honey Pot Organically Grown Tampons
• Live Better (CVS) Organic Cotton Tampons regular
• Lola Super Tampons Made with 100% organic cotton
• o.b. Organic 100% Organic cotton
• OI Girl Organic Regular Tampons
• My Box Shop 32 Organic Tampons
• Natracare Organic Tampons with applicator
• Seventh Generation Organic Cotton Tampons
• TOP Organic Cotton Tampons with plant-based compact applicator
• Viv for your V Organic Cotton Tampons with Plant-based applicator

Organic cotton products are less likely to be contaminated with other chemicals like glyphosate and other toxic pesticides.

PFAS aren’t the only cause for concern in tampons and other feminine hygiene products. We previously reported on studies showing that volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and phthalates contaminate these products. Tampons and other feminine care products are often made from cotton, which is typically genetically engineered and soaked in pesticides, or rayon, which is made from wood pulp and then bleached. The highly permeable nature of the vaginal wall means that these toxins are likely getting absorbed with each use over a prolonged period of time.

And of course, there are many other ways in which we are exposed to PFAS. We’ve reported on PFAS being found in food packages, drinking water, vegetables, honey, dairy, prescription drugs, dental floss, and a huge swath of consumer products (either added intentionally to make products grease or water resistant, or accidentally through the manufacturing process).

(See link for article and to write Congress and EPA telling them to ban PFAS chemicals)

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If you do not know what PFAS chemicals are, they are persistent and hormone-disrupting substances that break down slowly and have been found in the blood of people and animals globally as well as in the water, air, fish, and soil.

Current peer-reviewed scientific studies have shown that exposure to certain levels of PFAS may lead to:

• Reproductive effects such as decreased fertility or increased high blood pressure in pregnant women.
• Developmental effects or delays in children, including low birth weight, accelerated puberty, bone variations, or behavioral changes.
• Increased risk of some cancers, including prostate, kidney, and testicular cancers.
• Reduced ability of the body’s immune system to fight infections, including reduced vaccine response.
• Interference with the body’s natural hormones.
• Increased cholesterol levels and/or risk of obesity.

This article states that 65% of “period underwear” tested are likely contaminated with PFAS chemicals as well.

If you are unfamiliar with menstrual cups, I highly recommend you check them out.  I was in my 40’s before I found out about these clever, reusable, safe cups that eliminate the need for all the paper, plastic, and other menstrual products, saving you money in the end.