Personal care products found to increase diabetes risk by 60 percent in women

Tuesday, July 31, 2012 by: John Phillip

(NaturalNews) Would you continue to liberally apply personal care products including moisturizers, nail polishes, soaps, hair sprays and perfumes if you knew that your risk of developing diabetes was dramatically increased? Many healthy-minded individuals are aware of endocrine-disrupting synthetic chemicals known as phthalates that are commonly found in plastic toys, electronics and adhesives, but few understand how these dangerous compounds can leach through our skin from the application of a host of common sprays, polishes and cosmetics.

A team of researchers from the Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) has published the result of their work assessing the health dangers of phthalates in the journal, Environmental Health Perspectives. In the past, scientists have closely monitored how the ingestion of the petrochemical, BPH disrupts metabolic homeostasis to increase risk of digestive disorders and certain lines of cancer. Less research has been published to document how the chemicals in common household products pass through our skin and nails to increase risk of cancer and diabetes.

To conduct the study, researchers analyzed urinary concentrations of phthalates in 2,350 women who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. They found that women with higher levels of phthalates in their urine were much more likely to have diabetes. Specifically, it was determined that women who had the highest levels of the chemicals mono-benzyl phthalate and mono-isobutyl phthalate had almost twice the risk of diabetes as compared to women with the lowest levels of those chemicals.

Synthetically produced personal care products disrupt homeostasis to promote metabolic dysfunction

The most startling finding in this research was that women with higher than average urine levels of mono-3-carboxypropyl phthalates (commonly found in soaps, cosmetics and skin care products) had approximately a 60 percent increased risk of diabetes. Women with moderately high levels of the chemicals mono-n-butyl phthalate and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (primarily from the application of hair spray and gas-propelled products) had approximately a 70 percent increased risk of diabetes.
The study leader, Dr.Tamarra James-Todd concluded "This is an important first step in exploring the connection between phthalates and diabetes... we know that in addition to being present in personal care products, phthalates also exist in certain types of medical devices and medication that is used to treat diabetes and this could also explain the higher level of phthalates in diabetic women."

We are under constant assault from a barrage of synthetic chemical compounds that have infiltrated many common household products and personal care items that are 'generally regarded as safe' by regulating authorities. This research only scratches the surface in an attempt to uncover the many health concerns surrounding many seemingly safe products that millions use every day. Always select products manufactured using natural ingredients and read product labels to avoid chemicals that are shown to dramatically increase risk of metabolic disorders and chronic illness.

Sources for this article include:
http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.1104717
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120713083103.htm
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/247852.php

About the author:
John Phillip is a Health Researcher and Author who writes regularly on the cutting edge use of diet, lifestyle modifications and targeted supplementation to enhance and improve the quality and length of life. John is the author of 'Your Healthy Weight Loss Plan', a comprehensive EBook explaining how to use Diet, Exercise, Mind and Targeted Supplementation to achieve your weight loss goal.  Visit My Optimal Health Resource to continue reading the latest health news updates, and to download your Free 48 page copy of 'Your Healthy Weight Loss Plan'.

Did You Have ANY Idea this Happens at Fast Food Restaurants You Eat At?

Oh my gosh!  This is really disgusting but it is important to post and spread the word.  Even though I am very health conscious about ingredients and what I put on my skin and very alternative in health care, I hate to admit that years ago I developed an addiction for fast food drive-ins.  I do believe that they are putting something in the food to make people addicted.  It is fast and easy and when you are super busy it can become a habit very easily.  For some time, I feel like a slightly overweight person dying of "malnutrition".   If this doesn't cure my fast food addiction, I guess nothing will!  The key for me is planning meals so I know exactly what to buy at the grocery store and have a plan of what I am going to eat each day.  Because of our busy lifes, we never know from day to day what we are going to eat, then no food in the house, busy all the time and suddenly having low blood sugar and needing food fast.   

By Dr. Mercola

Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at fast food restaurants? Fast-food insiders (i.e. former employees) reveal a slew of nasty secrets that may make you think twice about ever eating in one of these restaurants again …

Black Oil, Blood and “Melted” Chicken

The featured article has quite a few doozies, such as a former worker from Burger King who describes the restaurant’s oil rotation policy:¹

"Here is how the oil rotation went. You had four vats of oil that you cooked fries in. And boy did you cook fries. Tons of them. After about 2 days worth, the oil got too dark for fries. So we switched it over to the ones for chicken. Since it was darker, it was ok.
Then that goes on for a week. After a week of massive frying. The oil is black as motor oil. At that point, it's switched to the Fish Filet vat. That's the only thing you cook in that vat."

Another former worker, this one from McDonald’s, recalled what happened when a bag of chicken nuggets was left out on the counter for too long:

"They melted. Into a pool of liquid. I never understood why. But they were completely indiscernible as being the nuggets I once knew."

Other unsavory confessions revealed by these fast-food whistleblowers include:

• Large chunks of mold in ice-cream machines and ice dispensers (which are rarely cleaned)
• A worker continuing to handle food with an open, bleeding wound on her hand
• “Recycling” overcooked burgers into chili, or stripping chicken patties of their breading and passing it off as chicken salad

Startling discoveries like these are all too common when it comes to fast-food … it was several years back when 12-year-old middle schooler Jasmine Roberts won the science fair at her school when she discovered that the ice used in the drinks of fast food restaurants had more bacteria than the toilet water. And in 2010, nearly half of soda fountains at fast food restaurants tested were found to contain coliform (bacteria that grows in feces) while 11 percent also contained E. coli!²

And Then There’s the Food …

Even under the best circumstances, fast-food restaurants fail when it comes to your health.

Eating the food at nearly every fast food chain (except maybe Chipotle and a few other restaurants committed to sustainable, organic suppliers) means you are likely consuming feedlot animal meat – flesh that comes from animals raised in crowded unsanitary conditions, fed massive doses of antibiotics and unnatural "frankenfeed" full of GM crops and some other truly disturbing ingredients.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all the decidedly unhealthy practices that go on at a CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation). The problem begins at the massive CAFOs where the beef, chicken or pigs are fed genetically modified corn and soybeans and excessive grains in general (which are not the natural diet of these animals), along with the following almost unbelievable feed ingredients:

• Plastics -- for the many animals whose digestive systems need roughage to pass food through them, the CAFOs now use plastic pellets.
• Meat from members of the same species -- CAFOs turn farm animals into cannibals. Scientific research has linked this practice to the spread of both mad cow disease and avian bird flu.
• Manure and animal feces-- this can include cattle manure, swine waste, and poultry waste. It also includes wood, sand, rocks, dirt, sawdust and other non-food substances.
• Roxarsone -- more commonly known as arsenic, which until last year was put into chicken and pig feed to control intestinal parasites that might cause them to eat less and grow slower. Chicken litter (containing the arsenic that passes through the birds) is also collected from chicken CAFOs and fed to feedlot cattle, for some apparent reason that defies common sense.
• Animal byproducts -- categorized as "animal protein products," this includes rendered feathers, hair, skin, hooves, blood, internal organs, intestines, beaks and bones, dead horses, euthanized cats and dogs, and road kill.

Most Fast Food is a Mixture of Chemicals, Sugar, Flavoring and Salt …

From there, fast food is often nothing more than a slew of chemicals, sugar, high fructose corn syrup and salt … for instance, only about half of a Chicken McNugget is actual chicken. The rest is a mix of corn-derived fillers and additives (most likely genetically modified), along with a slew of synthetic chemicals, including:

• Dimethyl polysiloxane, a type of silicone with anti-foaming properties used in cosmetics and a variety of other goods like Silly Putty
• Tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), a petroleum-based product with antioxidant properties

Even the seemingly healthy menu items are loaded with surprising additives like preservatives and inordinate amounts of sugar (in a salad, no less!). A burger or a chicken sandwich from a fast-food restaurant is not equal, nutritionally, to the equivalent you would make at home … nearly always the fast-food version will contain a staggering variety of additives, flavoring, coloring, and other chemicals that give it that “fast-food” flavor … For instance, even the hamburger buns used at McDonald’s, which you may think would be relatively “safe,” allegedly contain:³

• Calcium sulfate (aka Plaster of Paris) and calcium carbonate (limestone; antacid medication)
• High fructose corn syrup
• Ammonium chloride (Causes irritation to the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea)
• Calcium propionate (Preservative) and Sodium propionate (Mold inhibitor)
• Artificial flavors

Studies have shown that eating fast food just twice a week DOUBLES your risk of developing insulin resistance and can make you gain 10 pounds, compared to eating it just once a week, for example.⁴ Insulin resistance, as I've discussed on many occasions, is one of THE primary driving factors behind most of the diseases many currently struggle with, from diabetes to cancer and heart disease...

Three Tips for Breaking Free of the Fast-Food Trap

There is just no way around it -- if you want your family to be healthy, someone in your household, or someone you pay, must invest some time in the kitchen preparing your food from scratch, using fresh, whole ingredients. Avoiding processed, fast food requires a change in mindset, which is not always an easy task. It CAN be done, however. Rather than looking at fast foods as a convenience that tastes good or saves money, try thinking of it as:

• Extra calories that will harm your body
• A toxic concoction of synthetic chemicals and artificial flavors that will lead to disease
• A waste of your money
• Likely to lead to increased health care bills for you and your family
• Not something to give to children, whose bodies are still developing and in great need of nutrients

Your goal should be to strive for 90 percent non-processed, whole food. Not only will you enjoy the health benefits—especially if you buy mostly organic—but you'll also get the satisfaction of knowing exactly what you're putting into your body, and that in and of itself can be a great feeling. The following three tips can make it easier to eat well without resorting to fast food:

• Identify someone to prepare meals. Someone has to invest time in the kitchen to prepare your meals, or else you will succumb to costly and unhealthy fast food and convenience foods.
• Become resourceful: This is an area where your grandmother can be a wealth of information, as how to use up every morsel of food and stretch out a good meal was common knowledge to generations past. Seek to get back to the basics of cooking -- using the bones from a roast chicken to make stock for a pot of soup, extending a Sunday roast to use for weekday dinners, learning how to make hearty stews from inexpensive cuts of meat, using up leftovers and so on.
• Plan your meals: If you fail to plan you are planning to fail. This is essential, as you will need to be prepared for mealtimes in advance to be successful. Ideally this will involve scouting out your local farmer's markets for in-season produce that is priced to sell, and planning your meals accordingly. But, you can also use this same premise with supermarket sales or, even better, produce from your own vegetable garden.

You can generally plan a week of meals at a time, make sure you have all ingredients necessary on hand, and then do any prep work you can ahead of time so that dinner is easy to prepare if you're short on time in the evening.

References:

---

• ¹ Shine from Yahoo! July 9, 2012
• ² International Journal of Food Microbiology January 31, 2010, Volume 137, Issue 1, Pages 61–66
• ³ McDonald’s Ingredient Listing
• ⁴ Lancet. 2005 Jan 1-7;365(9453):36-42.

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