Environmental:
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Health: |
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The typical American household is the number one violator of chemical waste regulations per capita. (Environmental Protection Agency (EPA))
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- Over 150 chemicals found in the average home have been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological abnormalities. (Consumer Product Safety Commission)
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- Nationwide more than 32 million pounds of household cleaning products are poured down the drain each day. Many of these products contain toxic substances that are not adequately processed by sewage treatment plants and septic systems. (Maryland Cooperative Extension)
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- The U.S. government has not conducted even basic toxicity testing for about 75 percent of the 15,000 high volume chemicals in commercial use. More than 90 percent of these high volume chemicals have not been tested for health effects on children. (Source: Children's Health Environmental Coalition)
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- Chemicals in household cleaners break down slowly in the ecosystem and can lead to harmful algae blooms and accumulation of toxins in the fatty tissues of fish and wildlife. (Clean and Green, Bond and Dadd)
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- 50% of all illnesses are caused by or aggravated by polluted indoor air. (American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology)
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- The average American home contains 3-10 gallons of hazardous materials. (Children's Health Environmental Coalition)
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- Approximately 15% of the American population suffers from chemical sensitivity. Researchers have traced this proliferation to synthetic chemicals in consumer products and furnishings. (National Academy of Sciences)
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- According to a five year EPA study, the air in American homes has chemical contamination levels 70 times greater than outdoor air.
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- Women who work at home have a 55% greater chance of developing cancer than women who spend the majority of their time outside of the home. (Toronto Indoor Air Commission)
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- A study by the New York Poison Control Center found that 85 percent of product warning labels they studied were inadequate.
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- In 1999, 2.1 million human poisonings were reported to the poison control centers in the United States. More than 50 percent of the cases involved children under the age of five. (American Association of Poison Control Centers)
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- A study which tested the blood and urine of 9 volunteers for toxins, found an average of 91 industrial compounds, pollutants, and other chemicals in each person. Volunteers led average daily lives and did not work with chemicals on the job or live near an industrial factory. (Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Environmental Working Group and Commonweal)
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- A report by Environmental Working Group shows a significant toxic chemical presence in the blood of newborns. Analysis of 10 samples of umbilical-cord blood taken by the American Red Cross found an average of 287 contaminants in the blood, including mercury, fire retardants, pesticides, plastics, and other common toxic chemicals. Of the 287 chemicals detected, 180 cause cancer in humans or animals, 217 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 208 cause birth defects or abnormal development in animal tests.
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