in the know

Insurance industry releases its safe-car choices - Automotive - MSNBC.com

2005-12-04T21:42:00.000-08:00

Insurance industry releases its safe-car choices - Automotive - MSNBC.com: "WASHINGTON - Ten 2006 passenger cars won praise from the insurance industry Sunday for offering top-of-the-line protection to passengers in front, side and rear crashes.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced a new designation, the Top Safety Pick award, based on the performance of vehicles in their crash tests.

Winners of the institute’s gold award included the Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego with optional side air bags; the Saab 9-3; the Subaru Legacy; and the Honda Civic four-door. The Five Hundred and Montego are corporate twins and were considered by the institute to be the same car, for award purposes.

Updated: 12:29 a.m. ET Dec. 5, 2005"

Dr. Kegel Original Article

2005-12-04T20:34:00.000-08:00

SHAG Education - Sexual Health Awareness Group - 10 Steps to Putting on a Condom

2005-11-27T21:50:00.000-08:00

SHAG Education - Sexual Health Awareness Group: "10 Steps to Putting on a Condom

Step 1 1. Check the expiration date.
Step 2 2. Make sure there is a pocket of air (pillow test).
Step 3 3. Gently move the condom to the side and tear open the corners - please no teeth!
Step 4 4. Look at which direction the condom unrolls; if you place it on thewrong side dispose of it and start over.
Step 5 5. Squeeze the tip making sure no air enters and place it on the head of the penis.
6. Roll down the condom to the base of the shaft.
7. Insert (you know what to do.)
Step 8 8. Hold the base of the condom while pulling out.
Step 9 9. Turn away from your partner holding onto the base of the condom.
10. Remove, tie a knot, and dispose."

Iraq set to lose billions of dollars in oil rip-off

2005-11-27T13:53:00.000-08:00

Asharq Alawsat Newspaper (English): "Iraq set to lose billions of dollars in oil rip-off

26/11/2005

Washington D.C, Asharq Al-Awsat - Iraq is currently losing millions of dollars in “rip-off” deals between the US-backed government in Baghdad and international oil companies, a report published in London on Tuesday said.

“Crude Designs: The Rip-Off of Iraq’s Oil Wealth” revealed Iraqis were in danger of losing up to $194 billion in lost revenues, and risk handing more than 64% of the control of Iraq’s oil reserves to foreign companies. Iraq has the world’s third largest oil reserves.

Steve Kretzman, from Oil Change International who contributed to the report, said, “The Bush administration has gone to great lengths to hide the truth, but this report confirms what many had long suspected. In short, the winners for control of Iraq’s oil are the US, the UK and their oil companies. The losers are the Iraqi people.”

Published by a coalition of environmental organizations, the report indicated that long-term contracts would guarantee massive profits with rates of return between 42% and 162%, compared to an average profit of 12% in the oil industry.

Gregg Muttitt of PLATFORM, a center of expertise on oil and gas corporations in London, who researched and wrote the report said, "This form of contract being promoted is the most expensive and undemocratic option available. Iraq’s oil should be for the benefit of the Iraqi people, not foreign oil companies.”

He was referring to a type of contract known as production sharing agreements (PSAs) which he claimed have been heavily promoted by the US government and oil companies and have the backing of senior figures in the Iraqi Oil Ministry. Britain had also encouraged Iraq to open its oilfields for foreign investment. The report demonstrated that PSAs that last for 25 to 40 years, are usually secret and prevent governments from later altering the terms of the contract.

Iraqi officials have defended these contracts and said they would contribute to the development of oil-producing regions across the country. In a recent statement, Ahmad Chalabi, the Iraqi deputy prime said, “In order to increase our oil production we need to enter into PSAs.”

First developed in the 1960s, these contracts technically keep the legal ownership of oil reserves in state hands and therefore sidestep the accusation of transferring oil wealth into foreign hands, while practically, they deliver oil companies the same results as the concession agreements they replaced.

PSAs generally exempt foreign oil companies from any new laws that might affect their profits. The contracts often stipulate that disputes are heard not in the country’s own courts but in international investment tribunals.

The report warned that these contracts may be signed while the government is new and weak and the security situation dire. They are likely to be highly unfavorable but could last for up to 40 years. As such, the report called for “a full and open debate in Iraq about the way oil resources are to be developed, not 30-year deals negotiated behind closed doors.”

Not only are these deals being negotiated without public discussion, but ongoing violence in Iraq has been putting the country at a considerable disadvantage. Muttitt explained, “Iraqi’s institutions are new and weak. Experience in other countries shows that oil companies generally get the upper hand in PSA negotiations with governments. The companies will inevitably use Iraq’s current instability to push for highly advantageous terms and lock Iraq into those terms for decades.”

The Iraqi constitution adopted last October opened the way for greater foreign involvement in Iraq’s oilfields. Negotiations with oil companies are already underway, ahead of the parliamentary elections in December and prior to the passing of a new Petroleum Law.

Several influential Iraqi politicians and technocrats were responsible for pressing the government to sign long-term deals with foreign oil companies, the report found.

According to Louise Richards, Chief Executive of War on Want, a co-publisher of the report, the study demonstrates that “Iraq’s oil profits, far from being used to alleviate the suffering that the Iraqi people now face, are well within the sights of the multi-nationals.”

As an alternative, the report calls on Iraq to self finance oil production by inviting foreign oil companies to sign short term agreements with fewer constraints or by using oil profits as a guarantee to borrow the necessary funds.

In a start warning to the Iraqi people, the report claimed the country was in danger of “surrendering its democracy before it even begins.”"

100,000 Iraqi civilians dead, says study

2005-11-26T17:47:00.000-08:00

100,000 Iraqi civilians dead, says study: "100,000 Iraqi civilians dead, says study

Sarah Boseley, health editor

10/29/04 "The Guardian" -- About 100,000 Iraqi civilians - half of them women and children - have died in Iraq since the invasion, mostly as a result of airstrikes by coalition forces, according to the first reliable study of the death toll from Iraqi and US public health experts. The study, which was carried out in 33 randomly-chosen neighbourhoods of Iraq representative of the entire population, shows that violence is now the leading cause of death in Iraq. Before the invasion, most people died of heart attacks, stroke and chronic illness. The risk of a violent death is now 58 times higher than it was before the invasion.

Last night the Lancet medical journal fast-tracked the survey to publication on its website after rapid, but extensive peer review and editing because, said Lancet editor Richard Horton, "of its importance to the evolving security situation in Iraq". But the findings raised important questions also for the governments of the United Sates and Britain who, said Dr Horton in a commentary, "must have considered the likely effects of their actions for civilians".

The research was led by Les Roberts of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. Five of the six Iraqi interviewers who went to the 988 households in the survey were doctors and all those involved in the research on the ground, says the paper, risked their lives to collect the data. Householders were asked about births and deaths in the 14.6 months before the March 2003 invasion, and births and deaths in the 17.8 months afterwards.

When death certificates were not available, there were good reasons, say the authors. "We think it is unlikely that deaths were falsely recorded. Interviewers also believed that in the Iraqi culture it was unlikely for respondents to fabricate deaths," they write.

They found an increase in infant mortality from 29 to 57 deaths per 1,000 live births, which is consistent with the pattern in wars, where women are unable or unwilling to get to hospital to deliver babies, they say. The other increase was in violent death, which was reported in 15 of the 33 clusters studied and which was mostly attributed to airstrikes.

"Despite widespread Iraqi casualties, household interview data do not show evidence of widespread wrongdoing on the part of individual soldiers on the ground," write the researchers. Only three of the 61 deaths involved coalition soldiers killing Iraqis with small arms fire. In one case, a 56-year-old man might have been a combatant, they say, in the second a 72-year-old man was shot at a checkpoint and in the third, an armed guard was mistaken for a combatant and shot during a skirmish. In the second two cases, American soldiers apologised to the families.

"The remaining 58 killings (all attributed to US forces by interviewees) were caused by helicopter gunships, rockets or other forms of aerial weaponry," they write.

The biggest death toll recorded by the researchers was in Falluja, which registered two-thirds of the violent deaths they found. "In Falluja, 23 households of 52 visited were either temporarily or permanently abandoned. Neighbours interviewed described widespread death in most of the abandoned houses but could not give adequate details for inclusion in the survey," they write.

The researchers criticise the failure of the coalition authorities to attempt to assess for themselves the scale of the civilian casualties.

"US General Tommy Franks is widely quoted as saying 'we don't do body counts'," they write, but occupying armies have responsibilities under the Geneva convention."This survey shows that with modest funds, four weeks and seven Iraqi team members willing to risk their lives, a useful measure of civilan deaths could be obtained."

Copyright: The Guardian.

(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Information Clearing House has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is Information Clearing House endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)

"

Israeli lie detector innovation

2005-11-20T21:32:00.000-08:00

Israel21c: "Israeli lie detector innovation installed in Moscow airport
Nov. 20 - A new voice analysis system developed by Israeli company Nemesysco and used to detect suspicious passengers, drug smugglers, and terrorists has been recently installed at the Moscow airport, YnetNews reported. The system, nicknamed 'the hidden magician,' has already enabled Russian airport security staff to identify and arrest attempted contraband smugglers, and Russia is now considering the option of installing the technology at all of its border stations and points of entry. The system operates on the basis of a specialized program that can detect the presence of stress, fear, and anxiety in a person's voice, along with other factors. The system can quickly perform mass analyses, and can be used on buses and trains, where passengers would only be required to say their names. According to Nemesysco's CEO, Amir Lieberman, the system would not err when dealing with people who are naturally under pressure as they board their flights and would not mistake them for terrorists or drug dealers. The system has also been installed at banks and insurance companies in Britain, in order to detect fraud attempts."

The Legal Reader: U.S. Ignored Warnings Over Informant

2005-11-20T20:16:00.000-08:00

The Legal Reader: U.S. Ignored Warnings Over Informant: "November 20, 2005
U.S. Ignored Warnings Over Informant

Dick Cheney

The Iraqi informant’s German handlers say they had told U.S. officials that his information was ‘not proven,’ and were shocked when President Bush and Colin L. Powell used it in key prewar speeches.

BERLIN -- The German intelligence officials responsible for one of the most important informants on Saddam Hussein's suspected weapons of mass destruction say that the Bush Administration and the CIA repeatedly exaggerated his claims during the run-up to the Iraq war.

Five senior officials from Germany's Federal Intelligence Service, or BND, said in interviews with The Times that they warned U.S. intelligence authorities that the source, an Iraqi defector codenamed Curveball, never claimed to produce germ weapons and never saw anyone else do so.

According to the Germans, President Bush mischaracterized Curveball's information when he warned before the war that Iraq had at least seven mobile factories brewing biological poisons. Then-Secretary of State Colin L.Powell also misstated Curveball's claims in his pre-war presentation to the United Nations on Feb. 5, 2003, the Germans said."

People's Daily Online -- H5N1 bird flu found in wild birds in central Canada

2005-11-19T19:42:00.000-08:00

People's Daily Online -- H5N1 bird flu found in wild birds in central Canada: "H5N1 bird flu found in wild birds in central Canada
font size ZoomIn ZoomOut

Wild birds in Canada's central province of Manitoba have tested positive for a low-pathogenic subtype of the H5N1 avian flu virus, a health official said on Saturday.

The strains are from the family of North American H5N1 viruses, not the forms circulating in Southeast Asia, said Dr. Brian Evans, chief veterinary officer at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency ( CFIA).

'I want to emphasize that the H5N1 subtype detected in Manitoba is completely distinct from the strain currently present in Asia,' said Evans

'From a genetic perspective, there are significant strain differences in their structure,' he said.

In addition, officials isolated an H5N3 subtype in two birds from Quebec, as part of a cross-country surveillance program to find what avian flu viruses are being carried by wild ducks in this country.

'Finding only low pathogenic avian influenza means that these viruses would cause only mild disease, if any at all, if introduced into domestic birds,' Evans said.

Meanwhile, a commercial farm in British Columbia's Fraser Valley remains under quarantine after a duck was found infected with a strain of H5 bird flu on Friday.

North American H5N1 viruses have so far proven to be much milder viruses than their distant Asian counterparts, avian influenza experts say.

'We've got 32 years of surveillance work that says these North American strains in wild birds in the past have never been a threat,' Dr. Richard Slemons, an avian influenza expert at Ohio State University, told The Canadian Press.

'Does that mean they won't be a threat in the future? No it does not. But history says they aren't a risk,' he said.

The Asian H5N1 viruses, which are highly pathogenic, have infected 130 people in five countries since 2003 and 67 of those people have died.

Source: Xinhua

"

Pentagon says it used phosphorus in Fallujah in 2004 - The Boston Globe

2005-11-17T22:46:00.000-08:00

Pentagon says it used phosphorus in Fallujah in 2004 - The Boston Globe: "Boston.com THIS STORY HAS BEEN FORMATTED FOR EASY PRINTING
The Boston Globe
Pentagon says it used phosphorus in Fallujah in 2004

By Will Dunham, Reuters | November 17, 2005

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon acknowledged yesterday that it used white phosphorus munitions in a 2004 offensive in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, but said the weapon is legal and denied that the US military had targeted civilians with the highly flammable substance.

Pentagon officials said that US troops had employed it against insurgent strongholds as an incendiary weapon. But they continued to deny a report on Italian state television last week alleging that the munitions had been used against civilian men, women, and children in Fallujah, some of whom were burned to the bone.

''We categorically deny that claim," said Army Lieutenant Colonel Barry Venable, a Pentagon spokesman.

Some critics have argued that the use of white phosphorus in Fallujah constituted a chemical weapons attack prohibited by the international chemical weapons convention, to which the United States is a signatory.

But Venable said white phosphorus is not outlawed and said it is not covered by the convention on chemical weapons.

A protocol to a 1980 accord on conventional weapons that took effect in 1983 forbids using incendiary weapons against civilians. The protocol also forbids their use against military targets within concentrations of civilians, except when the targets are clearly separated from civilians and ''all feasible precautions" are taken to avoid civilian casualties.

The United States is a party to the overall accord, but has not ratified the incendiary-weapons protocol or another involving blinding laser weapons.

Another Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, said of white phosphorus: ''It's part of our conventional-weapons inventory and we use it like we use any other conventional weapon."

White-phosphorus munitions are primarily used by the US military to make smoke screens and illuminate targets, but are also employed as an incendiary weapon against enemy combatants, the Pentagon said. The substance ignites easily in air at temperatures of about 86 degrees and its fire can be difficult to extinguish. It can cause painful burn injuries to exposed human flesh.

US forces used the white phosphorus during a major offensive launched by Marines in Fallujah, about 30 miles west of Baghdad, to flush out insurgents. The battle last November involved some of the toughest urban fighting of the 2 1/2-year war.

Venable said that in the Fallujah battle, ''US forces used white phosphorus both in its classic screening mechanism and . . . when they encountered insurgents who were in foxholes and other covered positions who they could not dislodge any other way."

He said the soldiers employed what they call a ''shake-and-bake" technique of using white- phosphorus shells to flush enemies out of hiding, and then using high explosives to kill them.

The Italian documentary showed images of bodies recovered after the Fallujah offensive, which it said proved the use of white phosphorus against civilians, but the military denied the allegations.

''We don't target any civilians with any of our weapons. And to suggest that US forces were targeting civilians with these weapons would simply be wrong," Whitman said yesterday.

An Iraqi human rights team was heading to Fallujah yesterday to investigate the US forces' use of white phosphorus as a weapon, Iraq's acting human rights minister told the BBC.

Minister Narmin Uthman said her team plans to investigate whether civilians were affected by the substance.

Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Washington-based Arms Control Association, questioned whether the US military was using the weapons in a manner consistent with the conventional weapons convention.

''White phosphorous weapons should not be used just like any other conventional weapon," Kimball said. He called for an independent review of how the United States was using the weapons and possibly an investigation by countries that are parties to the convention ''to determine whether their use in Iraq is appropriate or not."

The BBC quoted Peter Kaiser, spokesman for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, based in The Hague, as saying that the use of white phosphorus as a toxic or caustic agent would make it illegal under the chemical weapons convention. The Pentagon contends that it uses the weapon for its incendiary heat and not for toxic properties.

In London, the British government said yesterday that its military uses white phosphorus in Iraq but only to lay smoke screens.

Prime Minister Tony Blair's official spokesman refused to be drawn in on the claims that US troops have used white phosphorous against civilians.

''Use of phosphorus by the US is a matter for the US," the spokesman told reporters in a briefing, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to have his name published. Blair's spokesman pointed out that Britain is a signatory to Protocol III of the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Britain's Liberal Democrat Party, which opposed the Iraq war, criticized US forces for using the substance as an incendiary weapon.

''A vital part of the effort in Iraq is to win the battle for hearts and minds," said the party's foreign affairs spokesman, Menzies Campbell. ''The use of this weapon may technically have been legal, but its effects are such that it will hand a propaganda victory to the insurgency."

Material from the Associated Press was included in this report.
© Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company

"

Tehelka - The People's Paper - Addiction of Wanton Terror

2005-11-17T22:38:00.000-08:00

Tehelka - The People's Paper: "Addiction of Wanton Terror

If it’s a clash of civilisations between the jehadis and the neocons, then the epic is already an apocalypse, the high moral ground battle has already been lost. It was first lost when even the most loyalist of Murdochian journalists claiming embedded objectivity couldn’t defend the absence of wmds in Iraq even while the New Empire Crusaders just could not convince the world that they were indeed leading an occupation army and not a liberation force. After that, the war against terror has been lost a million times: in the Halliburton-Bechtel oil for blood nexus, in the fake Yankee revolution in that Baghdad square with a manufactured TV audience pulling down Saddam Hussein’s statue, in the sudden emergence of Al Qaeda as a force to reckon with in Iraq, and in the fast dipping, post-Abu Ghraib, post-New Orleans popular ratings of God’s twice-born messenger, George W. Bush. So has Bush lost the war, or is Osama winning in the new graveyards of death?
Has Bush lost the war, or is Osama winning in the new graveyards of death?

Despite the ban on American TV, it’s Live: 2,000 US bodybags, defending what? Iraqi oil for American mncs? 100,000 Iraqis dead, murdered, bombed: Mostly civilians, as Lancet reported, and this does not include the Fallujah carnage, which is now being compared to the Holocaust, to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the My Lai massacre in Vietnam. Now there are more chemicalised stories emerging: Burnt babies, burnt women, burnt bodies. No wonder, the woman they have captured for the Jordan massacre is the sister of a man killed in Fallujah!

That is the other side of midnight. How many more sisters and teenagers are ready to strap their bodies with suicide bombs to kill how many more mothers and brothers across the globe? That is the question that haunts this epoch where the compulsive, obsessive madness of a Bush, Blair or Osama, or the jehadis in Pakistan, or Hindutva fundamen"

sexualityandu.ca

2005-11-16T20:30:00.000-08:00

sexualityandu.ca: "Welcome to sexualityandu.ca

The ultimate Canadian web site devoted to sexuality education and information. Our site provides credible and reliable information on the topics that are most important to you. From Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) to contraception awareness, lifestyle choices to talking about sex, we offer you guidance and advice that will help you develop and maintain a healthy sexuality. So sit back and get ready to surf the site!

From the above, please choose the module that suits you best."

Newswise | Talking About Sex with Your Children: Start Early, Be Frank

2005-11-15T20:06:00.000-08:00

Newswise | Talking About Sex with Your Children: Start Early, Be Frank: "Source: Saint Louis University Health Sciences Center Released: Tue 15-Nov-2005, 14:25 ET

Talking About Sex with Your Children: Start Early, Be Frank
Libraries

Talking to your child about sex can be uncomfortable. A Saint Louis University physician and contributing author of a book says being approachable and sharing your expectations opens the door to good communications.
Newswise — It’s never too early to talk to your child about sex, says a contributing author of a new book.
“Parents should be the primary source of what parents want kids to know,” says Marilyn Maxwell, M.D., professor of internal medicine and pediatrics at Saint Louis University School of Medicine.
“It’s not only talking about sex. It’s being there and developing a relationship. As you go along, maybe you’re watching a TV show or movie together and a sexual situation comes up, discuss that.”
Dr. Maxwell is a member of a team of physicians who collaborated on “Questions Kids Ask About Sex: Honest Answers for Every Age,” which was just published by Revell.
The book is edited by The Medical Institute for Sexual Health, a nonprofit organization that communicates values and medical information to children and their families about the health risks associated with premarital sex. It gives clear answers to questions about sex in easily understandable language while promoting abstinence until marriage.
“It’s an area of great need. We didn’t believe there’s anything out there exactly like this book,” says Dr. Maxwell, who recently discussed teens and sexuality on the Today Show.
Talking to your child about sex can be uncomfortable, she acknowledges, but easier if you start when your child is young.
“The talk comes all along at age appropriate stages. I liken it to the situation with adopted kids. There should never be a time when they don’t remember they are chosen.”
Dr. Maxwell said parents should begin by using correct language instead of nicknames to describe body parts and should listen carefully to what the child really is asking before giving an answer.
“When your 4-year old asks where did I come from, he may be asking a number of things. Occasionally he may want to know the city where he was born. Certainly many preschoolers who ask ‘Where did I come from?’ are wondering how they were made – and have a vague idea of the truth. But before plunging into a long explanation of pregnancy and childbirth, it’s best to ask your child, ‘What do you mean?’”
Once you know what your child is really asking, Dr. Maxwell says to answer the question in a concise and matter-of-fact way. Leave it up to your child to ask follow-up questions to guide how much information he or she is ready to absorb.
Don’t be afraid to share your values with your child as you discuss sex, Dr. Maxwell adds. It’s not inevitable that a teen will become sexually active, particularly if you let her know how you expect her to act.
“Parents need to let the child know their values and what they expect from the child,” she said. “You don’t have to lower the bar. There’s a gold standard. Let your child know what your standards are and they’ll be more likely to attain them.”
Dr. Maxwell said she became involved with The Medical Institute for Sexual Health a decade ago, when she saw in her teen practice the increasing prevelance of sexually transmitted diseases and non-marital pregnancy.
“Younger kids are sexually active. The numbers having vaginal intercourse have gone down over the years, and we’ve found if we can delay the onset of sexual activity, that’s beneficial. A 15-year old is more likely to get a sexually transmitted disease than a person who in his or her 20s,” she says.
“Kids who feel connected to their families are less likely to engage in early sexual intercourse, which can have serious physical and psychological consequences.”
Established in 1836, Saint Louis University School of Medicine has the distinction of awarding the first M.D. degree west of the Mississippi River. Saint Louis University School of Medicine is a pioneer in geriatric medicine, organ transplantation, chronic disease prevention, cardiovascular disease, neurosciences and vaccine research, among others. The School of Medicine trains physicians and biomedical scientists, conducts medical research, and provides health services on a local, national and international level.
© 2005 Newswise. All Rights Reserved."

The Tom Bearden Website

2005-11-10T00:10:00.000-08:00

The Tom Bearden Website: "Provisional Patent Application of
Thomas E. Bearden

METHOD, SYSTEM AND APPARATUS FOR CONDITIONING ELECTROMAGNETIC POTENTIALS, FIELDS, AND WAVES
TO TREAT AND ALTER MATTER"

FREE anti-aging facial exercises - Lips and Cheeks exercises.

2005-10-30T19:27:00.000-08:00

FREE anti-aging facial exercises - Lips and Cheeks exercises.: " Lips and cheeks facial exercises
Facial exercises are of great benefit to all people, women and men of all ages, young, adult, mature, to have a great, smooth, youthful, anti-aging ageless face and skin. If the skin around your mouth is puckered and lined, it not only gives you a bitter look, but also adds years to your visual age.
This page deals with facial exercises specifically dealing with lips and cheeks. Here you will find facial exercises to deal with problematic wrinkled and lined lips as well as lined and sagging cheeks. A "bitter" mouth with grim lines and furrows is not my idea of the "look" of a positive and vital person, and sagging jowls and cheeks might look good on certain dogs, but definitely not on humans.
free facial exercises,free
to receive the exercises by e-mail - click here *
* we will send the exercises by auto- responder and also add your address to our newsletter mailing list - THERE IS NO NEED TO SEND E-MAILS FROM ALL THE DIFFERENT PAGES - WE SEND THE ENTIRE PROGRAM
Herewith some facial exercises that we feel you might find useful in your quest for a smooth ageless face, without any surgical facelift, and totally free, gratis and for nothing. Facial exercises will assist in achieving this. Like normal exercises, facial exercises need to be done regularly to achieve and get the full benefit from them.
Smooth and firm skin around your lips and on your cheeks and chin will greatly help in making you look years younger and far more vital. The lips and cheeks can be a problem area to treat, but facial exercises will go a long way to making you look years younger.
Get firm, tight facial muscles and ban hard bitter lines around your lips and firm up slack cheeks with regular facial exercises.
In addition to doing the eye facial exercises have a look at our super effective Eye Treatment Gel by clicking here, and our full Product Page range.
The look of an aged and neglected skin can be dramatically improved with proper exercising, but great care must also be taken to moisturize and feed the skin properly, with products like our great Moisturizing Day Cream, Day Cream with SPF 15, Nourishing Night Cream or super effective Amino Aloe Lotion. Many people fail to apply proper skincare and moisturizing principles to these areas.
Other facial exercises:
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eyes and forehead
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neck and throat
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general information
We have only listed these facial exercises as lips and cheeks exercises, but they do in fact exercise much more. After doing these facial exercises you will feel all the muscles you have used. The muscles around your mouth and cheeks are vitally important, as lips and cheeks can line and wrinkle easily if not looked after properly.
A lined mouth, surrounded by wrinkles, lines and furrows running from the nose is not a pretty sight, and ages the face terribly.
The same goes for slack cheeks with no muscle tone and covered with furrows, lines and wrinkles - truly not a pretty picture.
Instructions
Facial exercises should be done once a day, and this regimen can be continued for your entire life, or you could scale down to three times a week, after completing a month of daily exercises.
Some people report that minor spots or blemishes appear after starting facial exercises, and yes, it is normal.
The skin is once again stimulated to produce its natural oils and lubricants and these minor spots may appear when starting facial exercises, until the skin is functioning efficiently and correctly again. Skin cells get lazy and stagnate, but with proper exercises these cells are once again activated to work with renewed vigor.
Facial exercises for lips
# 1

Sit upright facing forward and purse your lips together. Lift your pursed lips towards your nose and keep there for 5 counts, relax and repeat 5 times.
# 2

Pucker your lips slightly and when in this puckered position try with your mouth muscles to bring the corners of your mouth together as close as possible. Keep lips in this position for 5 counts, relax and repeat 5 times.
# 3

Sit upright facing forward and keep your lips closed and teeth together. Smile as broadly as possible, without opening your lips, keep there for 5 counts and when relaxing start puckering your lips in a pointed kiss. Keep there for 5 counts and relax - repeat 10 times.
# 4

Move your lips into a puckered kiss and while relaxing the kiss keep your lips closed and curl your lips into your mouth across your teeth. Hold this position for a count of 10 and repeat 5 times.
# 5

Sit relaxed with your lips hardly open and pucker your lips outwards. While your lips are in the outward position, move your puckered top lip towards your nose. Hold in this position for 10 counts and repeat 5 times.
Facial exercises for cheeks
# 1

Sit upright facing forward with lips closed but relaxed. Pucker and pout your lips using the muscles in your cheeks. (Feel with your fingers that you are using your cheek muscles.) Keep puckered for a count of 10, relax and repeat 10 times.
# 2

Have a relaxed smile with your lips closed and then suck in your cheeks towards and on to your teeth. Hold this for 10 counts, relax and repeat 10 times.
# 3

Look in a mirror while doing this exercise. Pout your top lip, turning the corners of your lips upwards and move your cheek muscles towards your eyes. You should at this stage try to get your top lip touching your nose. Keep in this position for 10 counts, relax and repeat 5 times.
# 4

Look in a mirror while doing this exercise. Smile as widely as possible - while keeping your lips closed and your mouth corners turned up. Try to make your mouth corners touch your ears. Next wrinkle your nose and see your cheek muscles move upwards and feel these muscles work. Keep for 5 counts, relax and repeat 10 times.
# 5

Keep your teeth and lips closed and blow air under your top lip and keep it there for 10 counts, then move it to your left cheek, hold for 10, to your lower lip, hold for 10 and then to your right cheek while holding it for a count of 10. Repeat 5 times."

FREE anti-aging facial exercises - Neck and Throat exercises.

2005-10-30T19:25:00.000-08:00

FREE anti-aging facial exercises - Neck and Throat exercises.: "facial exercises
*
eyes and forehead
*
lips and cheeks
*
general information
Women and men spend huge amounts of money on skin care products and cosmetics, yet sometimes fail to look after the chin, throat and neck area. It is an old truth that if you want to gauge somebody's age to look at their neck and throat as this is normally the areas that give the true age away.
There is nothing good looking or interesting about a crepey-looking neck or a throat area with loose skin hanging around with fold upon fold of tired looking skin. These exercises will help to firm-up and prevent a double chin, loose skin in the neck and throat area while toning these muscles.
Some people think that a double chin is simply excess weight manifesting itself, but in reality it is also the manifestation of loose skin and terrible muscle tone. A great amount of people struggle with a double chin, yet they can easy get rid of it by doing these facial exercises regularly.
Instructions
Facial exercises should be done once a day, and this regimen can be continued for your entire life, or you could scale down to three times a week, after completing a month of daily exercises.
Some people report that minor spots or blemishes appear after starting facial exercises, and yes, it is normal.
The skin is once again stimulated to produce its natural oils and lubricants and these minor spots may appear when starting facial exercises, until the skin is functioning efficiently and correctly again. Skin cells get lazy and stagnate, but with proper exercises these cells are once again activated to work with renewed vigor.
Neck and throat facial exercises
# 1

A great exercise is to sit upright, tilt your head back looking at the ceiling while keeping your lips closed and then start a chewing movement. You will feel the muscles working in your neck and throat area - and will be truly amazed at the results. Repeat 20 times.
# 2

Sit upright, tilt your head back looking at the ceiling, while keeping your lips closed and relaxed. Start puckering your lips together in a kiss and stretch the kiss, as if you were trying to kiss the ceiling. Keep your lips puckered for 10 counts, then relax, bring your head back to its normal position and repeat 5 times.
# 3

Sit upright, tilt your head back looking at the ceiling, while keeping your lips closed and relaxed. Open your lips and stick your tongue out as if you were trying to touch your chin with the tip of your tongue. Keep your tongue out in this position for 10 counts, and then return your tongue and head to its normal position.
# 4

Sit upright, tilt your head back looking at the ceiling, while keeping your lips closed and relaxed. Next move your lower lip over your top lip as far as possible and keep it there for a count of 5. Relax and repeat 5 times.
# 5

Lie on your bed, with your head hanging down over the edge. Slowly bring your head up towards your torso and keep it there for 10 counts. Relax and lower your head towards the floor again - repeat 5 times.
# 6

Sit upright and face forward and while keeping your lips together, separate your teeth by dropping your jaw and then push your jaw forward, keep for a count of 10, bring back to starting position and repeat 5 times."

WorldNetDaily: Bali blasts kick off early `Ramadan Offensive`

2005-10-13T17:24:00.000-07:00

WorldNetDaily: Bali blasts kick off early `Ramadan Offensive`: "Details of the operation came from intercepted communications between top al-Qaida leaders about two weeks ago.

'I think that the plan for the next stage that was drawn up has reached you or is on its way to you,' said Zarqawi's letter to bin Laden. 'O God. Make the expedition of Osama proceed toward its goal ... We await your orders as to the next stage of the plan.'

Bodansky also concludes that al-Qaida leaders have interpreted the devastation of the Gulf Coast by Hurricane Katrina as a sign that Allah is pleased with their plans.

The alarming report comes weeks after WND and Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin broke a series of stories on al-Qaida's 'American Hiroshima' plan – 10 years in the design stages – to detonate one or more nuclear weapons in major cities in the U.S.

Intelligence analysts and sources disagree on the details of the way bin Laden's 'American Hiroshima' plan unfolds. Some G2 Bulletin sources emphasize bin Laden's commitment to re-enacting the 1945 attack on Japan with one nuclear detonation, followed by another days later.

Paul Williams, author of 'The Al-Qaeda Connection,' however, sees a much more devastating, coordinated, all-out, surprise attack coming.

'The next attack, according to al-Qaida defectors and informants, will take place simultaneously at various sites throughout the country,' he writes. 'Designated targets include New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Miami, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Houston, Las Vegas, and Valdez, Alaska, where the tankers are filled with oil from the Trans-Alaska pipeline. To orchestrate such an incredible event requires not only the shipment of the nukes into the United States but also the establishment of cells, the training of sleeper agents, the selection of sites, and the preparation of the weapons without detection from federal, state or local law enforcement officials. Unlike 9-11, that cost less than $350,000, this event alrea"

US CODE: Title 18,2257. Record keeping requirements

2005-09-19T22:51:00.000-07:00

US CODE: Title 18,2257. Record keeping requirements: "TITLE 18 > PART I > CHAPTER 110 > § 2257 Prev | Next

§ 2257. Record keeping requirements
Release date: 2005-08-03

(a) Whoever produces any book, magazine, periodical, film, videotape, or other matter which—
(1) contains one or more visual depictions made after November 1, 1990 of actual sexually explicit conduct; and
(2) is produced in whole or in part with materials which have been mailed or shipped in interstate or foreign commerce, or is shipped or transported or is intended for shipment or transportation in interstate or foreign commerce;
shall create and maintain individually identifiable records pertaining to every performer portrayed in such a visual depiction.
(b) Any person to whom subsection (a) applies shall, with respect to every performer portrayed in a visual depiction of actual sexually explicit conduct—
(1) ascertain, by examination of an identification document containing such information, the performer’s name and date of birth, and require the performer to provide such other indicia of his or her identity as may be prescribed by regulations;
(2) ascertain any name, other than the performer’s present and correct name, ever used by the performer including maiden name, alias, nickname, stage, or professional name; and
(3) record in the records required by subsection (a) the information required by paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection and such other identifying information as may be prescribed by regulation.
(c) Any person to whom subsection (a) applies shall maintain the records required by this section at his business premises, or at such other place as the Attorney General may by regulation prescribe and shall make such records available to the Attorney General for inspection at all reasonable times.
(d)
(1) No information or evidence obtained from records required to be created or maintained by this section shall, except as provided in this section, directly "

Diabologue - Adelphia and Hardcore Porn: It's Coming...

2005-09-13T16:20:00.000-07:00

Diabologue - Adelphia and Hardcore Porn: It's Coming...: "Adelphia and Hardcore Porn: It's Coming...
Wednesday, February 02 2005 @ 08:26 PM
Contributed by: MGP
Sex/Like/Love EntriesYes, I'm aware of the bad pun in the header of this post but Adelphia Cable have actually found a way towards pulling out of their massive debt that doesn't involve underhanded rate tactics. Now, it involves fisting, double anal, and hot girl-on-girl-on-kitchen-appliance action. That's right. Test marketing in Southern California, Adelphia is now transmitting hardcore porn! Seems their former prudery and well-vocalized "morality" have taken a backseat to some serious cash from the $1 billion+ adult film industry. Praise Be To Ron Jeremy! Read the [abridged] story and some commentary by clicking the usual link below...
Once-Conservative Adelphia Adds Hard-Core Porn to Cable
By Sallie Hofmeister, Times Staff Writer
Adelphia Communications Corp. has quietly become the nation's only leading cable operator to offer the most explicit category of hard-core porn. Come Friday, triple-X-rated programming will be available on cable for the first time in a major media market: Southern California.
"People want it, so we are trying to provide it," Adelphia spokeswoman Erica Stull said. "The more Xs, the more popular."
Stull stressed that the programming, supplied by Playboy Enterprises Inc., would not be advertised and could be blocked to prevent children from watching. It will be delivered through video-on-demand technology, available now to about two-thirds of Adelphia's 1.2 million Southern California subscribers.
The move is a radical departure for Adelphia, the largest cable provider in Southern California and the nation's fifth biggest. Five years ago, Adelphia stirred a local controversy by dropping Spice — a popular soft-porn channel — from newly acquired cable systems here because Adelphia founder John Rigas considered X-rated programming immoral.
Today, the 80-year-old Rigas and one of his sons are facing prison terms after being convicted last summer for looting the company and engaging in fraudulent accounting.
Adelphia, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2002, currently is on the block. During the last year, in an effort to bolster Adelphia's bottom line, the company's new management has begun offering softer porn in various areas of the country and, in recent months, has introduced the hardest-core programming in a few markets.
Cable executives said Adelphia's decision to air hard-core porn was unlikely to scare bidders in the current auction. Some predicted that if Adelphia subscribers flock to the new triple-X programs, other cable operators could follow.
"It's scary how much money is made on porn," said Tim Connelly, editor and publisher of Adult Video News, an industry trade magazine that estimates that when strip clubs, magazines, the Internet, TV and DVDs are included, porn is a $10-billion industry. "That's more than Hollywood makes at the box office. And it just grows and grows and grows. It's mainstream now."
Despite an outcry among some religious organizations, parent groups and political figures over the coarsening content coming into homes, the "indecency" backlash could lead to even more graphic programming on subscription services.
"The conservative groups that want to clean up the airwaves have forced people looking for racier stuff to pay for it," said Bill Asher, co-chairman of Van Nuys-based Vivid Entertainment, the world's largest producer of adult programming. "It's given pay TV more authority to go further than before."
Insiders and analysts estimate that consumers spend more than $1 billion a year buying sexually graphic movies and other explicit fare on TV through pay-per-view and video-on-demand services. (That's not counting orders from hotel rooms, where 50% of all movies purchased are from the adult category.)
The revenues have quadrupled since the late 1990s, when cable operators first began moving beyond "soft" porn to embrace double-X fare.
Today, analysts say, adult programming gives cable and satellite distributors their highest profit margins. Such suppliers of adult programming as New Frontier Media Inc. and Playboy get from 5% to 15% of the average $9 consumers pay for a movie, according to industry sources. By comparison, distributors typically give Hollywood studios half of the revenue on pay-per-view movies, which usually costs under $5 per rental.
Although the prospect of more money is enticing, most cable TV providers have been loath to move beyond double-X-rated movies for fear of inciting the anger of investors, subscribers and local politicians who regulate them. But Adelphia executives say that new digital technology, which allows programs to be blocked, has given them more comfort and cover in offering hard-core fare to subscribers.
Adelphia's new strategy also has opened new opportunities for Playboy, which is providing triple-X programming to television for the first time.
"We're all public companies that want to make a lot of money," said James Griffiths, Playboy's top entertainment executive. "Playboy needs to supply whatever programming our distributors need to be successful. What do customers want? All you have to do is look at what's available on the Internet."
In the bigger scheme, the partnership between Playboy and Adelphia in Southern California is a small step in a more ambitious plan to lure viewers away from the Internet and make television their primary destination for porn.
-------------------------------
Not only is the move to hardcore porn hilarious (and somewhat ironic) on the financial level for the once-conservative Adelphia, but even more interesting when you consider the public access television debacle they had over the Dr. Susan Block Show (which can be read about in voluminous detail here). If the "Adelphiagate" tale is indeed true, it certainly adds a rather interesting dimension to the new programming addition for Adelphia's SoCal subscribers.
I'm also rather pleased to see sexuality triumph in some small way over repressive and hypocritical social mores. It's a baby step, but it's more than obvious in the 21st century that not only is there a greater acceptance and perusal of sexual entertainment, but also that sexual expression and personal comfortability with man's carnal nature is rising (some pun intended) with the times -- though, in America, the dominant culture still has a LONG way to go. Even still, I like it. Maybe later, people might actually discard infantile reactions such as "ewww" and "ick" from modern sexual dialogue. When that day comes, hang onto those bedposts because it's going to be a (pleasurably) bumpy ride!
[ Views: 321 ]. "

Teenage Girl Offers Sex Education to Peers

2005-09-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

Teenage Girl Offers Sex Education to Peers: "Teenage Girl Offers Sex Education to Peers
2005-09-06 15:04:02 CRIENGLISH.com
When 18-year-old Zhangshan prepared to teach her classmates how to correctly use condoms, a huge gust of laughter burst out in the classroom. However, Zhangshan continued her class regardless and finally completed it successfully.

Zhangshan is studying medicine in a vocational school in Qingdao City, in east China's Shandong Province. In 2004, she became the only young person in her province to be chosen to attend a meeting to learn about HIV/AIDS prevention and sexual health issues.

Since returning from that meeting, Zhangshan has been thinking about teaching what she had learnt to her peers. Now, the girl is working on setting up a 'Youth Health Organization', which aims to help teenagers with all kinds of sexual problems via the telephone or internet. Zhang says she hope to help young people to release themselves from the anxiety and confusion of puberty and offer them knowledge about the prevention of HIV/AIDS.

CRI"

Homeland Security Department had requested--and continues to request--that the American Red Cross not come back into New Orleans following the hurric

2005-09-06T22:02:00.000-07:00

American Red Cross: "Disaster FAQs

Hurricane Katrina: Why is the Red Cross not in New Orleans?

Hurricane Katrina: Why is the Red Cross not in New Orleans?

* Acess to New Orleans is controlled by the National Guard and local authorities and while we are in constant contact with them, we simply cannot enter New Orleans against their orders.

* The state Homeland Security Department had requested--and continues to request--that the American Red Cross not come back into New Orleans following the hurricane. Our presence would keep people from evacuating and encourage others to come into the city.

* The Red Cross has been meeting the needs of thousands of New Orleans residents in some 90 shelters throughout the state of Louisiana and elsewhere since before landfall. All told, the Red Cross is today operating 149 shelters for almost 93,000 residents.

* The Red Cross shares the nation’s anguish over the worsening situation inside the city. We will continue to work under the direction of the military, state and local authorities and to focus all our efforts on our lifesaving mission of feeding and sheltering.

* The Red Cross does not conduct search and rescue operations. We are an organization of civilian volunteers and cannot get relief aid into any location until the local authorities say it is safe and provide us with security and access.

* The original plan was to evacuate all the residents of New Orleans to safe places outside the city. With the hurricane bearing down, the city government decided to open a shelter of last resort in the Superdome downtown. We applaud this decision and believe it saved a significant number of lives.

* As the remaining people are evacuated from New Orleans, the most appropriate role for the Red Cross is to provide a safe place for people to stay and to see that their emergency needs are met. We are fully staffed and equipped to handle these individuals once they are evacuated."

Progressive Independent - Viewing topic #8 - German Reporters - BUSH STAGING Rescue Missions!!!

2005-09-06T21:58:00.001-07:00

Progressive Independent - Viewing topic #8 - German Reporters - BUSH STAGING Rescue Missions!!!: "What everyone is overlooking is the oil-field underneath New Orleans. This was not a badly planned rescue; it was a neo-con-planned attack on the residents of New Orleans, who are now every bit as much victims of Bush-Oil as the Iraqis are. FEMA has not only procrastinated in delivering aid, it has refused offers of aid from american business, and actively prevented such aid arriving when parishes have organised it for themselves. It is in the interests of oil companies, who have provided 95% of Bush's election funding, to have the area 'depopulated', and it will be interesting to see what happens to householders and Parish leaders who attempt to recreate their communities."

Progressive Independent - German Reporters - BUSH STAGING Rescue Missions!!!

2005-09-06T21:58:00.000-07:00

Progressive Independent - Viewing topic #8 - German Reporters - BUSH STAGING Rescue Missions!!!: "
Americans have been in denial about this reality for oh about... you tell me how long. And now they are seeing the brutality of their racist nation unmasked.

This from Chris Floyd:
But as culpable, criminal and loathsome as the Bush Administration is, it is only the apotheosis of an overarching trend in American society that has been gathering force for decades: the destruction of the idea of a common good, a public sector whose benefits and responsibilities are shared by all, and directed by the consent of the governed. For more than 30 years, the corporate Right has waged a relentless and highly focused campaign against the common good, seeking to atomize individuals into isolated 'consumer units' whose political energies kept deliberately underinformed by the ubiquitous corporate media can be diverted into emotionalized 'hot button' issues (gay marriage, school prayer, intelligent design, flag burning, welfare queens, drugs, porn, abortion, teen sex, commie subversion, terrorist threats, etc., etc.) that never threaten Big Money's bottom line.

And this from one of the dispossessed in New Orleans:
'Today I saw 5,000 African-Americans on Highway 10, desperate, perishing, dehydrating, babies crying - it looked like the hold of a slave ship. It's so ugly and obvious. The issue of race as a factor will not go away.'

And this from Luciane Bohne
Welcome to the New World Order. Welcome. It stands exposed. Right there in New Orleans.

America, welcome to your planned future as a domestic, internal third world. Welcome to personal and public chronic indebtedness. Welcome to a bloated 'defense' budget that cannot assist you, let alone 'defend' you from a hurricane in the age of science. Welcome to the offensive budget that makes your country dependent on China for daily loans. Welcome to the multicolored ribbons in support of a war that kills your troops�your children, who are not here, not at home to help with their strength, their youth, their bravery, their idealism in pulling you out of the toxic flood waters.
Welcome. Dr. Frankenstein's monster's vengeance is at our door."

Frankenstein's monster is on the loose

2005-09-06T21:56:00.000-07:00

Frankenstein's monster is on the loose: "Frankenstein's monster is on the loose

By Luciana Bohne
Online Journal Contributing Writer

September 2, 2005—Well, yes, there is a kind of shocking distillation of meaning in the catastrophe that hit the city of New Orleans. It's as if the belly of the beast that is the US imperial leviathan has been turned over—its underbelly exposed. There, you can see the reality: two nations, one rich, one poor; one televised, the other invisible—until now.

Abject poverty, criminal infrastructural neglect, opportunistic defunding of minimal preventive planning, disaster relief resources otherwise engaged abroad in protecting the interests of oligarchs, industrial poisons erupting at a mere shrug of nature from their thin disguise just beneath the urban surface of triumphant financial capitalism—a river of murderous toxins running free, running free in the streets of the city of sweetness, the city of food, the city of jazz like a Frankenstein's monster shaking loose his chains and going after its creator:

'Free markets, free markets, free markets,' he's calling, laughing madly, 'here I am, your creature, your bastard, your long-suppressed experiment in planned anarchy for profit, your pig-ethics child. Your beloved; your nightmare.'

Gasoline prices rising.

New Orleans—welcome to Baghdad!

As it shall be abroad, so it will be at home. Poor people ain't got no home, no electricity, no water. No hospitals, no schools, no city. New Orleans, welcome to Fallujah, to Gaza, to Haiti, to El Salvador, to Nicaragua.

Bechtel, Kellogg Root & Brown, Carlyle, Halliburton welcome you to 'globalization': the pain is yours; the gain is theirs.

Welcome to a civilization that ridicules science as an entity beneath treason. Welcome to the freedom and democracy of a state that knows no social contract, where you are born with a gun in your hand but no concept of the common good; a state that owes you nothing but owns you body and soul—in the unemployment lines, in the soup kitchens, in the army recruitment centers, in the prisons, on death row, in the schools that teach you nothing, in front of your television screens that lie and string you along with cynical contempt. To your doom, to your doom, for what is freedom without resources?
The courts have evicted you: there is no bankruptcy for you, no socialism for you. Debtor prison is good enough for you. Government handouts, in the form of corporate socialism, are strictly bookmarked for corporations. No one cares about you. Yours is not to reason why; yours is but to pray and die.
Welcome to the Plan for the New American Century. Welcome to the New World Order. Welcome. It stands exposed. Right there in New Orleans.
America, welcome to your planned future as a domestic, internal third world. Welcome to personal and public chronic indebtedness. Welcome to a bloated "defense" budget that cannot assist you, let alone "defend" you from a hurricane in the age of science. Welcome to the offensive budget that makes your country dependent on China for daily loans. Welcome to the multicolored ribbons in support of a war that kills your troops—your children, who are not here, not at home to help with their strength, their youth, their bravery, their idealism in pulling you out of the toxic flood waters.
Welcome. Dr. Frankenstein's monster's vengeance is at our door.
Luciana Bohne teaches film and literature at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at lbohne@edinboro.edu."

OpEdNews.Com Progressive, Tough Liberal News and Opinion

2005-09-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

OpEdNews.Com Progressive, Tough Liberal News and Opinion: "How Republican Philosophy and Bush Policy Killed Victims of the New Orleans Levee Flood

by Rob Kall

http://www.opednews.com

Katrina would have been a destructive storm that killed people in Mississippi… if the levees had held. But they didn’t and that is where lies the rub.

One of the most core principles of Republican philosophy is to get rid of big government, and worse, to disparage all sorts of government. But emergency planning is a government job and function. FEMA is a government organization. Stockpiling of emergency resources is the responsibility of government.

The way Republicans not very subtly attempt to dismantle government and the agencies of government is to cut taxes and starve it. Republican philosopher Grover Norquist said he wanted to starve government so it was small enough to drown in a bathtub. Drown was a sadly ironic word. The fact is, the Republicans have, with majorities in the house and senate and with Bush in the Whitehouse, been very successful at cutting taxes and starving government. They’ve cut back on program after program, including FEMA.

Another corporation-friendly Republican policy is privatization—taking government programs and outsourcing them to private industry. Early in Bush’s first term, FEMA was designated as an agency that would be privatized.

To make matters worse, FEMA was downgraded and almost dismantled as it was nebulously assimilated by the Homeland Security Agency, with FEMA employees directed NOT to become involved in disaster preparedness functions. Supposedly, a new directorate of preparedness was supposed to be established. I guess they didn’t get THAT prepared in time for this disaster. But they did cut the funds to FEMA and massively reduced its effectiveness. A political appointee was chosen to head it and it has become clear that he is a total incompetent. But that’s Bush’s style, chosing politically loyal people"

The science of love - I get a kick out of you

2005-08-09T23:58:00.000-07:00

INDOlink - Love Connection - The science of love - I get a kick out of you: "The science of love - I get a kick out of you
From The Economist print edition

OVER the course of history it has been artists, poets and playwrights who have made the greatest progress in humanity's understanding of love. Romance has seemed as inexplicable as the beauty of a rainbow. But these days scientists are challenging that notion, and they have rather a lot to say about how and why people love each other.
Is this useful? The scientists think so. For a start, understanding the neurochemical pathways that regulate social attachments may help to deal with defects in people's ability to form relationships. All relationships, whether they are those of parents with their children, spouses with their partners, or workers with their colleagues, rely on an ability to create and maintain social ties. Defects can be disabling, and become apparent as disorders such as autism and schizophrenia—and, indeed, as the serious depression that can result from rejection in love. Research is also shedding light on some of the more extreme forms of sexual behaviour. And, controversially, some utopian fringe groups see such work as the doorway to a future where love is guaranteed because it will be provided chemically, or even genetically engineered from conception.
The scientific tale of love begins innocently enough, with voles. The prairie vole is a sociable creature, one of the only 3% of mammal species that appear to form monogamous relationships. Mating between prairie voles is a tremendous 24-hour effort. After this, they bond for life. They prefer to spend time with each other, groom each other for hours on end and nest together. They avoid meeting other potential mates. The male becomes an aggressive guard of the female. And when their pups are born, they become affectionate and attentive parents. However, another vole, a close relative called the montane vole, has no interest in partnership beyond one-night-stand sex. What is intriguing is that these vast differences in behaviour are the result of a mere handful of genes. The two vole species are more than 99% alike, genetically.
Why do voles fall in love? The details of what is going on—the vole story, as it were—is a fascinating one. When prairie voles have sex, two hormones called oxytocin and vasopressin are released. If the release of these hormones is blocked, prairie-voles' sex becomes a fleeting affair, like that normally enjoyed by their rakish montane cousins. Conversely, if prairie voles are given an injection of the hormones, but prevented from having sex, they will still form a preference for their chosen partner. In other words, researchers can make prairie voles fall in love—or whatever the vole equivalent of this is—with an injection.
A clue to what is happening—and how these results might bear on the human condition—was found when this magic juice was given to the montane vole: it made no difference. It turns out that the faithful prairie vole has receptors for oxytocin and vasopressin in brain regions associated with reward and reinforcement, whereas the montane vole does not. The question is, do humans (another species in the 3% of allegedly monogamous mammals) have brains similar to prairie voles?
To answer that question you need to dig a little deeper. As Larry Young, a researcher into social attachment at Emory University, in Atlanta, Georgia, explains, the brain has a reward system designed to make voles (and people and other animals) do what they ought to. Without it, they might forget to eat, drink and have sex—with disastrous results. That animals continue to do these things is because they make them feel good. And they feel good because of the release of a chemical called dopamine into the brain. Sure enough, when a female prairie vole mates, there is a 50% increase in the level of dopamine in the reward centre of her brain.
Similarly, when a male rat has sex it feels good to him because of the dopamine. He learns that sex is enjoyable, and seeks out more of it based on how it happened the first time. But, in contrast to the prairie vole, at no time do rats learn to associate sex with a particular female. Rats are not monogamous.
This is where the vasopressin and oxytocin come in. They are involved in parts of the brain that help to pick out the salient features used to identify individuals. If the gene for oxytocin is knocked out of a mouse before birth, that mouse will become a social amnesiac and have no memory of the other mice it meets. The same is true if the vasopressin gene is knocked out.
The salient feature in this case is odour. Rats, mice and voles recognise each other by smell. Christie Fowler and her colleagues at Florida State University have found that exposure to the opposite sex generates new nerve cells in the brains of prairie voles—in particular in areas important to olfactory memory. Could it be that prairie voles form an olfactory “image” of their partners—the rodent equivalent of remembering a personality—and this becomes linked with pleasure?
Dr Young and his colleagues suggest this idea in an article published last month in the Journal of Comparative Neurology. They argue that prairie voles become addicted to each other through a process of sexual imprinting mediated by odour. Furthermore, they suggest that the reward mechanism involved in this addiction has probably evolved in a similar way in other monogamous animals, humans included, to regulate pair-bonding in them as well.
You might as well face it... Sex stimulates the release of vasopressin and oxytocin in people, as well as voles, though the role of these hormones in the human brain is not yet well understood. But while it is unlikely that people have a mental, smell-based map of their partners in the way that voles do, there are strong hints that the hormone pair have something to reveal about the nature of human love: among those of Man's fellow primates that have been studied, monogamous marmosets have higher levels of vasopressin bound in the reward centres of their brains than do non-monogamous rhesus macaques.
Other approaches are also shedding light on the question. In 2000, Andreas Bartels and Semir Zeki of University College, London, located the areas of the brain activated by romantic love. They took students who said they were madly in love, put them into a brain scanner, and looked at their patterns of brain activity.
The results were surprising. For a start, a relatively small area of the human brain is active in love, compared with that involved in, say, ordinary friendship. “It is fascinating to reflect”, the pair conclude, “that the face that launched a thousand ships should have done so through such a limited expanse of cortex.” The second surprise was that the brain areas active in love are different from the areas activated in other emotional states, such as fear and anger. Parts of the brain that are love-bitten include the one responsible for gut feelings, and the ones which generate the euphoria induced by drugs such as cocaine. So the brains of people deeply in love do not look like those of people experiencing strong emotions, but instead like those of people snorting coke. Love, in other words, uses the neural mechanisms that are activated during the process of addiction. “We are literally addicted to love,” Dr Young observes. Like the prairie voles.
It seems possible, then, that animals which form strong social bonds do so because of the location of their receptors for vasopressin and oxytocin. Evolution acts on the distribution of these receptors to generate social or non-social versions of a vole. The more receptors located in regions associated with reward, the more rewarding social interactions become. Social groups, and society itself, rely ultimately on these receptors. But for evolution to be able to act, there must be individual variation between mice, and between men. And this has interesting implications.
Last year, Steven Phelps, who works at Emory with Dr Young, found great diversity in the distribution of vasopressin receptors between individual prairie voles. He suggests that this variation contributes to individual differences in social behaviour—in other words, some voles will be more faithful than others. Meanwhile, Dr Young says that he and his colleagues have found a lot of variation in the vasopressin-receptor gene in humans. “We may be able to do things like look at their gene sequence, look at their promoter sequence, to genotype people and correlate that with their fidelity,” he muses.
It has already proved possible to tinker with this genetic inheritance, with startling results. Scientists can increase the expression of the relevant receptors in prairie voles, and thus strengthen the animals' ability to attach to partners. And in 1999, Dr Young led a team that took the prairie-vole receptor gene and inserted it into an ordinary (and therefore promiscuous) mouse. The transgenic mouse thus created was much more sociable to its mate.
Love, love me do Scanning the brains of people in love is also helping to refine science's grasp of love's various forms. Helen Fisher, a researcher at Rutgers University, and the author of a new book on love*, suggests it comes in three flavours: lust, romantic love and long-term attachment. There is some overlap but, in essence, these are separate phenomena, with their own emotional and motivational systems, and accompanying chemicals. These systems have evolved to enable, respectively, mating, pair-bonding and parenting.
Lust, of course, involves a craving for sex. Jim Pfaus, a psychologist at Concordia University, in Montreal, says the aftermath of lustful sex is similar to the state induced by taking opiates. A heady mix of chemical changes occurs, including increases in the levels of serotonin, oxytocin, vasopressin and endogenous opioids (the body's natural equivalent of heroin). “This may serve many functions, to relax the body, induce pleasure and satiety, and perhaps induce bonding to the very features that one has just experienced all this with”, says Dr Pfaus.
Then there is attraction, or the state of being in love (what is sometimes known as romantic or obsessive love). This is a refinement of mere lust that allows people to home in on a particular mate. This state is characterised by feelings of exhilaration, and intrusive, obsessive thoughts about the object of one's affection. Some researchers suggest this mental state might share neurochemical characteristics with the manic phase of manic depression. Dr Fisher's work, however, suggests that the actual behavioural patterns of those in love—such as attempting to evoke reciprocal responses in one's loved one—resemble obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).
That raises the question of whether it is possible to “treat” this romantic state clinically, as can be done with OCD. The parents of any love-besotted teenager might want to know the answer to that. Dr Fisher suggests it might, indeed, be possible to inhibit feelings of romantic love, but only at its early stages. OCD is characterised by low levels of a chemical called serotonin. Drugs such as Prozac work by keeping serotonin hanging around in the brain for longer than normal, so they might stave off romantic feelings. (This also means that people taking anti-depressants may be jeopardising their ability to fall in love.) But once romantic love begins in earnest, it is one of the strongest drives on Earth. Dr Fisher says it seems to be more powerful than hunger. A little serotonin would be unlikely to stifle it. Wonderful though it is, romantic love is unstable—not a good basis for child-rearing. But the final stage of love, long-term attachment, allows parents to co-operate in raising children. This state, says Dr Fisher, is characterised by feelings of calm, security, social comfort and emotional union.
Because they are independent, these three systems can work simultaneously—with dangerous results. As Dr Fisher explains, “you can feel deep attachment for a long-term spouse, while you feel romantic love for someone else, while you feel the sex drive in situations unrelated to either partner.” This independence means it is possible to love more than one person at a time, a situation that leads to jealousy, adultery and divorce—though also to the possibilities of promiscuity and polygamy, with the likelihood of extra children, and thus a bigger stake in the genetic future, that those behaviours bring. As Dr Fisher observes, “We were not built to be happy but to reproduce.”
The stages of love vary somewhat between the sexes. Lust, for example, is aroused more easily in men by visual stimuli than is the case for women. This is probably why visual pornography is more popular with men. And although both men and women express romantic love with the same intensity, and are attracted to partners who are dependable, kind, healthy, smart and educated, there are some notable differences in their choices. Men are more attracted to youth and beauty, while women are more attracted to money, education and position. When an older, ugly man is seen walking down the road arm-in-arm with a young and beautiful woman, most people assume the man is rich or powerful.
These foolish things Of course, love is about more than just genes. Cultural and social factors, and learning, play big roles. Who and how a person has loved in the past are important determinants of his (or her) capacity to fall in love at any given moment in the future. This is because animals—people included—learn from their sexual and social experiences. Arousal comes naturally. But long-term success in mating requires a change from being naive about this state to knowing the precise factors that lead from arousal to the rewards of sex, love and attachment. For some humans, this may involve flowers, chocolate and sweet words. But these things are learnt.
If humans become conditioned by their experiences, this may be the reason why some people tend to date the same “type” of partner over and over again. Researchers think humans develop a “love map” as they grow up—a blueprint that contains the many things that they have learnt are attractive. This inner scorecard is something that people use to rate the suitability of mates. Yet the idea that humans are actually born with a particular type of “soul mate” wired into their desires is wrong. Research on the choices of partner made by identical twins suggests that the development of love maps takes time, and has a strong random component.
Work on rats is leading researchers such as Dr Pfaus to wonder whether the template of features found attractive by an individual is formed during a critical period of sexual-behaviour development. He says that even in animals that are not supposed to pair-bond, such as rats, these features may get fixed with the experience of sexual reward. Rats can be conditioned to prefer particular types of partner—for example by pairing sexual reward with some kind of cue, such as lemon-scented members of the opposite sex. This work may help the understanding of unusual sexual preferences. Human fetishes, for example, develop early, and are almost impossible to change. The fetishist connects objects such as feet, shoes, stuffed toys and even balloons, that have a visual association with childhood sexual experiences, to sexual gratification.
So love, in all its glory, is just, it seems, a chemical state with genetic roots and environmental influences. But all this work leads to other questions. If scientists can make a more sociable mouse, might it be possible to create a more sociable human? And what about a more loving one? A few people even think that “paradise-engineering”, dedicated to abolishing the “biological substrates of human suffering”, is rather a good idea.
As time goes by Progress in predicting the outcome of relationships, and information about the genetic roots of fidelity, might also make proposing marriage more like a job application—with associated medical, genetic and psychological checks. If it were reliable enough, would insurers cover you for divorce? And as brain scanners become cheaper and more widely available, they might go from being research tools to something that anyone could use to find out how well they were loved. Will the future bring answers to questions such as: Does your partner really love you? Is your husband lusting after the au pair?
And then there are drugs. Despite Dr Fisher's reservations, might they also help people to fall in love, or perhaps fix broken relationships? Probably not. Dr Pfaus says that drugs may enhance portions of the “love experience” but fall short of doing the whole job because of their specificity. And if a couple fall out of love, drugs are unlikely to help either. Dr Fisher does not believe that the brain could overlook distaste for someone—even if a couple in trouble could inject themselves with huge amounts of dopamine.
However, she does think that administering serotonin can help someone get over a bad love affair faster. She also suggests it is possible to trick the brain into feeling romantic love in a long-term relationship by doing novel things with your partner. Any arousing activity drives up the level of dopamine and can therefore trigger feelings of romance as a side effect. This is why holidays can rekindle passion. Romantics, of course, have always known that love is a special sort of chemistry. Scientists are now beginning to show how true this is.
From The Economist print edition"

news we need to know - women aged 15 to 24 years are three times likely to be infected with HIV as compared to their male counterparts

2005-08-09T23:01:00.000-07:00

Mmegi Online ::> news we need to know: "Monday 8 August 2005

‘Page 3’ Girls Expose Teenagers To HIV
MONDAY MEETING
BUGALO A CHILUME
8/8/2005 3:03:57 PM (GMT +2)

Like any business, newspapers use various strategies to expand their market base in order to increase profits, the reason for their existence, or raison d’être, to sound sophisticated. One such strategy is the use of the so-called Page 3 Girls - these are photographs of semi-naked teenage girls and young women that appear on the third page of a newspaper.
The Sun, a British tabloid daily newspaper, is credited with popularising, if not inventing, the Page 3 Girl feature. The feature started off as a glamour pinup which then changed to a topless photograph. The Sun currently prints a little more than 3 million copies everyday, making it an English-language newspaper with the highest circulation in the world, let alone in the United Kingdom.
Its mass popularity has been attributed to Page 3 Girls although some of its detractors have described its readership as people with limited intelligence because they readily lap up what they describe as ‘gutter journalism’. Notwithstanding, as a business, The Sun is an unparalleled success; leaving the competition coughing in its dust and at the same time reaping huge profits for its shareholders - the bottom line.
For us, however, the question is whether Page 3 Girls should be used by our newspapers to increase circulation. Of course, under normal circumstances, there would probably be nothing wrong with this, but given our desperate situation regarding HIV and AIDS, and the fact that young women bear the brunt of the epidemic, Page 3 Girls are not a very good idea, at least for now.
Although the current overall national HIV prevalence rate is a deceivingly low 17%, prevalence rates for ages 25 to 49 years range from 30% to 41%. This age group represents the cream of the country’s labour force, and vital income earners for families. Positively frightening!
Females are more affected than males. According to NACA, “the HIV prevalence rates follow an early pattern in females with those aged 15-19 years at 9.8% as compared to 3.1% among males. Females aged 20-24 years have a prevalence rate of 26.2% with males in the same age group at 9.1%, and females aged 25-29 years have 41.0% compared to 22.9% in the male counterpart. The higher rates among females in younger age groups indicate an earlier exposure to risks of infection.”
In other words, women aged 15 to 24 years are three times likely to be infected with HIV as compared to their male counterparts. It therefore follows that teenage girls and young women are the most vulnerable groups and therefore deserve priority focus in our fight against HIV and AIDS.
It is widely accepted that the spread of HIV is fuelled by risky sexual behaviour; hence the key to containing the spread is through behavioural change. Intergenerational sexual relationships between older infected men and teenage girls are often cited as the principal cause for the inordinately higher HIV prevalence rates among young women. We are also made to understand that discouraging these relationships would therefore go a long way in protecting young women from HIV infection.
Needless to say, a woman’s body is at its most beautiful and desirable when she is young, especially during pre-motherhood. Nothing sags; everything is perfect - silky smooth, firm and tight. Naturally, young women are therefore sex partners of choice for men the world over. This is the reason we have Page 3 Girls in the first place. This is also the reason men used to take on additional younger wives before they let go of the practice. And it is also the reason we have inordinately higher HIV prevalence rates amongst young women.
Many grown-up men had started to heed the numerous calls to stay away from teenage girls and young women, despite them being sex partners of choice. This is no mean feat, especially given that men are confronted daily with pictures of half naked teenage girls in the print media, not to mention provocatively dressed, gyrating, sexy teenage girls in music videos on TV. Although their subliminal influence on men cannot be discounted, but because they are foreigners, these teenage girls are far removed from the men’s reality for them to consciously act on the visual stimuli.
However when these men get weekly doses of pictures of our own home-grown half-naked sultry teenage girls who exudes tons of sensuality, it gives them the impression that, just as some of them have secretly been thinking, our teenage girls are after all legitimate targets for their sexual escapades. And seducing these fashion-conscious but penniless teenage girls is akin to a leisurely walk in the park for many men. And the virus triumphantly marches on."

news we need to know - On Male Involvement In Sexual And Reproductive Health: Part I

2005-08-09T22:54:00.000-07:00

Mmegi Online ::> news we need to know: "Monday 8 August 2005

On Male Involvement In Sexual And Reproductive Health: Part I

GUEST COLUMN
ALLET MOYO
8/8/2005 3:01:48 PM (GMT 2)

“Mummy, are men really so naughty?” “Why do you risk that baby?” “Well, teacher asked us to read news papers for our current affairs quiz, and every paper has an article that says men should be more responsible” While I.

have a work related obligation to write this piece, the intense and provocative questions I have had to deal with from my daughter (above) motivated me even more. Granted, the state of affairs as regards “Male involvement” (Ml) in several issues of national concern, particularly sexual and reproductive health (SRH), has been below acceptable levels such that those in authority have felt the need to “challenge” men to action and even “responsibility”. These challenges however, come as authoritarian instructions which merely describe the situation and portray men in a negative light with connotations of irresponsibility. My purpose in this piece is to articulate what MI is by examining why we lament about it; what has shaped it in the distant and recent past and perhaps what is being done to positively shift the status quo.

It is very important that we look at the concept of MI from a holistic perspective. The core issues of national concern revolve around the population and development, as compounded by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, where SRII and male involvement become cross cutting in these issues.

The issue of the “missing male” has been acknowledged over 10 years ago in Cairo at the International Conference on Population and Development, where the importance of addressing SRH needs of all as a core strategy in the development discourse and the need to engage the male sector of the population into participating and bearing"

Good Sexual Health Means Good Overall Health For Men - The Hardness Factor

2005-08-08T23:56:00.000-07:00

All Headline News - Good Sexual Health Means Good Overall Health For Men - August 9, 2005: "Good Sexual Health Means Good Overall Health For Men

August 6, 2005 10:53 p.m. EST

Jasen K Lee - All Headline News Staff Reporter

(AHN) – It isn’t a tough sell to tell men physical health is tied to sexual performance. Dr. Steven Lamm says it’s one of the best ways to measure overall well-being.

Lamm is an assistant professor of medicine at New York University. He tells WebMD, 'There's an incredibly important link between a man's health and sexual performance.'

In his book, The Hardness Factor, he describes the link in vivid detail. He says most people know factors such as substance abuse, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes affect a man’s ability to function sexually.

Erections are a complex process involving hormones, blood vessels, muscles, and one’s mental state - all working together. If one isn't working efficiently, the entire process is affected.

Lamm says The Hardness Factor is not for men currently with erectile dysfunction (ED). He wants to convince young, healthy men to take better care of themselves by speaking to their penises.He says, 'If you want a 28-year-old man to stop smoking, let him read the book.'"

breath-control is the means for mind control

2005-07-22T20:00:00.000-07:00

Kali Ray TriYoga | Sadhana . Prana Vidya: "There is no doubt that breath-control is the means for mind control, because the mind, like breath, is a part of air, because the nature of mobility is common to both, because the place of origin is the same for both, and because when one of them is controlled the other gets controlled.

Sri Ramana Maharshi"

UCLA Scientists Transform HIV Into Cancer-seeking Missile

2005-07-21T22:33:00.000-07:00

UCLA Scientists Transform HIV Into Cancer-seeking Missile: "
UCLA Scientists Transform HIV Into Cancer-seeking Missile Discussion at PhysOrgForum
February 17, 2005

Camouflaging an impotent AIDS virus in new clothes enables it to hunt down metastasized melanoma cells in living mice, reports a UCLA AIDS Institute study in the Feb. 13 online edition of Nature Medicine. The scientists added the protein that makes fireflies glow to the virus in order to track its journey from the bloodstream to new tumors in the animals' lungs.

Today's news:

Electronic Devices

* Sharp to Introduce High-Throughput Combination Memory for Third-Generation Mobile Phones
* Pittsburgh Center Unveils a Bigger, Faster Supercomputer Called 'Big Ben'
* Samsung Highlights 40'' OLED, 82'' LCD TV, Other LCD Technologies at IMID
* JVC Introduces Hard Disk Camcorders

General Science

* Microchip saves Cambodian extremely rare 'royal' turtle from Chinese soup
* Size matters: preventing large mammal extinction
* Christians may have copied Jewish rites
* Virtual trip to the heart of 400 million years old microfossils
* Sighting of rare woodpecker is questioned

Nano and Quantum Physics

* How long does it take an electron to travel from an atom to the next atom?
* ORNL mirrors powerful tools for studying micro-, nano-materials
* DNA-based molecular nano-wires
* Nanotech tools a $700M market

Physics

* Innovative measurement technology: our planet is 'attractive' enough
* R&D 100 award for inexpensive gamma ray detector device
* One-atom-thick materials promise a 'new industrial revolution'
* Physicists create a 'perfect' way to study the Big Bang
* Discussion at PhysOrgForum 'Tall' crystals from tiny templates

Space and Earth science

* NASA honors former astronaut John Young
* Study: Meteoroid erased small Eros craters
* Is ours the only universe?
* Discussion at PhysO"

Asian Sex-Slave Ring Busted in Vermont

2005-07-20T22:55:00.000-07:00

FOXNews.com - U.S. & World - Asian Sex-Slave Ring Busted in Vermont: "Asian Sex-Slave Ring Busted in Vermont
Friday, July 23, 2004
ESSEX JUNCTION, Vt. — The regulars at the Park Place Tavern weren't surprised when police raided what is being described as an Asian brothel in a small house across their shared driveway.
But they were surprised when news reports linked the now-closed Tokyo Spa (search) and two other health clubs in the area to what police say is an international prostitution ring that smuggled Asian women into the United States and made them sex slaves.
"We joked about it here all the time," said Sandy Maloney, who lives in an apartment complex out back.
Maloney said she watched as older men driving expensive out-of-state sport utility vehicles visited the Tokyo Spa at all hours.
Experts in sexual slavery say the Vermont case fits the pattern of a problem that is reaching into the smallest corners of the country.
"Modern-day slavery is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world," said Derek Ellerman, co-executive director of the Washington-based Polaris Project (search), a grass-roots anti-trafficking organization.
"They have done a very good job of spreading into suburban and even rural areas," Ellerman said. "It's a market-driven criminal industry. Wherever there is demand for commercial sex the traffickers will spread to those areas."
There's an eviction notice on the door of the light gray two-story clapboard house that operated as the Tokyo Spa for about a year. The city of Burlington is moving to evict the tenants from another of the spas. At the third, the building owner insists all the activity inside was legal.
Police, though, contend the clubs were offering sexual services along with massages. During the raids earlier this month, authorities arrested eight women — five Korean and three Chinese — on federal immigration charges.
All except two have been released, said Essex police Lt. Gary L. Taylor. No state criminal charges have been filed.
Taylor refused to discuss the ongoing investigation but knew of no other organized prostitution in Vermont's history.
"It's the first time I am aware of," Taylor said.
In court documents, police say the women who worked at the spas never left. Even groceries were brought to the house.
One Korean woman told investigators she had been smuggled into the United States and had only recently arrived at the Tokyo Spa.
Court documents filed by police to get search warrants for the three businesses outline what authorities say could be a link to international organized crime and sexual slavery. Similar operations, according to the papers, are being investigated by federal authorities in New York City, New Jersey and Maine.
"The way these massage parlors or spas or health clubs work, they are really fronts for prostitution," said Donna Hughes of the University of Rhode Island.
Hughes, who has studied international sex trafficking for 15 years, said many of the women have been smuggled into the United States and are being held "by some sort of forced fraud or coercion."
Typically, sex rings offer to bring women into the United States for a fee. Once in the United States, the women are forced to repay the cost of their passage by working as prostitutes.
The women will give most of the money they make to the brothel owner. They are charged for rent and expenses. They can be fined for rule infractions, Hughes said.
"There are all sorts of things they do to prevent these women from getting out," Hughes said. "That may mean these women have been enslaved for 20 years."
The women are then rotated between the brothels as part of a network that has, in some cases, operated nationwide.
Asian women aren't the only ones enslaved. The Vermont case appears to be a Korean network, Ellerman said. And traffickers bring women to the United States from around the world.
Law enforcement has a new tool for fighting the international trafficking. The federal Victims of Trafficking and Violence Prevention Act (search) of 2000 defines women who were forced into prostitution as victims rather than criminals, Hughes said. The statute also offers a range of social benefits and services, including a visa to stay in the United States, for victims who agree to cooperate with the authorities.
Ellerman said the effort to get the public to recognize sexual slavery as a problem is still in its infancy.
"It's much like domestic violence was 30 years ago. It took years to [become] mainstream," Ellerman said. "We're at that beginning stage right now."

AP Wire | 07/20/2005 | Man awarded $2.7 million for popcorn plant injuries

2005-07-20T22:42:00.000-07:00

AP Wire | 07/20/2005 | Man awarded $2.7 million for popcorn plant injuries: "he chemical diacetyl, used to make the popcorn's butter flavoring, causes lung damage."

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - WHAT'S FLUORIDE?

2005-07-19T17:43:00.000-07:00

C&EN: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - WHAT'S THAT STUFF? FLUORIDE: "FLUORIDE
MIKE MCCOY
A vocal minority aside, most people approve of the addition of fluoride to their toothpaste and drinking water to help prevent tooth decay. For better or worse, fluoride is ubiquitous, yet many people don't know what that stuff is.
According to a history of fluoridation prepared by the National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research, the understanding of fluoride's role in tooth decay prevention got its start in 1901, when a young dental school graduate named Frederick S. McKay decided to open a practice in Colorado Springs, Colo.
When he arrived, McKay was astounded to find scores of townspeople with brown stains on their teeth. At the same time, he later learned, the mottled teeth were surprisingly resistant to decay. McKay's quest to determine the cause of the staining ended three decades later with the discovery that the town's drinking water had high levels of naturally occurring fluoride.
Subsequent research determined that water fluoride levels below 1 ppm prevent decay without the attendant staining. In a trial launched in 1945, Grand Rapids, Mich., became the first city to fluoridate its water; 11 years later, the benefits of the practice were clear and widespread fluoridation began.
FLUORIDE PREVENTS decay in two main ways: It reduces the ability of bacteria in plaque to generate tooth-weakening acids, and it helps remineralize those tooth areas where acid attack has already begun. The agent doing the work is the fluoride ion; the chemical compound it's part of does not matter, as long as the ion is available in solution.
Perhaps because of this flexibility, separate classes of compounds have evolved as fluoride sources for drinking water and for toothpaste.
For toothpaste, the Food & Drug Administration has blessed three decay-preventing compounds: stannous fluoride, sodium fluoride, and sodium monofluorophosphate (MFP). All are derived from hydrofluoric acid, which in turn is made by reacting sulfuric acid with fluorspar, a calcium fluoride-rich ore.
Ozark Fluorine Specialties in Tulsa, Okla., makes all three compounds, and, in fact, it claims to be the only U.S. company producing U.S. Pharmacopeia-grade fluorides at all. Business Manager Philip Rakita says the company sells "millions of pounds of dentifrice fluoride a year" to toothpaste makers worldwide.
The trick to making fluoride toothpastes is marrying the fluoride with a compatible abrasive. For example, the simplest and most obvious fluoride choice, sodium fluoride, isn't very soluble in the presence of calcium phosphates, the abrasive used in most early toothpastes.
Procter & Gamble was the first company to find a fluoride-abrasive combination that worked, pairing stannous fluoride with calcium pyrophosphate. It launched this formula in 1955 as Crest and proceeded to dominate the fluoride toothpaste market for the next 10 years.
P&G was on top, but the next dental fluoride breakthrough--MFP--was already in the works. Ozark had discovered the compound in 1949 and by the early 1960s was selling it to toothpaste makers overseas. MFP really took off in 1967 when Colgate-Palmolive first launched Colgate with MFP, providing new competition for Crest and cementing fluoridated toothpaste as the marketplace standard.
Sodium fluoride didn't debut until 1982, when P&G came out with Advanced Formula Crest, which uses a hydrated silica abrasive that doesn't hinder sodium fluoride dissociation. The later rise of gel toothpastes, which owe their translucence to silica, also created sodium fluoride demand.
Today, Rakita says, sodium fluoride is probably the leading dentifrice fluoride. All three are still in use, though, their choice determined by compatibility with other ingredients in the wide variety of toothpastes made today. MFP, for example, is in some versions of Colgate and in Chesebrough-Ponds's Close-Up and Aim. A recent survey of drugstore shelves turned up stannous fluoride only once, in a Colgate toothpaste with 5% potassium nitrate that treats sensitive teeth.
Water fluoridation, while serving the same decay-preventive purpose as toothpaste fluoridation, uses a different set of chemicals derived from a different source.
The chief water fluoridation chemical is hydrofluosilicic acid (HFS), a phosphate fertilizer coproduct. The fertilizer manufacturing process starts with the digestion of phosphate rock--fluorapatite or [Ca3(PO4)2]3CaF2--in sulfuric acid. The hydrogen fluoride generated reacts with silica impurities in the rock to form silicon tetrafluoride, which further combines with hydrogen fluoride to produce HFS.
THE SODIUM SALT of HFS, sodium silicofluoride (SSF), is also used in water fluoridation, as is a water treatment grade of sodium fluoride made directly from hydrofluoric acid.
According to Mark Looney, inorganic fluorides business vice president at Solvay Fluorides, a major marketer of HFS and SSF, most U.S. phosphate fertilizer makers collect HFS at their plants. These firms tend to be in phosphate rock-rich Central Florida and North Carolina.
Because it's a coproduct, HFS is subject to the vagaries of the world's need for fertilizer, much of which is supplied by the U.S. The export market is slow right now, Looney notes, but the HFS market is still in balance. In contrast, a severe fertilizer industry downturn in the mid-1980s led to shortages of HFS and the temporary cessation of fluoridation in some municipalities; however, Looney doesn't see that happening again.
One trend Looney does see is a slow shift from granular SSF to easier-to-handle liquid HFS. Water-treatment-grade sodium fluoride, made in North America only by Solvay, is popular with small and medium-sized water systems because dispensing systems are efficient and easy to maintain, he adds.
Although the water fluoridation business is pretty mature, Looney notes that opportunity still knocks: Los Angeles began fluoridating its water supply just two years ago, and eight of the country's largest 50 cities still go without. In contrast, virtually every toothpaste is fluoridated, so the only market spark Ozark's Rakita can hope for is a request--unlikely, he admits--for a new toothpaste fluoride."

Procedure for Removing Mercury Amalgam (Silver) Dental Fillings

2005-07-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

Procedure for Removing Mercury Amalgam (Silver) Dental Fillings: "How to Remove Mercury Amalgam (Silver) Dental Fillings
How can I Safely Remove Mercury Amalgam Fillings

The protocol we recommend dentists follow when removing mercury amalgam fillings is based on that of the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT). Even though some of its recommended procedures may vary from dentist to dentist we feel it’s important for you to be aware of this protocol because it was designed to minimize your exposure to mercury vapor and particles.
Safe Amalgam Filling Removal: Guidelines for Dentist and Staff

1. Keep the fillings cool during removal. Drilling out an amalgam filling generates a tremendous amount of heat, which causes a dramatic increase in the release of mercury, both as a vapor and in amalgam particles, during the entire removal process. Cooling the filling with water and air while drilling dramatically reduces the amount of mercury vapor the filling releases. Most mercury free dentists use a removal process that’s commonly referred to as chunking. This involves less drilling, because the dentist only drills enough to cut the filling into chunks, which can then be easily removed by a hand instrument or suction.

2. Use a high-volume evacuator. Most mercury free dentists use a more powerful suction system than those used by most pro-amalgam dentists. We feel this is one of the most important tools in minimizing the patient’s exposure to mercury vapor and amalgam particles. The evacuator tip should always be kept to within 1⁄2 inch of the filling during the entire time the filling is being removed. This helps capture more of the mercury vapor and particles.

3. Use additional air purification. Some mercury free dentists use an additional air filtering system that’s placed as close to the patient’s mouth as is practical. The more popular ones resemble an elephant’s trunk and have openings about 4 inches in diameter. This can be helpful, but we agree with those mercury free dentists who believe that the patient can be adequately protected without such a system. It’s a nice addition to the removal protocol, but more important for the dentist and assistant than the average patient.

4. Provide the patient with an alternative source of air. Not every mercury-free dentist agrees with us, but we believe it’s essential to provide dental patients with an alternative air source while their amalgam fillings are being removed. This isn’t necessary after the removal process is completed, when the tooth is being prepared for the new filling, and while the new filling is being placed.

But during the actual amalgam filling removal, the patient should be provided with a protective mask through which to breathe either compressed air from a tank, air from a source outside the office, or oxygen from a tank. Always instruct the patient to breathe through the nose and avoid breathing through the mouth while the fillings are being removed. We think this is especially important for pregnant and nursing mothers, patients who have existing health issues related to mercury, allergies, or immune system problems.

5. Use a rubber dam. A rubber dam isolates the tooth or teeth being worked on. Some mercury free dentists don’t believe this is absolutely necessary, but it’s our opinion that it can reduce the amount of mercury vapor inhaled through the mouth. Even though mercury vapor can pass through the rubber dam, we believe that a rubber dam makes it easier to evacuate the filling material and prevent amalgam particles from being swallowed. As long as the patient breathes through the nose, little if any mercury vapor will pass through the rubber dam.

Finally, it offers an isolated and dry field for placing the composite filling. It does take a little extra time to place and remove the rubber dam, and some patients don’t welcome this. But anyone who is concerned about minimizing mercury exposure should insist on its use. In any case, the patient should be instructed not to swallow while the fillings are being drilled. As in everything, there are exceptions. With some teeth, particularly 3rd molars, or so-called wisdom teeth, it may not be possible to place a rubber dam. As long as the dental team uses all the other protocols, this is acceptable.

6. Immediately dispose of filling particles. While a dentist working alone can safely remove mercury amalgam fillings, it is easier for everyone to have an assistant working with him throughout the removal procedure. This will ensure constant suction and a continuous flow of air and water.

7. Remove gloves and clean the patient’s mouth. Once the amalgam filling(s) have been safely removed and replaced, the dentist and the assistant should remove and dispose of their gloves and the rubber dam, and thoroughly rinse and vacuum the patient’s entire mouth for at least 15 seconds. The patient should make every effort not to swallow during this procedure. We also suggest that after the rinsing procedure, the patient use a small amount of water and gargle as far back into her throat as possible. The patient should not swallow this watery residue! Instead, he should spit it into a sink or cup.

8. Immediately clean up. After the fillings have been removed and replaced, the dentist or dental assistant should immediately remove and dispose of the patient’s protective covering and thoroughly clean her face and neck.

9. Keep room air as pure as possible. There are a number of effective ways to purify the air in the office. We’re not making specific recommendations. But most mercury free dental offices filter the office air, as they work in it all day and it’s to their benefit to do so. This is more important for the dentist and staff than for the patient. Although mercury free offices don’t place amalgam fillings, they certainly are required to remove them. Removing the fillings releases significant amounts of mercury vapor, and any mercury free dentist would want to take the necessary precautions to protect the entire staff from excessive exposure to mercury.

10. Use activated charcoal. There’s some evidence that activated charcoal taken 10-15 minutes before amalgam removal can bind smaller particles of swallowed mercury, allowing them to be harmlessly passed out of the intestine via the feces. We consider this to be optional, as very little elemental or inorganic mercury is absorbed through the intestine, but it can’t hurt.

Note: We recommend that anyone who has mercury related symptoms or diseases related to chronic mercury poisoning, allergies, or immune system dysfunction, have their amalgam fillings removed in a safe way. "

Mercury Free and Healthy, The Dental Amalgam Issue

2005-07-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

Mercury Free and Healthy, The Dental Amalgam Issue: "

Mercury Free and Healthy "the first wealth is health" Ralph Waldo Emerson "Diseases are crises of purification, of toxic elimination." Hypocrites, 500 BC

The Dental Amalgam Issue
"a terrible sin against humanity"
Dr. Alfred Stock, 1926

Prepared March 2004
(first prepared February 1997)

by
DAMS Inc.
P.O. Box 7249
Minneapolis, MN 55407-0249
1-800-311-6265

Ever since dentists first started installing amalgams in patients' teeth there has been an issue as to whether the dose of mercury is released from them and causes health (pathophysiologic) problems. This web page presents information pertaining to the dental amalgam issue. Subjects presented in the contents list are linked to subsequent portions of the web page.

Contents List
I) Introduction
I a) Fundamental Health Flaws
I b) The Truth and the Hippocratic Oath
I c) Historical Overview of Mercury Use in Dentistry
Id) Has the US Food and Drug Administration Approved the Mixed Dental Amalgam?

II) Paramount Scientific Documents
II a) Review
II b) Dental Mercury Impairs Kidney Function
II c) Dental Mercury Provokes an Increase in Oral and Intestinal Floras
II d) Dental Amalgam Mercury in the Human Population
II d1) Dental Mercury is Source of Two-Thirds of Mercury in Population
II d2) Neurological Behavioral Effects from Exposure to Dental Amalgam Mercury (focuses on dental personnel)
II d3) Mobilization of Mercury and Arsenic in Humans by DMPS (including dental personnel)
II e) Mercury Exposure via Breast Milk
II f) Infertility
IIg) Mercury Associated with Cardiac Dysfunction

III) Fetal Malformations
III a) Sheep Study
III b) Rat Studies
III c) Human Study

IV) Alzheimer's Disease Studies
IV a) Trace Elements in Alzheimer's Disease Brains
IV b) Mercury Vapor Inhalation Inhibits Tubulin in Rat Brain
IV c) HgEDTA Complex Inhibits Tubulin
IV d) Increased Blood Mercury Levels in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease
IVe) Mercury Induces Cell Cytotoxicity and Oxidative Stress and Increases ÃŸ-Amyloid Secretion and Tau Phosphorylation in SHSY5Y Neuroblastoma Cells
IV f) Retrograde degeneration of neurite membrane structural integrity of nerve growth cones following in vitro exposure to mercury

V) Amalgam Removal
V a) Patient Preparation for Amalgam Removal
V b) Dental Procedures for Patient Protection During amalgam Removal
V c) Amalgam Removal without Patient Protection
V d) Amalgam Removal with Patient Protection
V e) Pregnancy Precaution
V f) Patient Reports
V g) Chronic Disease a Big Financial Burden, and Growing

VI) Dental Mercury A Source of Air and Water Pollution
VIa) Mercury in Dental Clinic Wastewater Discharge

VII) American Dental Association's (ADA) Position
VII a) Journal of the American Dental Association
VII b) Superior Court Demurrer
VII c) ADA Code of Ethics
VII d) ADA Internet Site

VIII) Composite Restoration Material

IX) State Statute
IX a) Colorado Statute
IX b)
IX c)
IXd)

X) Amalgam Lawsuit

XI) Notice to Amalgam Manufactures

XII) Government Phase Outs

XIII) Organizations

XIV) Books Available

XV) Newsletters

XVI) Other Web Pages

XVII) Amalgam Related Conventions

XVIII) Request for Finincial Support of Web Page

IXX) The Mercury Free and Healthy Campaign (Bumper Sticker Orders)

XX) DAMS PRESS RELEASE
XXa) Mercury in Dental Filling Disclosure and Prohibition Act

I) Introduction

Ever since dentists first started installing amalgams in patients' teeth there has been an issue as to whether mercury is released and causes health (pathophysiologic) problems. Then in 1984 a group of conscientious dentists formed the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT). One of their objectives was to scientifically explore the safety of amalgam restorations. Since 1984, members of the IAOMT have inspired many renowned medical scientists at universities around the world to research possible pathophysiologic effects associated with mercury leaking from amalgam restorations. Consequently, there are a growing number of scientific studies that document pathophysiologic effects associated with amalgam mercury.

I a) Fundamental Health Flaws

A "silver filling" is a euphemism for an amalgam restoration, which a dentist places in a patient's tooth after a cavity is created by drilling out decay. Amalgam restorations consist of mercury, silver, tin, copper, and a trace amount of zinc. The dental amalgam has two fundamental flaws that adversely effect a patient's health. The first fundamental flaw is that all amalgam metals are cations. The net result of the tendency for covalent, ionic and metallic bonding and van der Waals forces between amalgam cations is a weak repulsion. So there is a sustained release of mercury and other metals from the amalgam into the body. Researchers have measured a daily release of mercury on the order of 10 micrograms from the amalgam into the body. Mercury is a toxic metal; the most minute amount damages cells.

The second fundamental flaw is that there are five dissimilar metals in the amalgam. Galvanic action between these metals in inevitable (the dissimilar metals form a battery). Galvanism produces electricity that flows through the body. The electric currents produced by the amalgam typically are between 0.1 and 10 microamps, compared to the body's natural electric current of 3 microamps.

The mercury challenges systemic functions of every individual and of developing fetuses, so it can lead to health problems and fetal malformations. Mercury leakage and its subsequent pathophysiologic effects are most often slow, insidious processes. So health problems caused by dental mercury poisoning are perceived many years after the amalgams are placed.

I b) The Truth and the Hippocratic Oath

Arthur Schopenhauer, 19th Century Philosopher ..."All truth passes through three stages: first it is ridiculed, second it is violently opposed, and third it is accepted as self-evident."

"...I will prescribe regimen for the good of my patients according to my ability and my judgment and never do harm to anyone. To please no one, will I prescribe a deadly drug nor give advice which may cause his death. If I keep this oath faithfully, may I enjoy my life and practice my art, respected by all men and in all times; but if I swerve from it or violate it, may the reverse be my lot."

I c) Historical Overview of Mercury Use in Dentistry

Lorscheider, F.L., Vimy, M.J., and Summers, A.O. "Mercury Exposure from Silver Tooth Fillings: Emerging Evidence Questions a Traditional Dental Paradigm." FASEB Journal (April 1995).

As early as the 7th century, the Chinese used a "silver paste" containing mercury (Hg) to fill decayed teeth. Throughout the Middle Ages, alchemists in China and Europe observed that this mysterious silvery liquid, extracted from cinnabar ore, was volatile and would quickly disappear as vapor when mildly heated. Alchemists were fascinated that at room temperature Hg appeared to "dissolve" powders of other metals such as silver, tin, and copper. By the early 1800's, the use of a Hg/silver paste as a tooth filling material was being popularized in England and France and it was eventually introduced into North America in the 1830s. Some early dental practitioners expressed concerns that the Hg/silver mixture (amalgam) expanded after setting, frequently fracturing the tooth or protruding above the cavity preparation, and thereby prevented proper jaw closure. Other dentists were concerned about mercurial poisoning, because it was already widely recognized that Hg exposure resulted in many overt side effects, including dementia and loss of motor coordination. By 1845, as a reflection of these concerns, the American Society of Dental Surgeons and several affiliated regional dental societies adopted a resolution that its members sign a pledge not to use amalgam. Consequently, during the next decade some members of the society were suspended for the malpractice of using amalgam. But the advocates of amalgam eventually prevailed and membership in the American Society of Dental Surgeons declined, forcing it to disband in 1856. In its place arose the American Dental Association, founded in 1859, based on the advocacy of amalgam as a safe and desirable tooth filling material. Shortly thereafter, tin was added to the Hg/silver paste to counteract the expansion properties of the previous amalgam formula.

There were compelling economic reasons for promoting dental amalgam as a replacement for the other common filling materials of the day such as cement, lead, gold, and tinfoil. Amalgam's introduction meant that dental care would now be within the financial means of a much wider sector of the population, and because amalgam was simple and easy to use, dentists could readily be trained to treat the anticipated large number of new patients. By 1895, the dental amalgam mixture of metals had been modified further to control for expansion and contraction, and the basic formula has remained essentially unchanged since then. Scientific concerns about amalgam safety initially surfaced in Germany during the 1920's, but eventually subsided without a clear resolution. At the present time, based on 1992 dental manufacturer specifications, amalgam (at mixing) typically contains approximately 50% metallic Hg, 35% silver, 9% tin, 6% copper, and a trace of zinc. Estimates of annual Hg usage by U.S. dentists range from approximately 100,000 kg in the 1970's to 70,000 kg today. Hg fillings continue to remain the material preferred by 92% of U.S. dentists for restoring posterior teeth. More than 100 million Hg fillings are placed each year in the U.S. Presently, organized dentistry has countered the controversy surrounding the use of Hg fillings by claiming that Hg reacts with the other amalgam metals to form a "biologically inactive substance" and by observing that dentists have not reported any adverse side effects in patients. Long-term use and popularity also continue to be offered as evidence of amalgam safety.

Id) Has the US Food and Drug Administration Approved the Mixed Dental Amalgam?

The simple answer is NO! What the FDA has done is to approve the two components that make up amalgam i.e, mercury and dental alloy, but have not seen fit to approve ''mixed amalgam,'' which is what is actually used as the filling material placed in your teeth. Yes, that is correct. Although charged by law to evaluate and classify every medical or dental device to be used on or in humans, the FDA has not evaluated or classified ''mixed amalgam'' the material used in 75-80% of all tooth restorations. To avoid classifying mixed amalgam, the FDA simply took the position that mixed amalgam was a ''reaction'' product manufactured by the dentist when he or she mixed the mercury with the alloy before placing it in your tooth.

Federal regulations allow dentists to assemble products, like the amalgam, that will be used solely in their professional practice. Because amalgam constituents (dental mercury and amalgam alloy) are substantially equivalent to devices that existed in interstate commerce prior to May 28, 1976 (the enactment date of the Medical Device Amendments) the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permits them to be marketed under regulatory controls. This predication does not denote FDA approval of the amalgam or of its constituents. So the amalgam is truly an unregulated product that dentists assemble from two predicated devices.

II) Paramount Scientific Documents

The amalgam has two fundamental health flaws: 1) it has a sustained release of mercury and other toxic metals into the body, and 2) galvanic action produces electricity that flows through the body. Since pathophysiologic effects that toxicity has on the body can be objectively measured, scientific research pertaining to the amalgam's fundamental health flaws have been focused on the sustained mercury release. Abstracts to some of the more paramount scientific documents pertaining to pathophysiologic effects of the released mercury are presented below.

II a) Review

Lorscheider, F.L., Vimy, M.J., and Summers, A.O. "Mercury Exposure from Silver Tooth Fillings: Emerging Evidence Questions a Traditional Dental Paradigm." FASEB Journal (April 1995).

SUMMARY: This document reviews results of animal and human studies of pathophysiologic effects related to mercury leaking from amalgam restorations. Some pertinent points presented include:

* every amalgam daily releases on the order of 10 micrograms of mercury into the body (i.e. 3,000,000,000,000,000 mercury atoms per day),
* more than 2/3 of the excretable mercury in humans is derived from amalgams,
* mercury crosses the maternal placenta into the tissue of a developing fetus,
* mercury is capable of inducing auto immunity,
* mercury immediately and continually challenges the kidney's functioning,
* mercury can enhance the prevalence of multiple antibiotic resistant intestinal bacteria, and
* people exposed to mercury on a sustained basis are at risk to lowered fertility.

II b) Dental Mercury Impairs Kidney Function

Boyd, N.D., H. Benediktsson, M.J. Vimy, D.E. Hooper, and F.L. Lorscheider, "Mercury From Dental "Silver" Tooth Fillings Impairs Sheep Kidney Function", Am.J. Physiol. 261, Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 30: R1010-R1014, (1991).

ABSTRACT: In humans Hg vapor is released from "silver" amalgam fillings that contain 50% Hg by weight. Previous studies show that when 12 such fillings are placed in sheep teeth, the kidneys will concentrate amalgam Hg at levels ranging from 5 to 10 ug Hg/g renal tissue 4 to 20 weeks after placement. In the present study 12 occlusal fillings were placed in each of six adult female sheep under general anesthesia, using standard dental procedures. Glass ionomer occlusal fillings (12) were inserted in two control sheep. At several days before dental surgery, and at 30 and 60 days after placement of fillings, renal function was evaluated by plasma clearance of inulin and by plasma and urine electrolytes, urea, and proteins. An average plasma inulin clearance rate of 69.5 +/- 7.2 ml/min before amalgam placement was reduced to 32.3 +/- 8.1 ml/min by 30 days and remained low at 27.9 +/- 8.7 ml/min after 60 days. Inulin clearance did not change in controls. After amalgam placement urine concentration of albumin decreased from 93.0 +/- 20.5 to 30.1 +/- 15.3 mg/l and urine Na concentrations increased steadily from 24.8 +/- 7.7 to 82.2 +/- 20.3 mmol/l at 60 days. Concentrations of K, urea, Y-glutamyl transpeptidase, alkaline phosphatase, and total protein did not change significantly form 0 to 60 days in urine. Plasma levels of Na, K, urea, and albumin remained unchanged form 0 to 60 days after amalgam. Renal histology remained normal in amalgam-treated animals. It is concluded that amalgam Hg levels in kidney are sufficient to significantly reduce the rate of inulin clearance by non defined mechanisms and that electrolyte patterns in urine are consistent with impaired renal tubular reabsorption.

II c) Dental Mercury Provokes an Increase in Oral and Intestinal Floras

Summers, A.O., J.Wireman, M.J. Vimy, F.L. Lorscheider, B. Marshall, S.B. Levy, S. Bennett, and L. Billard, "Mercury Released form Dental "Silver" Fillings Provokes an Increase in Mercury- and Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Oral and Intestinal Floras of Primates", Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, (April 1993), pages 825 - 834.

ABSTRACT: In a survey of 640 human subjects, a subgroup of 356 persons without recent exposure to antibiotics demonstrated that those with a high prevalence of Hg resistance in their intestinal floras were significantly more likely to also have resistance to two or more antibiotics. This observation led us to consider the possibility that mercury released from amalgam ("silver") dental restorations might be a selective agent for both mercury- and antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the oral and intestinal floras of primates. Resistances to mercury and the several antibiotics were examined in the oral and intestinal floras of six adult monkeys prior the the installation of amalgam fillings, during the time they were in place, and after replacement of the amalgam fillings with glass ionomer fillings (in four of the monkeys). The monkeys were fed an antibiotic-free diet, and fecal mercury concentrations were monitored. There was a statistically significant increase in the incidence of mercury-resistant bacteria during the 5 weeks following installation of the amalgam fillings and during the 5 weeks immediately following their replacement with glass ionomer fillings. These peaks in incidence of mercury-resistant bacteria correlated with peaks of Hg elimination (as high as 1mM in the feces) immediately following amalgam placement and immediately after replacement of the amalgam fillings. Representative mercury-resistant isolates of three selected bacterial families (oral streptococci, members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, and enterocaocci) were also resistant to one or more antibiotics, including ampicillin, tetracycline, streptomycin, kanamycin, and chloramphenicol. While such mercury- and antibiotic-resistant isolates among the staphylococci, the enterococci, and members of the family Enterobacteriaceae, have been described, this is the first report of mercury resistance in the oral streptococci. Many of the enterobacterial strains were able to transfer mercury and antibiotic resistances together to laboratory bacterial recipients, suggesting that the loci for these resistances are genetically linked. Our findings indicate that mercury released from amalgam fillings can cause an enrichment of mercury resistance plasmids in the normal bacterial floras of primates. Many of these plasmids also carry antibiotic resistance, implicating the exposure to mercury from dental amalgams in an increased incidence of multiple antibiotic resistance plasmids in the normal floras of nonmedicated subjects.

II d) Dental Amalgam Mercury in the Human Population

II d1) Dental Mercury is Source of Two-Thirds of Mercury in Population

Aposhian, H.V., D.C. Bruce, W. Alter, R.C. Dart, K.M. Hurlbut, M.M. Aposhian, "Urinary Mercury after Administration of 2, 3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonic acid: Correlation with Dental Amalgam Score" FASEB J. 6: 2472-2476; (1992).

ABSTRACT: There is a considerable controversy as to whether dental amalgams may cause systemic health effects in humans because they liberate elemental mercury. Most such amalgams contain as much as 50% metallic mercury. To determine the influence of dental amalgams on the mercury body burden of humans, we have given volunteers, with and without amalgams in their mouth, the sodium salt of 2, 3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonic acid (DMPS), a chelating agent safely used in the Soviet Union and West Germany for a number of years. The diameters of dental amalgams of the subjects were determined to obtain the amalgam score. Administration of 300 mg DMPS by mouth increased the mean urinary mercury excretion of the amalgam group from 0.70 to 17.2 ug and that of the non amalgam group from 0.27 to 5.1 ug over a 9 hour period. Two-thirds of the mercury excreted in the urine of those with dental amalgams appears to be derived originally from the mercury vapor released from their amalgams. Linear regression analysis indicated a highly significant positive correlation between the mercury excreted in the urine 2 hours after DMPS administration and the dental amalgam scores. DMPS can be used to increase the urinary excretion of mercury and thus increase the significance and reliability of this measure of mercury exposure or burden, especially in cases of micromercurialism.

II d2) Neurological Behavaioral Effects from Exposure to Dental Amalgam Mercury (focuses on dental personnel)

D. Echeverria, H.V. Aposhian, J.S. Woods, N.J. Heyer, M.M. Aposhian, A.C. Bittner Jr., R.K. Mahurn, and M. Cianciola, "Neurobehavioral effects from exposure to dental amalgam Hg: new distinctions between recent exposure and Hg body burden," FASEB Journal 12, 971-980 (1998).

ABSTRACT: Potential toxicity from exposure to mercury vapor (Hg) from dental amalgam fillings is the subject of current public health debate in many countries. We evaluated potential central nervous system (CNS) toxicity associated with handling Hg-containing amalgam materials among dental personnel with very low levels of Hg exposure (i.e., urinary Hg < 4 ug/l), applying a neurobehavioral test battery to evaluate CNS functions in relation to both recent exposure and Hg body burden. New distinctions between subtle preclinical effects on symptoms, mood, motor function, and cognition were found associated with Hg body burden as compared with those associated with recent exposure. The pattern of results, comparable to findings previously reported among subjects with urinary Hg > 50 ug/l, presents convincing new evidence of adverse behavioral effects associated with low Hg exposures within the range of that received by the general population.

II d3) Mobilization of Mercury and Arsenic in Humans by DMPS (including dental personnel)

H.V. Aposhian, "Mobilization of Mercury and Arsenic in Humans by Sodium 2, 3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonate (DMPS)," Environmental Health Perspectives Vol 106, Supplement 4, (August 1998).

Sodium 2, 3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonate (DMPS, Dimaval) is a water-soluble chelating agent that can be given by mouth or systemically and has been used to treat metal intoxication since the 1960's in the former Soviet Union and since 1978 in Germany. To better approximate the body burdens of Hg and As in humans, DMPS-Hg and DMPS-AS challenge tests have been developed. The tests involve collecting an overnight urine, administering 300 mg DMPS at zero time, collecting the urine from 0 to 6 hours, and determining the urinary Hg before and after DMPS is given. The challenge test, when applied to normal college student volunteers with and without amalgam restorations in their mouths, indicated that two-thirds of the Hg excreted in the urine after DMPS administration originated in their dental amalgams. In addition, there was a positive linear correlation between the amalgam score (a measure of amalgam surface) and urinary Hg after the challenge test. When the DMPS-Hg challenge test was used to study dental personnel occupationally exposed to Hg, the urinary excretion of Hg was 88, 49, and 35 times greater after DMPS administration than before administration in 10 dental technicians, 5 dentists, and 13 nondental personnel, respectively. DMPS also was used to measure the body burden of humans with a history of drinking water containing 600 ug As/liter. DMPS administration resulted in a tripling of the monomethylarsonic acid percentage and a halving of the dimethylarsinic acid percentage as related to total urinary As. Because South American animals studied were deficient in arsenite methytransferase, a hypothesis is presented that arsenite and arsenite methyltransferase may have had a role in the evolution of some South American animals.

II e) Mercury Exposure via Breast Milk

Vimy, M.J., Hooper, D.E., King, W.W., Lorscheider, F.L., "Mercury from Maternal "Silver" Tooth Fillings in Sheep and Human Breast Milk: A Source of Neonatal Exposure" Biological Trace Element Research, 56:143-52, (1997).

ABSTRACT: Neonatal uptake of Hg from milk was examined in a pregnant sheep model, where radioactive mercury (Hg203)/silver tooth fillings (amalgam) were newly placed. A crossover experimental design was used in which lactating ewes nursed foster lambs. In a parallel study, the relationship between dental history and breast milk concentration of Hg was also examined.

Results from the animal studies showed that, during pregnancy, a primary fetal site of amalgam, Hg concentration is in the liver, and after delivery the neonatal lamb kidney receives additional amalgam Hg from mother's milk. In lactating women with aged amalgam fillings, increased Hg excretion in breast milk and urine correlated with the number of fillings or Hg vapor concentration levels in mouth air.

It was concluded that Hg originating from maternal amalgam tooth fillings transfers across the placenta to the fetus, across the mammary gland into milk ingested by the newborn and ultimately into neonatal body tissues. Comparisons are made to the U.S. minimal risk level recently established for adult Hg exposure. These findings suggest the placement and removal of "silver" tooth filings in pregnant and lactating humans will subject the fetus and neonate to unnecessary risk of Hg exposure.

II f) Infertility

Gerhard, I., Monga, B., Waldbrenner, A., Runnebaum, B., "Heavy Metals and Fertility" Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part, A, 54:593-611, (1998).

Heavy metals have been identified as factors affecting human fertility. This study was designed to investigate whether the urinary heavy metal excretion is associated with different factors of infertility. The urinary heavy metal excretion was determined in 501 infertile women after oral administration of the chelating agent 2,3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonic acid (DMPS). Furthermore, the influence of trace element and vitamin administration on metal excretion was investigated. Significant correlations were found between different heavy metals and clinical parameters (age, body mass index, nationality) as well as gynecological conditions (uterine fibroids, miscarriages, hormonal disorders). Diagnosis and reduction of an increased heavy metal body load improved the spontaneous conception chances of infertile women. The DMPS test was a useful and complementary diagnostic method. Adequate treatment provides successful alternatives to conventional hormonal therapy.

IIg) Mercury Associated with Cardiac Dysfunction

Frustaci A, Magnavita N, Chimenti C, Caldarulo M, Sabbioni E, Pietra R, Cellini C, Possati GF, Maseri A. Department of Cardiology, Catholic University, Rome, Italy. "Marked elevation of myocardial trace elements in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy compared with secondary cardiac dysfunction." From: J Am Coll Cardiol 1999 May;33(6):1578-83

OBJECTIVES: We sought to investigate the possible pathogenetic role of myocardial trace elements (TE) in patients with various forms of cardiac failure.
BACKGROUND: Both myocardial TE accumulation and deficiency have been associated with the development of heart failure indistinguishable from an idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. METHODS: Myocardial and muscular content of 32 TE has been assessed in biopsy samples of 13 patients (pts) with clinical, hemodynamic and histologic diagnosis of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDCM), all without past or current exposure to TE. One muscular and one left ventricular (LV) endomyocardial specimen from each patient, drawn with metal contamination-free technique, were analyzed by neutron activation analysis and compared with 1) similar surgical samples from patients with valvular (12 pts)and ischemic (13 pts) heart disease comparable for age and degree of LV dysfunction; 2) papillary and skeletal muscle surgical biopsies from 10 pts with mitral stenosis and normal LV function, and 3) LV endomyocardial biopsies from four normal subjects.
RESULTS: A large increase (>10,000 times for mercury and antimony) of TE concentration has been observed in myocardial but not in muscular samples in all pts with IDCM. Patients with secondary cardiac dysfunction had mild increase (< or = 5 times) of myocardial TE and normal muscular TE. In particular, in pts with IDCM mean mercury concentration was 22,000 times (178,400 ng/g vs. 8 ng/g), antimony 12,000 times (19,260 ng/g vs. 1.5 ng/g), gold 11 times (26 ng/g vs. 2.3 ng/g), chromium 13 times (2,300 ng/g vs. 177 ng/g) and cobalt 4 times (86,5 ng/g vs. 20 ng/g) higher than in control subjects.
CONCLUSIONS: A large, significant increase of myocardial TE is present in IDCM but not in secondary cardiac dysfunction. The increased concentration of TE in pts with IDCM may adversely affect mitochondrial activity and myocardial metabolism and worsen cellular function.

III) Fetal Malformations

James Paget Lancet 2:1017, 1882

We ought not to set them aside with idle thoughts or idle words about "curiosities" or "chances." Not one of them is without meaning; not one that might not become the beginning of excellent knowledge, if only we could answer the question - why is it rare or being rare, why did it in this instance happen?

McKeown T., "Human Malformations: Introduction" British Medical Bulletin Vol. 32 Number 1 (January 1976).

"...it is a sobering thought that after several decades of research, a number of international conferences and many other meetings, seminars and symposia, the problem of human malformations remains essentially unchanged." "...at least in the immediate future, it seems likely that the problem of human malformations will continue at about the present level (27 per every 1000 births)."

Weiss, B; Landrigan, PJ. "The Developing Brain and the Environment, An Introduction." Environmental Health Perspective, 108(3):373-4, June 2000.

EXCERPTS: We have come to understand that chemicals in the environment can cause a wide range of develpmental disabilities in children, and that anatomic malformations are only the most obvious. Current concerns especially focus on the concept that certain chemicals can cause clinical and subclinical deficits in neurobehavioral development through injury to the fetal brain. The implications of small shifts in intelligence quotient score and a slighlty increased tendency to aggression are not so easilly conveyed or grasped as a picture of deformed limbs. However, recognition of the importance of such changes is gathering momentum and is documented in this monograph.

A prime motivating force is the realization that we know the cause of fewer than 25% of neurodevelopmental disabilities. These disabilities including dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), intellectual retardation, and autism, affect an estimated 3 to 8% of the 4 million babies born each year in the United States.

For most neurodevelopmental disabilities, the cause remains unknown. A diverse assortment of toxic chemicals in the environment is capable of causing neurodevelopmental disabilities. Organic mercury compounds are among the most potent developmental neurotoxicants. In the words of pediatrician Herbert L. Needleman: "We are conductiong a vast toxicologic experiment in our society in which our children and our children's children are the experimental subjects."

The American Academy of Pediatrics has just publiched its Handbook of Pediatric Environmental Health, the "Green Book," which is available to pediatricians throughout the Americas. Children's environmental health has climbed to a critical position as we launch the new millennium. This monograph marks a significant milestone in the evolution of this emerging discipline.

When dental mercury crosses over the placenta into the tissue of the developing fetus, does it cause fetal malformations? These studies answer that question.

III a) Sheep Study

Vimy, M.J., Y. Takahashi, and F.L. Lorscheider "Maternal-fetal distribution of mercury (203Hg) released from dental amalgam fillings." Am. J. Physiol. 258 (Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 27): R939-R945 (1990).

ABSTRACT: In humans, the continuous release of Hg vapor from dental amalgam tooth restorations is markedly increased for prolonged periods after chewing. The present study establishes a time-course distribution for amalgam, Hg in body tissues of adult and fetal sheep. Under general anesthesia, five pregnant ewes had twelve occlusal amalgam fillings containing radioactive 203Hg placed in teeth at 112 days gestation. Blood, amniotic fluid, feces, and urine specimens were collected at 1- to 3-day intervals for 16 days. From days 16-140 after amalgam placement (16-41 days for fetal lambs), tissue specimens were analyzed for radioactivity, and total Hg concentrations were calculated. Results demonstrate that Hg from dental amalgam will appear in maternal and fetal blood and amniotic fluid within 2 days after placement of amalgam tooth restorations. Excretion of some of this Hg will also commence within 2 days. All tissues examined displayed Hg accumulation. Highest concentrations of Hg from amalgam in the adult occurred in kidney and liver, whereas in the fetus the highest amalgam Hg concentrations appeared in the liver and pituitary glands. The placenta progressively concentrated Hg as gestation advanced to term, and milk concentration of amalgam Hg postpartum provides a potential source of Hg exposure to the newborn. It is concluded that accumulation of amalgam Hg progresses in maternal and fetal tissues to a steady state with advancing gestation and is maintained.

III b) Rat Studies

Fredriksson, A., Dencker, L., Archer, T., Danielsson, B.R. "Prenatal Coexposure to Metallic Mercury Vapor and Methyl Mercury Produce Interactive Behavioral Changes in Adult Rats." Neurotoxicol Teratol., 18(2): 129-34, (1996).

ABSTRACT: Pregnant rats were either 1) administered methyl mercury (MeHg) by gavage, 2 mg/kg/day during days 6-9 of gestation, 2) exposed by inhalation to metallic mercury (Hg) vapor (1.8 mg/m3 air for 1.5 hours per day) during gestation days 14-19, 3) exposed to both MeHg by gavage and Hg vapor by inhalation (MeHg + Hg), or 4) were given combined vehicle administration for each of the two treatments (control). The inhalation regimen corresponded to an approximate dose of 0.1 mg Hg/kg/day.

Clinical observations and developmental markers up to weaning showed no differences between any of the groups. Testing of behavioral functions was performed between 4 and 5 months of age and included spontaneous motor activity, spatial learning in a circular path, and instrumental maze learning for food reward.

Offspring of dams exposed to Hg vapor showed hyperactivity in the motor activity test chambers over all three parameters: locomotion, rearing and total activity; this effect was potentiated in the animals of the MeHg + Hg group. In the swim maze test, the MeHg + Hg and Hg groups evidenced longer latencies to reach a submerged platform, which they had learned to mount the day before, compared to either the control or MeHg group. In the modified, enclosed radial arm maze, both the MeHg + Hg and Hg groups showed more ambulations and rearings in the activity test prior to the learning test. During the learning trial, the same groups (i.e., MeHg + Hg and Hg) showed longer latencies and made more errors in acquiring all eight pellets.

Generally, the results indicate that prenatal exposure to Hg causes alterations to both spontaneous and learned behaviors, suggesting some deficit in adaptive functions. Coexposure to MeHg, which by itself did not alter their functions at the dose given in this study, served to significantly aggravate the change.

S. Soderstrom, A Fredriksson, L. Dencker, T. Ebendal, "The effect of mercury vapour on cholinergic neurons in the fetal brain: studies on the expression of nerve growth factor and its low- and high-affinity receptors," Developmental Brain Research 85, 96-108 (1995)

ABSTRACT: The effects of mercury vapour on the production of nerve growth factor during development have been examined. Pregnant rats were exposed to two different concentrations of mercury vapour during either embryonic days E6-E11 (early) or E13-E18 (late) in pregnancy, increasing the postnatal concentration of mercury in the brain from 1 ng/g tissue to 4 ng/g tissue (low-dose group) or 11 ng/g (high-dose group). The effect of this exposure in offspring was determined by looking at the NGF concentration at postnatal days 21 and 60 and comparing these levels to age-matched controls from sham-treated mothers. Changes in the expression of mRNA encoding NGF, the low- and high-affinity receptors for NGF (p75 and p140 trk. respectively) and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) were also determined. When rats were exposed to high levels of mercury vapour during early embryonic development there was a significant (62%) increase in hippocampal NGF levels at P21 accompanied by a 50% decrease of NGF in the basal forebrain. The expression of NGF mRA was found to be unaltered in the dentate gyrus. The expression of p75 mRNA was significantly decreased to 39% of control levels in the diagonal band of Broca (DB) and to approximately 50% in the medial septal nucleus (MS) whereas no alterations in the level of trk mRNA expression were detectable in the basal forebrain. ChAT mRNA was slightly decreased in the DB and MS, significantly in the striatum. These findings suggest that low levels of prenatal mercury vapour exposure can alter the levels of the NGF and its receptors, indicating neuronal damage and disturbed trophic regulations during development.

Aschner M, Lorscheider FL, Cowan KS, Conklin DR, Vimy MJ, Lash LH "Metallothionein induction in fetal rat brain and neonatal primary astrocyte cultures by in utero exposure to elemental mercury vapor (Hg0)." Brain Res 1997 Dec 5;778(1):222-32

ABSTRACT: Brain metallothionein (MT) protein and mRNA levels were determined in the fetal rat following in utero (gestational days 7-21) exposure to elemental mercury vapor (Hg0; 300 microg Hg/m3; 4 h/day). Total RNA was probed on Northern blots with [alpha-32P]dCTP-labeled synthetic cDNA probes specific for rat MT isoform mRNAs. The probes for MT-I and MT-II mRNA hybridized to a single band of approximately 550 and 450 nucleotides, respectively. Expression of whole brain MT-I mRNA in full-term fetal rats (day 21) was significantly increased (P < 0.03) by in utero exposure to Hg0 compared to nonexposed controls. This corresponded to a 14-fold increase (P < 0.001) in fetal brain Hg concentration after in utero Hg0 exposure. In addition, astrocytes from both control and in utero Hg0-exposed fetuses were isolated, and neonatal primary astrocyte cultures were established and maintained in vitro for up to 3 weeks without additional experimental intervention. Astrocyte monolayers derived from in utero Hg0-exposed fetuses consistently expressed increased abundance of MT-I mRNA transcripts after 1, 2, and 3 weeks in culture (P < 0.03, P < 0.01, and P < 0.03, respectively) compared with controls. The abundance of astrocyte MT-II mRNA was unchanged at 1 and 2 weeks in culture, but was significantly increased at 3 weeks in cultures derived from brains of Hg0-exposed fetuses (P < 0.04). Consistent with the increase in MT mRNA, an increase in astrocytic levels of MT proteins was noted by Western blot analysis and MT-immunoreactivity. These studies suggest that in utero exposure to Hg0 induces brain MT gene expression, and that MT mRNAs and their respective proteins are useful quantitative biochemical markers of intrauterine exposure to Hg0, a potentially cytotoxic challenge to astrocytes in the developing brain. It is concluded that induction of MT by fetal/neonatal astrocytes represents an attempt by these glial cells to protect against Hg cytotoxicity in maintaining cerebral homeostasis.

III c) Human Study

Drasch et. al. "Mercury Burden of Human Fetal and Infant Tissues" European Journal of Pediatrics (August 1994).

ABSTRACT: The total mercury concentrations in the liver (Hg-L), the kidney cortex (Hg-K) and the cerebral cortex (Hg-C) of 108 children aged 1 day- 5 years, and the Hg-K and Hg-L of 46 fetuses were determined. As far as possible, the mothers were interviewed and their dental status was recorded. The results were compared to mercury concentrations in the tissues of adults for the same geographical area. The Hg-K (n=38) and Hg-L (n=40) of fetuses and Hg-K (n=35) and Hg-C (n=35) of older infants (11-50 weeks of life) correlated significantly with the number of dental amalgam fillings of the mother. The toxicological relevance of the unexpected high Hg-K of older infants from mother with higher numbers of dental amalgam fillings is discussed. Conclusion: Future discussion on the pros and cons of dental amalgam should not be limited to adults or children with their own amalgam fillings, but also include fetal exposure. The unrestricted application of amalgam for dental restorations in women before and during the child-bearing age should be reconsidered. Abbreviations: Hg-C total mercury concentration in the cerebral cortex (ng/g wet weight). Hg-K total mercury concentration in the renal cortex (ng/g wet weight). Hg-L total mercury concentration in the liver (ng/g wet weight).

Kenny S. Crump, Tord Kjellstrom, Annette M. Shipp, Abraham Silvers, Alistair Stewart "Influence of Prenatal Mercury Exposure Upon Scholastic and Psycholgical Test Performance: Benchmeark Analysis of a New Zealand Cohort" Risk Analysis, Vol.18, No. 6, 1998.

This paper presents benchmark (BMD) calculations and additional regression analyses of data from a study in which scores from 26 scholastic and psychological tests administered to 237 6- and 7- year old New Zealand children were correlated with the mercury concentration in their mothers' hair during pregnancy. The original analyses of five test scores found an association between high prenatal mercury exposure and decreased test performance, using category variables for mercury exposure. Our regression analyses, which utilized the actural hair mercury level did not find significant associations between mercury and children's test scores. However, this finding was highly influenced by a single child whose mother's mercury hair level (86 mg/kg) was more thatn four times that of any other mother. When that child was ommited, results were more indicative of a mercury effect and scores on six tests were significantly associated with the mothers' hair mercury level. BMDs calculated from five tests ranged from 32 to 73 mg/kg hair mercury, and corresponding BMDs (95% lower limits on BMDs) ranged form 17 to 24 mg/kg. When the child with the highest mercury level was omitted, BMDs ranged from 13 to 21 mg/kg, and corresponding BMDLs ranged from 7.4 to 10 mg/kg.

IV) Alzheimer's Disease Studies

Many on-going studies have linked many aspects of amalgam mercury to brain tissue damage found in patients with Alzheimer's Disease. Abstracts from these on-going studies are presented below.

IV a) Trace Elements in Alzheimer's Disease Brains

Wenstrup, D., Ehmann, W.D., and Markesbery W.R., "Trace Element Imbalances in Isolated Subcellular Fractions of Alzheimer's Disease Brains" Brain Research, 533 125-131 Elsevier Science Publishers (1990).

ABSTRACT: Concentrations of 13 trace elements (Ag, Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Fe, Hg, K, Na, Rb, Sc, Se, Zn) in isolated subcellular fractions (whole brain, nuclei, mitochondria, microsomes) of temporal lobe from autopsied Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and normal controls were determined utilizing instrumental neutron activation analysis. Comparison of AD and controls revealed elevated Br (whole brain) and Hg (microsomes) and diminished Rb (whole brain, nuclear and microsomes), Se (microsomes) and Zn (nuclear) in AD. The elevated Br and Hg and diminished Rb are consistent with our previous studies in AD bulk brain specimens. Comparison of element ratios revealed increased Hg/Se, Hg/Zn and Zn/Se mass ratios in AD. Se and Zn play a protective role against Hg toxicity and our data suggest that they are utilized to detoxify Hg in the AD brain. Overall our studies suggest that Hg could be and important toxic element in AD. Whether Hg deposition in AD is a primary or secondary event remains to be determined.

Basun H, Forssell LG, Wetterberg L, Winblad B. "Metals and trace elements in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid in normal aging and Alzheimer's disease." J Neural Transm Park Dis Dement Sect 1991;3(4):231-58

ABSTRACT: Cerebro-spinal fluid (CSF) and blood levels of aluminum, cadmium, calcium, copper, lead, magnesium, and mercury were studied in 24 subjects with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) and in 28 healthy volunteers. Furthermore, arsenic, bromine, chrome, iron, manganese, nickel, rubidium, selenium, strontium, and zinc were measured only in blood. There were significant changes in the DAT group when compared to the controls. The plasma levels of aluminum, cadmium, mercury and selenium were increased and the contents of iron and manganese were lower in the DAT group as compared to control subjects. In CSF there were low levels of cadmium and calcium and increased content of copper in DAT cases. Iron and zinc levels in blood and calcium in both blood and CSF of DAT patients correlated with memory and cognitive functions. Iron, manganese and strontium levels of DAT sufferers in blood and aluminum in CSF were related with changes in behavior.

C.R. Cornett, W.R. Markesbery, and W.D. Ehmann, "Imbalances of Trace Elements Related to Oxidative Damage in Alzheimer's Disease Brain" NeuroToxicology 19(3): 339-346 (1998).

ABSTRACT: Four elements that have been implicated in free radical induced oxidative stress in Alzheimer's Disease (AD) were measured by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) in seven brain regions from 58 AD patients and 21 control subjects. A statistically significant elevation of iron and zinc was observed in multiple regions of AD brain, compared with controls. Mercury was elevated in AD in most regions studied, but the high variability of mercury levels in both AD and control subjects prevented the AD-control difference from reaching significance. Selenium, a protective agent against mercury toxicity, was significantly elevated only in AD amygdala. The elevation of iron and zinc in AD brain has the potential of augmenting neuron degeneration through free radical processes.

IV b) Mercury Vapor Inhalation Inhibits Tubulin in Rat Brain

James C. Pendergrass, Boyd E. Haley, Murray J. Vimy, Stewart A. Winfield and Fritz L. Lorscheider, "Mercury Vapor Inhalation Inhibits Binding of GTP to Tubulin in Rat Brain: Similarity to a Molecular Lesion in Human Alzheimer Brain." NeuroToxicology 18(2): 315-324, 1997.

ABSTRACT: Mercury (Hg) interacts with brain tubulin and disassembles microtubules that maintain neurite structure. Since it is well known that Hg vapor is continuously released from "silver" amalgam tooth fillings and is absorbed into brain, rats were exposed to Hg 4 hr/day for 0, 2, 7, 14, and 28 days at 250 or 300 mcg Hg/m3 air, concentrations present in mouth air of some humans with many amalgam fillings. Average rat brain Hg concentrations increased significantly (11-47 fold) with duration of Hg exposure. By 14 days of Hg exposure, photoaffinity labeling of the B-subunit of the tubulin dimer with (a32P)8N3GTP in brain hamogenates was decreased 41-74% , upon analysis of SDS-PAGE autoradiograms. The identical neurochemical lesion of similar or greater magnitude is evident in Alzheimer brain homogenates from approximately 80% of patients, when compared to human age-matched controls. Since the rate of tubulin polymerization is dependent upon binding of GTP to tubulin dimers, we conclude that chronic inhalation of low-level Hg can inhibit polymerization of tubulin essential for formation of microtubules.

IV c) HgEDTA Complex Inhibits Tubulin

E.F. Duhr, J.C. Pendergrass, J.T. Slevin, and B.E. Haley, "HgEDTA Complex Inhibits GTP Interactions with the E-Site of Brain B-Tubulin," Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology 122, 273-280 (1993).

We have found that EDTA and EGTA complexes of Hg2+, which conventional wisdom has assumed are biologically inert, are potentially injurious to the neuronal cytoskeleton. Tubulin, a major protein component of the neuronal cytoskeleton, is the target of multiple toxicants, including many heavy metal ions. Among the mercurials, inorganic mercuric ion (HG2+) is one of the most potent inhibitors of microtubule polymerization both in vivo and in vitro. In contrast to other heavy metals, the capacity of Hg2+ to inhibit microtubule polymerization or disrupt formed microtubules cannot be prevented by the addition of EDTA and EGTA, both of which bind Hg2+ with very high affinity. To the contrary, the addition of these two chelating agents potentiates Hg2+ inhibitiion of tubulin polymerization. Results herein show that HgEDTA and HgEGTA inhibit tubulin polymerization by disrupting the interaction of GTP with the E-site of brain B-tubulin, an obligatory step in the polymerization of tubulin. Both HgEDTA and HgEGTA, but not free Hg2+, prevented binding of (32P)8N3GTP, a photoaffinity nucleotide analog of GTP, to the E-site and displaced bound (32P)8N3GTP at low micromolar concentrations. This complete inhibition of photoinsertion into the E-site occured in a concentration and time dependent fashion and was specific for Hg2+ complexes of EDTA and EGTA, among the chelating agents tested. Given the ubiquity of Hg2+ in the environment and the widespread use of EDTA in foodstuffs and medicine, these mercury complexes may pose a potentially serious threat to human health and play a role in diseases of the neuronal cytoskeleton.

IV d) Increased Blood Mercury Levels in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

C. Hock, G. Drasch, S. Golombowski, F. Muller-Spahn, B. Willershausen-Zonnchen, P. Schwarz, U. Hock, J.H. Growdon, R.M. Nitsch "Increased Blood Mercury Levels in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease" Journal of Neural Transmission, 105: (1998).

SUMMARY: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder that leads to dementia and death. In addition to several genetic parameters, various environmental factors may influence the risk of getting AD. In order to test whether blood levels of the heavy metal mercury are increased in AD, we measured blood mercury concentrations in AD patients (n=33), and compared them to age-matched control patients with major depression (MD) (n=45), as well as to an additional control group of patients with various non psychiatric disorders (n=65). Blood mercury levels were more than two fold higher in AD patients as compared to both control groups (p=0.0005, and p=0.0000, respectively). In early onset AD patients (n=13), blood mercury levels were almost three fold higher as compared to controls (p=0.0002, and p=0.0000, respectively). These increases were unrelated to the patients' dental status. Linear regression analysis of blood mercury concentrations and CSF levels of amyloid B-peptide (AB) revealed a significant correlation of these measures in AD patients (n=15, r=0.7440, p=0.0015, Pearson type of correlation). These results demonstrate elevated blood levels of mercury in AD, and they suggest that this increase of mercury levels is associated with high CSF levels of AB, whereas tau levels were unrelated. Possible explanations of increased blood mercury levels in AD include yet unidentified enviromental sources or release from brain tissue with the advance in neuronal death.

IVe) Mercury Induces Cell Cytotoxicity and Oxidative Stress and Increases ÃŸ-Amyloid Secretion and Tau Phosphorylation in SHSY5Y Neuroblastoma Cells

G. Olivieri, Ch. Brack,, F. MÃ¼ller-Spahn, H. B. StÃ¤helin, M. Herrmann, P. Renard,
M. Brockhaus and C. Hock. "Mercury Induces Cell Cytotoxicity and Oxidative Stress and Increases ÃŸ-Amyloid Secretion and Tau Phosphorylation in SHSY5Y Neuroblastoma Cells." Journal of Neurochemistry, Vol. 74, No. 1, 2000 231-236.

ABSTRACT: Concentrations of heavy metals, including mercury, have been shown to be altered in the brain and body fluids of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. To explore potential pathophysiological mechanisms we used an in vitro model system (SHSY5Y neuroblastoma cells) and investigated the effects of inorganic mercury (HgCl2) on oxidative stress, cell cytotoxicity, ÃŸ-amyloid production, and tau phosphorylation. We demonstrated that exposure of cells to 50 Âµg/L (180 nM) HgCl2 for 30 min induces a 30% reduction in cellular glutathione (GSH) levels (n = 13, p < 0.001). Preincubation of cells for 30 min with 1 ÂµM melatonin or premixing melatonin and HgCl2 appeared to protect cells from the mercury-induced GSH loss. Similarly, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) cytotoxicity assays revealed that 50 Âµg/L HgCl2 for 24 h produced a 50% inhibition of MTT reduction (n = 9, p < 0.001). Again, melatonin preincubation protected cells from the deleterious effects of mercury, resulting in MTT reduction equaling control levels. The release of ÃŸ-amyloid peptide (AÃŸ) 1-40 and 1-42 into cell culture supernatants after exposure to HgCl2 was shown to be different: AÃŸ 1-40 showed maximal (15.3 ng/ml) release after 4 h, whereas AÃŸ 1-42 showed maximal (9.3 ng/ml) release after 6 h of exposure to mercury compared with untreated controls (n = 9, p < 0.001). Preincubation of cells with melatonin resulted in an attenuation of AÃŸ 1-40 and AÃŸ 1-42 release. Tau phosphorylation was significantly increased in the presence of mercury (n = 9, p < 0.001), whereas melatonin preincubation reduced the phosphorylation to control values. These results indicate that mercury may play a role in pathophysiological mechanisms of AD.

IV f) Retrograde degeneration of neurite membrane structural integrity of nerve growth cones following in vitro exposure to mercury.

Christopher C. W. Leong, Naweed I. Syed, Fritz L. Lorscheider. "Retrograde degeneration of neurite membrane structural integrity of nerve growth cones following in vitro exposure to mercury." NeuroReport 12 (4) pg 733-737, March 2001.

Inhalation of mercury vapor (Hg0) inhibits binding of GTP to rat brain tubulin, thereby inhibiting
tubulin polymerization into microtubules. A similar molecular lesion has also been observed in 80% of brains from patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) compared to age-matched controls. However the precise site and mode of action of Hg ions remain illusive. Therefore, the present study examined whether Hg ions could affect membrane dynamics of neurite growth cone morphology and behavior. Since tubulin is a highly conserved cytoskeletal protein in both vertebrates and invertebrates, we hypothesized that growth cones from animal species could be highly susceptible to Hg ions. To test this possibility, the identified, large Pedal A (PeA) neurons from the central ring ganglia of the snail Lymnaea stagnalis were cultured for 48 h in 2 ml brain conditioned medium (CM). Following neurite outgrowth, metal chloride solution (2 ml) of Hg, Al, Pb, Cd, or Mn (10â€“7 M) was pressure applied directly onto individual growth cones. Time-lapse images with inverted microscopy were acquired prior to, during, and after the metal ion exposure. We demonstrate that Hg ions markedly disrupted membrane structure and linear growth rates of imaged neurites in 77% of all nerve growth cones. When growth cones were stained with antibodies specific for both tubulin and actin, it was the tubulin/microtubule structure that disintegrated following Hg exposure. Moreover, some denuded neurites were also observed to form neurofibrillary aggregates. In contrast, growth cone exposure to other metal ions did not effect growth cone morphology, nor was their motility rate compromised. To determine the growth suppressive effects of Hg ions on neuronal sprouting, cells were cultured either in the presence or absence of Hg ions. We found that in the presence of Hg ions, neuronal somata failed to sprout, whereas other metalic ions did not effect growth patterns of cultured PeA cells. We conclude that this visual evidence and previous biochemical data strongly implicate Hg as a potential etiological factor in neurodegeneration.

V) Amalgam Removal

V a) Patient Preparation for Amalgam Removal

AMALGAM REMOVAL PREPARATION WARNING: When the body is exposed to amalgam mercury it has an on-going need for detoxification and healing processes. If you have a medical condition, then hormones and enzymes the body needs to heal have likely been depleted by this on-going detoxification and healing process. So before your amalgam restorations are removed, blood testing should be performed to determined what hormones and enzymes are deficient. Based on the blood test results a medical doctor can evaluate what nutritional and hormonal supplements are needed to prepare the body. After amalgams are removed, the healing usually accelerates, so there will be an even greater demand for the hormones and enzymes that were depleted. So a patient with a medical condition should take nutritional and hormonal supplements before, during and after amalgam removal.

V b) Dental Procedures for Patient Protection During Amalgam Removal

IAOMT Standards of Care, Preferred Procedure, "Reducing Mercury Vapor Exposure for the Patient During Amalgam Removal." (September 1992)

The IAOMT has currently established the following amalgam removal protocols. If these protocols are followed, the amount of mercury released into the body during amalgam removal is reduced.

* place a rubber dam around the tooth to isolate it from the body,
* provide an alternative source of air to the patient,
* place a saliva ejector under the dam to remove mercury vapor that penetrates the latex,
* use high volume evacuation with isolate attachment,
* section amalgams and remove in as large pieces as possible,
* remove and properly dispose of rubber dam and mercury after amalgam removal.

Other amalgam removal precautions in addition to the protocols listed above include:

* remove no more than two amalgams per appointment,
* time amalgam removal appointments at least one month apart,
* administer intravenous Vitamin C before removal (Hg has a greater affinity to Vitamin C that is present in the blood than it does for body tissue),
* don't remove amalgams from a pregnant woman.

Further information pertaining to proper amalgam removal can be found on the web page http://www.holisticmed.com/dental/amalgam/iaomt.txt.

V c) Amalgam Removal without Patient Protection

This study measures the mercury level when amalgams are removed not following the protocols presented above.

Molin, M., Bergman B., Marklund, S.L., Schutz, A., Skerfving, S., "Mercury, Selenium, and Glutathione Peroxidase Before and After Amalgam Removal in Man" Acta Odontal Scandinavia; 48:189-202. Oslo. ISSN 0001-6357 (1990).

ABSTRACT: In 10 healthy persons all amalgam fillings were replaced with gold inlays. Blood and urinary levels were measured on 10 occasions during a 4-month period before and a 12-month period after amalgam removal. These variables were also measured three times in 10 healthy controls. A strong statistically significant relation was found between plasma mercury values and both the total number of amalgam surfaces (r=0.71, p=0.0006) and the total surface area of the fillings (r=0.73, p=0.004). In the immediate post removal phase plasma mercury rose three- to four-fold, whereas the urinary and erythrocyte mercury rose about 50%. These peak values declined to the pre-removal level at about 1 month after removal. Twelve months after the removal plasma and urinary mercury levels were reduced to 50% and 25%, respectively, of the initial values for the experimental group. Apart from the significantly lower plasma selenium values 5 and 10 days after removal no significant differences were found with regard to plasma selenium or erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase either within or between the experimental and the control groups. A large number of supplementary biochemical analyses did not show any influence on organ functions or any differences between the groups before or after the amalgam removal. Amalgam fillings considerably contributed to the plasma and urinary mercury levels.

V d) Amalgam Removal with Patient Protection

This study measures the mercury level when amalgams are removed following the IAOMT protocols presented above.

Molin, M., Berglund, J.R., Mackert, J.R., "Kinetics of Mercury in Blood and Urine after Amalgam Removal." J. Dental Research, 74:420,IADR abstract 159, (1995).

ABSTRACT: Even through a number of studies have not been able to reveal any correlation between subjective symptoms and amalgam load there still are speculations whether patients with subjective symptoms related by the patients themselves to their amalgam fillings could have a changed pattern of elimination of mercury. The aim of the present investigation was to study the elimination half-time of mercury in plasma, erythrocytes and urine over an extended period of time after amalgam removal in a group of 10 patients with subjective symptoms by the patients themselves referred to their amalgam fillings and a group of 8 healthy subjects. The average number of occlusal and total amalgam surfaces in the patient group were 13.0 (range 4-20) and 44.4 (range 24-68), respectively. Corresponding figures in the control group were 12.9 (range 10-16) and 40.9 (range 24-63).

The amalgam removal using rubber dam, water spray cutting and high volume vacuum evacuator, was carried out at one and the same time. Blood and urine samples were collected at two occasions before the amalgam removal, then blood was collected at thirty two occasions and urine at forty three occasions during the following year. The mercury content was analyzed by CVAAS technique.

The measured P-, Ery- and U-Hg concentrations before amalgam removal were slightly higher in the control group 6.43.3 nmol/L, 19.46.6 nmol/L, and 2.71.3 nmol/nmol creatinine respectively than in the symptom group 5.61.8 nmol/L, 14.88.8 nmol/L, and 1.60.9 nmol/nmol creatinine respectively.

The Hg-concentrations did not significantly increase in the two groups after amalgam removal. Six days after the removal the plasma mean concentration was significantly decreased at P level and ten days after the decrease was at a permanent P level. The mean Ery-Hg level was significantly decreased after eleven days (p), a level that remained stable for the rest of the year. The mean U-Hg level was significantly decreased one month after the removal and after six months the mean level was reduced with 80 % compared to the initial level in both groups.

The conclusion to be drawn for the present study is that the symptom group did not have a changed pattern of elimination of mercury compared to the healthy group.

Begerow, J., Zander, D., Freier, I., Dunemann, L. "Long-Term Mercury Excretion in Urine After Removal of Amalgam Fillings" International Arch. Occupation Environmental Health 66:209-212 (1994).

ABSTRACT: The long-term urinary mercury excretion was determined in seventeen 28- to 55-year old persons before and at varying times (up to 14 months) after removal of all (4-24) dental amalgam fillings. Before removal the urinary mercury excretion correleated with the number of amalgam fillings. In the immediate post-removal phase (up to 6 days after removal) a mean increase of 30 percent was observed. Within 12 months the geometric mean of the mercury excretion was reduced by a factor of five from 1.44ug/g (range: 0.57 to 4.38ug/g) to 0.35 ug/g (range: 0.13 to 0.88 ug/g). After cessation of exposure to dental amalgam contributes predominatly to the mercury exposure of non-occupationally exposed persons. The exposure from amalgam fillings thus exceeds the exposure form food, air and beverages. Within 12 months after removal of all amalgam fillings the participants showed substantially lower urinary mercury levels which were comparable to those found in subjects who have never had dental amalgam fillings. A relationship between the urinary mercury excretion and adverse effects was not found. Differences in the frequency of effects between the pre- and post-removal phase were not observed.

DISCUSSION: The initial urinary mercury concentations (before amalgam removal) were similar to those found in previous studies in people with amalgam fillings while the final values (12 months of ter amalgam removal) were comparable to those for people who have never had amalgam fillings.

Our results are in excellent agreement with those of Molin et. al., who found a 75 percent reduction in urinary mercury levels within 12 months after amalgam removal. In accordance with the findings in this study, Molin also found a 50 percent increase in the urinary mercury excretion in the immediate post-removal phase.

Elligsen et. al. and Roels et. al. monitored the urinary mercury excretion after cessation of occupational exposure in a chloralkali plant. The biological half-life was calculated to be 91 days and 90 days, respectively. Both groups of authors concluded that the elimination rate after cessation of mercury exposure seems to be monophasic. This is in agreement with the results of this study based on dental exposure levels.

The present study indicates that in persons with amalgam fillings on an average about 80 percent of the urinary mercury excretion is caused by the release from dental amalgam. Thus the inorganic mercury exposure form this source far exceeds the exposure from all other enviornmental sources (food, water, beverages, air).

V e) Pregnancy Precaution

The formation of a fetus is very much at risk to mercury in its mother's blood, so the continuous release of mercury from amalgam restorations may be responsible for a portion of the birth defects seen in our society today. When an amalgam filling is removed or an amalgam-filled tooth is extracted, a surge of mercury may be released into the bloodstream. Women should have their amalgam fillings removed at least one year in advance of when they intend to become pregnant and discuss the risk with an informed medical doctor or dentist. Women should never have amalgam fillings removed during a pregnancy.

V f) Patient Reports

Siblerud, R.L. "Health Effects After Dental Amalgam Removal" Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine. Vol. 5, No. 2, (1990).

SUMMARY: A Utah dentist provided the names and addresses of approximately 300 people who had their amalgams removed. A health questionnaire was sent to these people; 86 subjects responded. Eighty (80) % of the subjects reported that they felt better following amalgam removal. Nearly all of the subjects 91% said they were glad their amalgams had been removed and 88% said they would do it again. An increase in happiness and peace of mind was experienced by 58% of the subjects. This evidence suggests that the well being of these subjects improved immensely after amalgam removal.

Mary Davis editor "Solving the Puzzle of Mystery Syndromes" Hot Off the Press Printing Co. 2000

SUMMARY: This book presents patient-reported case histories, where they associate their health problems to dental amalgam mercury. Case histories include: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Seizures, Memory Loss, Migraines, Multiple Allergies, Multiple Sclerosis, Depression, Lupus, Maldigestion, Chemical Sensitivities, Insomnia, Miscarriages, Paralysis, Sinus Problems, Emotional & Mental Disorders, Infertility, Endometriosis, Crohn's Disease, Rashes, Anxiety, Tremors & Spasms, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Universal Reactor and many others.......

V g) Chronic Disease a Big Financial Burden, and Growing

Associated Press WASHINGTON (November 29, 2000)

Nearly half of Americans suffer at least one chronic disease, everything from allergies to heart
disease - 20 million more than doctors had anticipated this year, researchers say.

And they warn that the fast-growing toll, now at 125 million among a population of 276 million, will reach 157 million by 2020. One-fifth of Americans have two or more chronic illnesses, complicating their care and making it more expensive.

The nation is unprepared to cope with the growing burden of chronic disease, with annual medical bills alone expected to almost double to $1.07 trillion by 2020. It's the major public health challenge that could affect all Americans.

While doctors have made major advances in treating certain chronic illnesses, they cause 70 percent of all U.S. deaths, reports the federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which convened the meeting to explore ways to better prevent and fight long-term illness.

It's a difficult subject partly because so many different diseases qualify. Simple allergies may not kill someone, but require a lifetime of medication and doctor visits. Heart disease can require even more complex drug therapy, surgery and testing. At the other extreme is Alzheimer's disease, eventually requiring round-the-clock care.

Preventive care - weight management, disease screening, nutrition, exercise, geriatric assessments for the elderly - can stave off many chronic diseases. But it takes longer than writing a prescription, and few insurers reimburse fully.

An overweight, diabetic farmer has insurance to pay for a 20-minute physicians office visit, just enough time to have his blood sugar tested so an adjustment to the medication can be made. The physician says helping the man lose weight would do more good, but he is not paid to recommend that.

Already 60 million Americans suffer multiple chronic illnesses, a number expected to reach 81 million by 2020 as the population ages.

Someone without a chronic illness pays an average of $182 a year in out-of-pocket health expenses, compared with $369 in out-of-pocket payments by patients with one chronic illness and $1,106 for someone battling three or more.

Total annual health costs for someone with one chronic illness are more than five times higher than for a healthy person - $6,032 vs. $1,105 - and rise even higher the more disabling the chronic illness.

VI) Dental Mercury a Source of Air and Water Pollution

A report released on December 19, 1997 titled "Mercury Study Report to Congress" by the Environmental Protection Agency has estimated that human caused emissions of mercury in the U.S. total 158 tons. The researchers estimated 33 percent of that 158 tons comes from coal-fired utility boilers, 19 percent from municipal incinerators, 18 percent from industrial boilers, and 10 percent from medical incinerators.

The EPA researchers apparently were unaware of another pollution source: dental mercury. Each year in the U.S. an estimated 40 tons of mercury are used to prepare mercury-amalgam dental restorations. Scientific studies have concluded that the amalgam is the source for more than two thirds of the mercury in our human population. Each amalgam, which is commonly called a "silver filling" by its installers, daily releases on the order of 10 micrograms of mercury into the body. This mercury either accumulates in the body or gets excreted via urine and feces into our wastewater systems. After a person dies, the mercury that has accumulated in the body is released to the environment via either cremation or burial.

Another source of mercury pollution is dental office disposal. Most dental offices without a metal separator dispose of their waste mercury into municipal wastewater systems. Municipal treatment plant processing separates wastewater into water and sludge. Mercury does not disappear during this processing. Both treated water that is discharged into waterways and sludge that is land-farmed contain mercury. Mercury is also contained in air discharged from dental offices into the atmosphere. The wastewater, sludge and dental office air are another source of mercury pollution.

VIa) Mercury in Dental Clinic Wastewater Discharge

This study measures the level of mercury discharged to the public waste water systems by dental offices.

Arenholt-Bindslev, D.; Larsen, A.H. "Mercury Levels and Discharge in Waste Water from Dental Clinics" Water Air Soil Pollution, 86(1-4):93-9, (1996).

ABSTRACT: Data was obtained on the amount of Hg discharged with the wastewater from dental clinics. Waste water from 20 Danish dental clinics was collected during one working day and analyzed for the amount of Hg using the technique of cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry (CVAAS). From clinics without amalgam separator mean value was 270 mg Hg per dentist per day (range 65 to 842), from clinics equipped with amalgam separator mean value was 35 mg Hg per dentist per day (range 12 to 99).

It was concluded that Hg is released with the waste water from dental clinics. Several hundred grams of Hg per clinic may be discharged annually with the waste water. Installation of efficient amalgam separators may reduce the Hg outlet markedly.

COMMENT: Very few dental offices in the United States have amalgam separators. Taking the mean daily level of 270 milligrams times 200 (working) days per year yields an annual value of 54 grams of Hg per dental office per year. Utilizing a conservative figure of 100,000 dental offices in the United States, a total of 5400 kilograms (12,172 pounds) of mercury exits U.S. dental offices in waste water each year.

VII) American Dental Association's Position

The American Dental Association has taken the following positions about "the dental amalgam issue."

VII a) Journal of the American Dental Association

Journal of the American Dental Association (April, 1990).

The strongest and most convincing support we have for the safety of dental amalgam is the fact that each year more than 100 million amalgam fillings are placed in the United States. And since amalgam has been used for more than 150 years, literally billions of amalgam fillings have been successfully used to restore decayed teeth.

VII b) Superior Court Demurrer

The Superior Court of the State of California Case No. 718228, Demurrer (October 22, 1992).

The American Dental Association (ADA) owes no legal duty of care to protect the public form allegedly dangerous products used by dentists. The ADA did not manufacture, design, supply or install the mercury-containing amalgams. The ADA does not control those who do. The ADA's only alleged involvement in the product was to provide information regarding its use. Dissemination of information relating to the practice of dentistry does not create a duty of care to protect the public from potential injury.

VII c) ADA's Code of Ethics

The American Dental Association's (ADA) code of ethics makes the removal of serviceable mercury amalgam restorations an issue of ethical conduct. In the ADA's point of view, it is ethical for a dentist to place mercury amalgam restorations in a patient and claim their safety. However, according to the ADA's code of ethics a dentist who acknowledges that mercury amalgam restorations are toxic and recommends their removal has acted unethically ("...the removal of amalgam restorations from the non-allergic patient for the alleged purpose of removing toxic substances from the body when such treatment is performed solely at the recommendation of the dentist is improper and unethical...." ADA Resolution 42H-1986. Transaction 1986:536) On the basis of the ADA's code of ethics, state dental boards have taken disciplinary action against mercury-free dentists who have practiced their profession in accordance with current scientific knowledge and their conscience. The disciplinary action has ranged from restrictions placed on their practice to the loss of license.

VII d) ADA's Internet Site

Additional information about the ADA's position on the dental amalgam issue can be found on the web page: http://www.ada.org/topics/amalgam.html

VIII) Composite Restoration Material

An alternative to the mercury dental amalgam is composite restoration material. Composite restoration material has a white appearance.

Richardson,G.M., "An Assessment of Adult Exposure and Risks from Components and Degradation Products of Composite Resin Dental Materials," human and Ecological Risk Assessment: Vol. 3, No.4, pp. 683-697 (1997)

ABSTRACT: Concerns have been expressed regarding the health risks posed by chemical exposures from dental restorative materials. Dental materials are exempted from the pre-market review provisions for medical devices in Canada; therefore, information on the risks of potential chemical exposures arising from such material is lacking. An assessment of components and degradation products of the class of dental materials known as composite resins was undertaken to provide such chemical exposure and risk information.

A probabilistic assessment was undertaken of adult exposures to two principal components of composite resins - silica, bisphenol-A glycidylmethacraylate (BIS-GMA) and two degradation products of BIS-GMA; formaldehyde and methacrylic acid. Assuming that the Canadiam adult population with fillings had only composite resin materials, results indicated that average exposures to formaldehyde and methacrylic acid were 10,000 times and 1,600,000 times lower, respectively, than relevant reference doses. Worst case exposures were also well below applicable reference levels. Risks posed by exposures to BIS-GMA and silca could not be assessed due to a lack of published ingestion reference doses for these substances.

Gaps in the data base relating to the risks posed by composite resin dental materials were discussed, particlularly in reference to the recently reported estrogenic postential of other degradation products of BIS-GMA.

IX) State Statute

IX a) Colorado Statute

Nothing in this section shall be construed to deprive any dental patients of the right to choose or replace any professionally recognized restorative material, nor to permit disciplinary action against a dentist solely for removing or placing any professionally recognized restorative material.

IX b)

IX c)

X) Amalgam Lawsuit

Bio-probe Newsletter, Volume 12, Issue 6 (November 1996).

After considering evidence and extensive arguments from attorneys for the plaintiff and defendants, the judge in the California case of Tolhurst vs. Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products, Inc. ruled that it is not generally accepted in the scientific community that mercury from amalgam dental fillings is capable of causing Guillain Barre' Syndrome, the affliction allegedly suffered by plaintiff Tolhurst. The judge therefore suppressed any evidence at the trial demonstrating that mercury was the cause of the plaintiff's illness. The evidentiary hearing was held in response to a defense motion based on the Frye rule. This rule requires a plaintiff to demonstrate that the scientific tests, techniques, and methods on which he/she intends to rely at trial are "sufficiently established to have gained general acceptance in the particular field in which it belongs." The test emphasizes a comparison of the members of the relevant scientific community who do or do not consider the proposed scientific test, method, or technique as valid and reliable.

XI) Notice to Amalgam Manufactures

Reeves & Associates of Lexington, Kentucky sent the following letter on behalf of the IAOMT to amalgam manufactures in May and September of 1992:

The potential for harmful health effects resulting from mercury exposure from mercury/silver amalgam dental fillings is no longer a matter of scientific debate. Such adverse effects have now been documented and reported by qualified medical scientists. Serious questions exist regarding mercury's role in loss of kidney function, Alzheimer's Disease, and a host of neurological disorders. My client, the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT) has compiled and reviewed all relevant scientific documentation and has found a total lack of scientific rigor to support statements that chronic exposure to mercury from dental amalgam is harmless to patients. I am sure you and your attorneys are all too aware of the potential for product liability under Restatement of Torts, Section 402A and other relevant law. In view of the totality of the information that is now available, not only does it seem likely that there will be an avalanche of product liability in the future, but that for those companies which continue to market the product, there will be a real potential for the assessment of punitive damages, much as we have seen against the asbestos industry. We believe it in your company's best interest, as well as in the interest of public health, that all use of mercury as a dental filling material cease immediately. The IAOMT has more specific information if you desire.

The above letter was sent to the following amalgam manufactures:

* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ADEC, 2601 CRESTVIEW DR, NEWBERG, OR, 97132
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, BUFFALO DENTAL MFG CO INC, 575 UNDERHILL BLVD, SYOSSET, NY, 11791
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, CRESCENT DENTAL, 7750 W 47TH ST. LYONS, IL, 60534-1826
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, DARBY DENTAL SUPPLY CO, 100 BANKS AVE, ROCKVILLE CENTRE, NY, 11570
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, EASTERN SMELTING & REFINING CORP, 37 39 BUBIER ST, LYNN, MA, 01901
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, G HARTZELL & SON, 2372 STANWELL CIRCLE, CONCORD, CA, 94520
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, GARFIELD REFINING CO, 810 T EAST CAYUGA, PHILADELPHIA, PA, 19124-3892
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, HAMMOND DENTAL MFG CO, 4496 INDUSTRIAL DR, SIMI VALLEY, CA, 93063
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, HEALTH CO INTL INC, 25 STUART ST, BOSTON, MA, 02116
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, HENRY SCHEIN, 5 HARBOR PARK DR, PORT WASHINGTON, NY, 11050
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, HU FRIEDY, 3232 N ROCKWELL ST, CHICAGO, IL, 60618
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, INDIUM CORPORATION OF AMERICA, 1676 LINCOLN, UTICA, NY, 13502
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, J F JELENKO, 99 BUSINESS PK DR, ARMONK, NY, 10504
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, KULZER, 10005 MUIRLANDS BLVD, IRVINE, CA, 92718
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, LS PLATE C/O WIRE CORP, 70 17 51ST AVE, WOODSIDE, NY, 11373-0667
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, MERCURY REFINING CO INC, 790 WATER VLIET-SHAKER ROAD, ALBANY, NY, 12110
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, METZ METALLURGICAL CORP, 3900 S CLINTON AVE, SOUTH PLAINFIELD, NJ, 07080
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, MILTEX INSTRUMENT CO, 6 OHIO DR, LAKE SUCCESS, NY, 11042
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, MINIMAX CO, 5905 N CLARK ST, CHICAGO, IL, 60660-3207
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ORAL B LABORATORIES INC, 1 LAGOON DR, REDWOOD CITY, CA, 64065
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PARKELL, 155 SCHMITT BLVD BOX S, FARMINGDALE, NY, 11735
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PATTERSON DENTAL, 1100 E 80TH ST, MINNEAPOLIS, MN, 55420
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PREMIER DENTAL PRODUCTS, 1710 ROMANO DR, MORRISTOWN, PA, 19404
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PULPDENT CORP, 80 OAKLAND ST, WATERTOWN, MA, 02272
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SAFECO DENTAL SUPPLY, 527 S JEFFERSON ST, CHICAGO, IL, 60607-0625
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SDL GROUP, 742 CENTRAL AVE, DEERFIELD, IL, 60015
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SS WHITE DTL PROD INT,100 SOUTH STREET, HOLMDEL, NJ, 07733
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SUREPURE CHEMETALS INC, 23 WOODBINE RD, FLORHAM PK, NJ, 07932
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, THREE M DENTAL PRODUCTS DIV, BLDG 225 45 11 3 M CTR, ST PAUL, MN, 55144
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ULTRAFINE POWDER TECHOLOGY INC, 500 PARK EAST DRIVE, WOONSOCKET, RI, 02895-6148
* CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ZENITH DENTAL, 242 S DEAN, ENGLEWOOD, NJ, 07631

XII) Government Phase Outs

In the interest of protecting their citizens' health, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Finland and Canada have recently taken steps to limit and phase out the use of amalgam restorations.

The United States of America Food and Drug Administration has not recently reviewed the safety of amalgam restorations.

XIII) Organizations

Dental Amalgam Mercury Syndrome (DAMS)

"DAMS Inc. (Dental Amalgam Mercury Syndrome) is a grassroots organization dedicated to educating the public about the health hazards associated with mercury that leaks from amalgam dental restorations, which are known as "silver fillings. There is a growing body of scientific documentation that indicates the mercury leaking out of amalgams is insidiously dangerous to a person's health. Many of our people have had recoveries from serious health problems, which were considered to have an unknown cause and cure, after their amalgams were removed and replaced with non-toxic restorative material. So we feel a calling to educate the public about health hazards associated with the dental amalgam. We are all volunteers. A basic information packet is available from DAMS. A 7$ donation to DAMS is requested for the information packet. Contact:

DAMS, Inc.
P.O. Box 7249
Minneapolis, MN 55407-0249
1-800-311-6265
E mail: dentaltruth@yahoo.com

International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT)

If you are a mercury-free dentist or are contemplating going mercury-free, you need to join the IAOMT. The IAOMT has helped fund or has been the catalyst for much of the current scientific research demonstrating that dental amalgam is not the benign dental material that 150 years of use and the ADA would like you to believe. Furthermore, the IAOMT is doing something about Standards of Care and Protocols that protect you, your staff and the patient. For membership contact:

IAOMT
8297 Champions Gate Blvd., #193
Champions Gate, FL 33896
web page www.iaomt.org

Holistic Dental Association

The Holistic Dental Association is dedicated to expanding the clinical skills of conscientious dentists for the year 2000 and beyond. They have a dentist referral service.

HDA
Box 5007
Durango, Colorado 81301
(970) 259-1091

American College of Advancement in Medicine (ACAM)

An association of doctors who practice alternative or complementary medicine. Most of them also practice chelation therapy, which is used to detoxify the body.

ACAM
P.O. Box 3427
Laguna Hills, CA 92654

American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM)

The American Academy of Environmental Medicine is dedicated to the purpose of recognition, treatment and prevention of illness induced by exposures to biological and chemical agents encountered in air, food, and water. AAEM members recognize that human beings, though marvelously adaptable, must struggle to cope with an often hostile environment. Environmental Medicine is an integration of concepts drawn from both the primary and specialty care medical fields and the basic sciences. Discovering the cause-and-effect relationships of disease allows a physician to initiate treatment protocols that can result in genuine healing.

AAEM
P.O. Box CN1001-8001
New Hope, PA 18938

American Academy of Nerotherapy

The American Academy of Nerotherapy is an educational organization that sponsors seminars, some of which focus on toxicity. They have a doctor referral service.

American Academy of Nerotherapy
410 East Denny Way #18
Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 749-9967
www.neuraltherapy.com

XIV) Books Available

Bio-Probe Inc. has several books pertaining to dental amalgam mercury. They advertise these books on the world wide web at http://www.bioprobe.com.

XV) Newsletters

A quarterly International DAMS Newsletter is published quarterly. The subscription price is $25.00 per year. Contact DAMS, Inc.

The Bio-Probe Newsletter is published bi-monthly. Editorial office is at 5508 Edgewater Dr., Orlando, FL 32810. The subscription price is $65.00 per year for USA and Canadian subscribers, and $85.00 per year for other countries. Postage paid at Orlando.

XVI) Other Web Pages

Other information can be found at:
http://www.altcorp.com
http://www.iaomt.org
http://www.home.earthlink.net/~berniew1.

XVII) Amalgam Related Conventions

IAOMT 2004 Mid-Year Meeting
March 25-27, 2004
Crystal Gateway Marriot Hotel
Arlington, Virginia

IAOMT 2004 2Oth Anniversary Meeting
October 7-9, 2004
Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center
Nashville, TN
615 883 2211

If you are a health care professional, please make reservations for conventions through the IAOMT at:

IAOMT
8297 Champions Gate Blvd., #193
Champions Gate, FL 33896

If you are a DAMS member or would like to join please make reservationsfor conventions at:

DAMS, Inc.
P.O. Box 7249
Minneapolis, MN 55407-0249
1-800-311-6265

XVIII) Request for Finincial Support of Web Page

The development, operation and expansion of this web page and other DAMS activities are made possible by funding from viewers like you. Please make a $25 to $100 or more donation to DAMS Inc. DAMS Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) organization so all funds that you donate may be used as federal income tax deductions (Federal Tax I.D.# 85-0391003). We thank you in advance for the donations. Please send your donations to:

DAMS, Inc.
P.O. Box 7249
Minneapolis, MN 55407-0249
1-800-311-6265

IXX) The Mercury Free and Healthy Campaign (Bumper Sticker Orders)

DAMS has developed a bumper sticker titled "Mercury Free and Healthy." It advertises this web page www.amalgam.org. These bumper stickers are available in bundles of 100 for $50US plus shipping cost. Purchases can be made using Visa and Mastercard. They can be ordered from:

DAMS, Inc.
P.O. Box 7249
Minneapolis, MN 55407-0249
1-800-311-6265

XX) DAMS PRESS RELEASE

XXa) Mercury in Dental Filling Disclosure and Prohibition Act

Statement by Congresswoman Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles)
Mercury in Dental Filling Disclosure and Prohibition Act
Los Angeles, California
November 5, 2001

In times like these, there are toxins that we don't know much about - how to control them, their source, and their impact. But there are toxins that we DO know about -- toxins that we know do not belong in our bodies, toxins that we can do something about. My bill addresses that very problem.

Mercury is an acute neuro-toxin. It is the most toxic non-radioactive element and the most volatile heavy metal. In recent years, it has been, or is being, removed from all health care uses, save one. Antibiotics have replaced oral doses of Mercury. The disinfectant Mercurochrome is banned. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control ordered Mercury preservatives removed from childhood vaccines. Mercury preservatives are no longer used in contact lens solutions. This year, legislatures in California and several other states banned Mercury thermometers. When Governor Gray Davis signed bills addressing Mercury in thermometers and in dental fillings, he said, "Mercury is a persistent and toxic pollutant that bioaccumulates in the environment." In recent years, the American Public Health Association, the California Medical Association, and Health Care Without Harm have all called for the elimination of putting any Mercury in the human body.

Today, I am announcing legislation to disclose and phase-out the last major use of Mercury in the human body. The fillings that organized dentistry wrongly calls "silver" are mainly Mercury, not "silver."

Mercury is the major ingredient in each filling, about one-half gram per. In the words of Professor Boyd Haley of the University of Kentucky, that is a "colossal" amount of Mercury in scientific terms - as much, in fact, as is in a thermometer. A teenager with six fillings has six Mercury thermometers worth of Mercury in his or her mouth.

The Mercury in the fillings is volatile, such that - as all authorities concede - poisonous vapors are constantly being emitted from the fillings, more so when one chews or passes hot liquid over the teeth. The Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry of the United States Public Health Service reports that those poisonous vapors go first to the brain and kidneys. For the developing brain - and by that I mean a child's brain - a major health risk exists.

It is in fact children who are at greatest risk from these fillings. The government of Canada recommended back in 1996 that dentists not place fillings in the mouths of children or pregnant women. (The 1999 report on Mercury by the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry says Mercury passes through the placenta into the developing child's brain.) In 1997, a major manufacturer of dental amalgam, Dentsply, said that amalgam is CONTRAINDICATED (translation: DO NOT USE) for children and pregnant women, as well as for those with braces, Mercury hypersensitivities, or kidney problems. Another manufacturer, Vivadent, added a contraindication for nursing mothers. (That 1999 government report says the Mercury goes through the mother's breast milk into the baby.)

Why don't consumers already know this? The answer is a disappointing one. Organized dentistry is extremely divided on this issue. My bill, in fact, is supported by the American Academy of Biological Dentistry. But the American Dental Association tells the public that the fillings are safe. The ADA does not tell the public that it accepts payments from the amalgam manufacturers while it pronounces their product safe. I wish to note that the American Medical Association has a policy prohibiting the organization from taking money for product endorsements. The ADA, by contrast, accepts money from the manufacturers of the products it endorses, which certainly hurts its credibility in my mind.

The public does not know about the presence of Mercury and its risks for two reasons. First, the fillings are falsely called "silver." This term is deceptive, because there is much more Mercury than silver in the product. It's time to call it what it is, and quit hiding the large presence of Mercury.

Second, the ADA has a rule that gags dentists from talking about the risks of Mercury amalgam, a rule that some dental boards enforce against dentists who call for the elimination of Mercury in dental fillings. I understand that rule is being challenged by dentists in federal court in Maryland based on the First Amendment.

Developments in this area have been quite encouraging this year in my state. In 1992, as a state Senator, I wrote a law that required the Dental Board of California to write a "Fact Sheet" about the "risks and efficacies" of dental fillings. My goal was to ensure the public could make informed choices about Mercury dental amalgam. But the Dental Board continued to ignore the law and, in recent years, defy the Davis Administration's insistence that it comply with this law. After an impasse, including the Board refusing to show up for a hearing in Los Angeles on this issue, the Legislature stepped in and shut down the Board. I am told that never before has the California Legislature shut down a board before its Sunset date expired. In January, a new Dental Board will come into existence.

A major environmental issue exists here. When removed from a patient's mouth, Mercury amalgam is a hazardous waste, and it is often improperly disposed of. The more Mercury that goes into people's teeth, the more of it that will end up in our water supply. I am delighted, therefore, that San Francisco-based Clean Water Action is supporting my bill, and I look forward to other environmental groups joining us in this effort.

The occupational risk is significant. Dental employees are constantly exposed to the vapors. Women in dental offices have lower fecundity (pregnancy) rates, more miscarriages, and more problem births; Mercury exposure is the likely reason. Dentists have the highest suicide rate of any profession; depression leading to suicide is consistent with a diagnosis of Mercury toxicity.

Mercury amalgam is dangerous before it is put in the mouth - any dental journal will tell you that - and it is considered hazardous waste after it has been removed. Who can conclusively say it's safe in between, when it is in our bodies?

A major social justice, or environmental justice, issue exists here. While the public lacks informed choice, low- and moderate-income people have it worse: they have no choice at all! For families on Medi-Cal, the children get Mercury - or nothing. It is outrageous that low-income Americans are forced to have such a toxic material put in their mouths. I understand that the Rhode Island legislature adopted a law this year to provide choice in insurance plans, and that the state of Maine permits Medicaid children to get alternatives to amalgam - so, yes, we can do it differently.

Mercury, and all other poisons in the body, hurt the body's immune system - its ability to withstand diseases and biologically harmful agents. If at any time in our nation's history we need strong immune systems, it is now. The stronger our bodies, the more able we are to fend off biological agents that have so tragically been placed in our midst.

My bill will protect children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers immediately - regardless of their income. Henceforth, amalgam will bear warnings that they not be placed in these most vulnerable people. And there will be health warnings for all consumers of amalgam, also immediately. Then, there is a five-year phase out of Mercury amalgam. That will give dentistry plenty of time to shift to alternatives that exist in today's market - resin, porcelain, and gold - or to develop new materials.

Dentistry says amalgam is fine because it has been in use for 150 years. This statement makes no scientific sense. We have abandoned other remnants of pre-Civil War medicine, and we have abandoned all other uses of Mercury. It is no longer a question of if, but when, Mercury dental fillings will be history. I say five more years is time enough. "

Mechanisms Documented by Which Mercury from Amalgam Dental Fillings, Vaccinations , and other sources is a Cause or Major Factor in Over 30 Chronic

2005-07-15T20:39:00.000-07:00

Submission from DAMS: "Submission from DAMS Inc.

E-mail of 26 October 2001 submitting 6 articles relating to use of amalgam dental fillings.
DAMS is a non-profit educational organization with coordinators in all states and several
other countries, who have provided information and advise on dealing with mercury
toxicity to many thousands of mercury toxic people.

*

The Mercury Connection to Common Chronic Health Conditions
*

Medical Studies Document Widespread Common Adverse Oral Effects of Dental Amalgam Fillings and High Levels of Accumulation of Mercury in Gums, Oral Mucosa, Jaw Bone, Brain, and Central Nervous System.
*

Cognitive and Behavioral Effects including Learning Disabilities, ADD, Violent Prone and Sociopathic Behavior, Juvenile Delinquency, Criminality, and Mass Murder Linked to Toxic Metal Exposure and Resulting Metabolic Imbalances
*

Mechanisms Documented by Which Mercury from Amalgam Dental Fillings, Vaccinations , and other sources is a Cause or Major Factor in Over 30 Chronic Health Conditions
*

The Environmental Effects of Amalgam Fillings Affect Everyone
*

'Dental Amalgam Fillings' is the Number One Source of Mercury in People and Exposure Exceeds Government Health Standards for Inorganic mercury (vapor)

"

fake drugs in USA

2005-07-12T21:16:00.000-07:00

BBC NEWS | Programmes | This World | One woman's war with fake drugs:
"In the US, where patented drugs are the most expensive in the world, fakes have penetrated the pharmaceutical chain from drug manufacturers, through wholesalers, to high street pharmacies.
The American Food and Drugs Administration prosecutions have tripled in the last year."
"One woman's war with fake drugs
By Olenka Frenkiel
BBC reporter, Bad Medicine
Counterfeit drugs are flooding the international marketplace, but Nigeria's Dr Dora Akunyili fights day and night to stop it.
Dora is angry.
Angry because her diabetic sister died from what she is convinced were fake insulin and fake antibiotics.
And angry because so many of her countrymen and women are fighting killer diseases like malaria and tuberculosis with little more than sugar syrup and chalk tablets, cynically packaged to look like the real thing.
When she started her job as director general of Nigeria's National Agency for Drug and Food Administration (Nafdac), she trawled drugs markets, hospitals and clinics and was horrified at what she discovered.
A survey conducted with the World Health Organisation found more than half the drugs on sale in Nigeria were fake or sub-standard.
Nigeria's hospitals were using fake and contaminated drips, surgeons were using fake adrenalin to re-start the heart, anaesthetists were giving sub-strength muscle relaxant to patients in their operating theatres.
"Counterfeit drugs are murder," says Dora. "It is the highest form of terrorism against public health because it kills a mass."
Death threats
Counterfeit drugs are murder
Dr Dora Akunyili
Until her arrival, Nafdac, like many other government organisations in Nigeria, had functioned little better than a toll gate. Importers simply paid a bribe to get their products into the market.
That changed.
Last year she closed down the vast open-air medicine market in Kano for three months, after her officers confiscated £140,000 worth of fake drugs.
But in a culture steeped in corruption, she has not had an easy ride.
She built a new team of female inspectors and pharmacists (she believes most men are too easily tempted by bribes) and started to prosecute importers of fake drugs.
When the public saw the dragons she was slaying, she may have become Nigeria's uncrowned queen, but the counterfeiters fought back.
They burnt down Nafdac's offices and threatened to kill her and her children.
When she stood firm, they shot her in her car. The bullet grazed her skull but she survived.
'Injecting water'
Direct proof that a fake drug has killed is hard to find.
However, one particular tragedy in July 2003, is probably as close as it gets.
The International Children's Heart Foundation visited Nigeria to operate on sick children at a teaching hospital in Enugu.
The operations should have been straightforward. The patients' prognosis was good. But when the operations began, things went wrong.
Cardiac nurse Joanne Price recalls: "You give them adrenalin to restart the heart and that normally works. But this time nothing came back. It was water. I felt we were basically injecting water instead of adrenalin."
Four children died as their parents watched and prayed.
Despite being confronted with what seemed to be a hospital cover-up, Dora confiscated supplies and found fake adrenalin, fake muscle relaxant and infected intravenous drips.
The hospital maintain there is no proof to link the deaths of the patients with the drugs used.
International effort
But the problem of fake drugs is not confined to Nigeria, or even the developing world.
In the UK in November 2004, Allan Valentine was imprisoned for manufacturing fake Diazepam and Viagra in his Wembley warehouse where Indian tablet presses and chemicals were found.
In the US, where patented drugs are the most expensive in the world, fakes have penetrated the pharmaceutical chain from drug manufacturers, through wholesalers, to high street pharmacies.
The American Food and Drugs Administration prosecutions have tripled in the last year.
At a conference in Paris about counterfeit medicines, Dora demands concerted global action. "Eradication of counterfeit drugs should be treated as an international health emergency," she says.
She believes that raising public awareness has produced dramatic results in Nigeria and urges other nations to be more open.
Unsurprisingly, drug companies around the world are fearful that their brand will be shunned if news of a fake gets out.
But no matter how tough the situation gets for pharmaceutical industry, Dora will not be leaving any stone unturned.
Bad Medicine was broadcast on Tuesday 12 July 2005 at 2100 BST on BBC Two."

my brother John, age 5 and me, age 2, on future site of NEKMF

2005-07-12T21:06:00.000-07:00

this is me

2005-07-12T21:02:00.000-07:00