HANS e-News - September 01, 2006
CONTENTS
1) Editorial
2) Discount Coupons for Members
3) Your Feedback on the e-News
4) Autism: There’s Hope Out There (HANS Exclusive)
5) Issue Updates
-- Ontario’s Energy Plan Needs an Environmental Assessment
--Province Orders Treatment for Victoria Sewage
--Environmental Defence Working to Ensure Ontario’s Endangered Species Protection Law Will Set a High Standard for the Rest of Canada
--Study: Health and Health Care Use in Canada and the United States, 2003
6) Media Watch
--You Can’t Spin Mother Nature: PR Pro Jim Hoggan Picks a Fight with the Climate Change Deniers
--Global Warming is Happening
--Oceans and Global Warming
--Seattle’s Green Mayor Brings Kyoto to the Backyard
--Another Inconvenient Truth: Meat is a Global Warming Issue
--Losing My Veginity: Why I’m Putting Out for Local Seafood
--Canada Lags US on Industrial Pollution Cuts
--New Fight over Canadian Environmental Battleground
--Canada Aims to Produce Biofuel Production
--Toronto Buildings Going Green on Top, But Very Slowly
--Heinz Center Release Paper on Impact of Magazine and Lumber Production on Greenhouse Gas Emissions
--DuPont Scientists Outline Company’s Biofuel Strategy at World Congress
--Drying Up the Okanagan
--Farmers Use as Much Pesticide with GM Crops, US Study Finds
--World’s Water Resources Facing Mounting Pressure
--Seaweed Extract Protects Against Cervical Cancer
--Diet and Exercise: The Real Fountain of Youth
--Type II Diabetes Erases 15 Years from Your Life
--All Up in Your Grill: Umbra on Recycling Foil
--Scientific Foul Play at the FDA
--Drug Errors Injure 1.5 Million
--Vioxx Should Be Allowed Back on Market Advises Expert Panel
--Cervical Cancer Vaccine May Soon Come to Canada
--Government of Canada Launches New Web site on Access to Medicines for Developing Nations
--One in Four Hospitals Offer Complementary and Alternative Services
--2,000 Hospitals in the US Will Start to Serve Natural and Organic Foods
--Company Can Sell Supplement to Mental Health Patients
--Open Letter to the FDA: Take Aspartame Off the Market
--Breast-Fed Babies Handle Stress Better Later in Life, Study
--Workers on Organic Farms Treated as Poorly as Their Conventional Counterparts
--100-Mile Diet’s Unlikely Capital: Powell River
--Eating Local: There’s No Plate Like Home
--Flavonoids Linked to Colorectal Cancer Protection
--Antioxidant Supplements: Myth or Misunderstood?
--Canada: The WTO Rules on Genetically Modified Organisms
--Pandemic Threat Overblown by Both Experts and Media
--Rich Countries, Like Poor, Face Water Crisis
7) Calendar of Events
-- Firm and Fit: Fitness Tips and Secrets, Sept 12th
-- Anti-Aging and Andropause, Sept 19th
-- Anti-Aging and Menopause, Sept 26th
--The Ultimate Preventive Medicine, Sept 26th
--“Autism: A Medical Condition” Conference, Nov 3rd and 4th
*********************
1) Editorial
Dear Members and Friends;
Thanks to some very resourceful and talented individuals, the HANS website is on the move! Check out our new look at www.hans.org.
Here’s the thing. You’re a member (hopefully) of HANS. You have things you want to see, or fun website ideas to share. What are they? When you send an idea to hans@hans.org with ‘Here’s a website idea’ in the subject line, about 10 different people are going to read it and consider what you have to say. So as Nike says, ‘Just DO it!’
When you look at the ‘What’s new with us’ area, keep in mind that we’ll be scouting (you can, too), creating our own news, and posting it there. There is so much exciting work going on -- people creating solutions who deserve recognition and encouragement.
Also on the home page is a sign-up area for our free e-News, which keeps you in the loop. You’re already receiving this issue, but you may have friends who are interested in what’s happening with complementary and alternative medicine or with the environment. Go right ahead and pass this link along to them!
Learn how to resolve emotional issues that trigger illness at a German New Medicine lecture with Dr. Carolyn Markolin on Sept 26th in Burnaby. Full details are online. Another event we’re working on for the fall is a lecture on genetically modified food. Watch for details soon.
Hope you had a great summer. I know I sure did!
Lorna Hancock
Founding Member and Director
You may be able to write off your health care costs. Check out the HANS advantage at www.hans.org
*********************
2) Discount Coupons for Members
Who isn’t interested in discounts these days? If you’re a HANS member, check out the coupons that can save you money on vitamins, supplements, herbs and more at www.hans.org under the membership section
A special thanks to Salvestrols Canada, Alive Health Centres, Gaia Garden Herbals, Marks Pharmacy for supporting our worthwhile organization.
*********************
3) Your Feedback on the e-News
Your comments on the August 1, 2006, Issue Update: Protect Endangered Forests! Respect Native Rights!
Regarding the Weyerhaeuser petition, I agree with the intent. However, the wrong party is being petitioned. Companies operate under provincial laws and regulations. Therefore, if the company is operating against Ontario forestry regulations, the vital question must be asked: How is it getting away with it? Is the Ministry of Natural Resources not doing its legal mandate of policing the industry? If this were the case, it would be an extremely serious offence that would likely have to be addressed via legal means. In this case, both the government and the company would need to be “addressed”.
If, as I would suspect, they are not breaking current laws, the party to petition would still the provincial government, so that the concerns of this community and others in a similar situation could be addressed by changing the regulations.
In Quebec there was an initiative that began a few years ago called The Inhabited Forest, which would have given local communities a say in how Crown land in their area was to be managed. Even though the PQ had this plan in their platform, it was suspected that the forest industry lobbied behind the scenes to have it quashed because it never saw the light of day.
All I can say is good luck and suggest that likely only political action across northern Ontario will bring this situation to the political forefront. Otherwise the timber lobby, in most cases American companies, will continue to disrupt the traditional lifestyles of First Nations, as has been occurring in Canada as far back as clear-cutting goes, and as is currently destroying the lives of First Nations people around the globe, much to the shame of the UN and other international organizations.
Gregory Crook, HANS member
*********************
4) Autism: There’s Hope Out There
By Laurie Mawlam
Executive Director, Autism Canada Foundation
Tommy wasn’t like our two other children. He spent most of his time in his own world. He had an unusually long attention span for piling his toys between his legs then mixing them up or lining his toys up over and over again. He spent hours in front of the television flapping his hands with excitement. Eye contact was rare. At best, it was a fleeting glance. His sleep patterns were erratic. The most disturbing thing for me was, he wasn’t talking.
My parents questioned whether he was deaf, but he would always come running when a Barney movie was turned on. To finally know that he was “autistic” was both a shock and a relief.
My research began the same evening as the pediatrician’s appointment. Before this visit, my husband and I had been asking questions for a year but were constantly reassured that children developed at their own pace.
“Do you have a feel for what this is?” I asked the pediatrician. He had been observing Tommy for the last 50 minutes and asking numerous questions.
He nodded. “Autism Spectrum Disorder. More specifically, Pervasive Developmental Disorder -- Not Otherwise Specified.”
I wrote it in my day timer. “So what can we do?”
His answer included a few websites and a drug called Zoloft, an antidepressant, as a possible prescription. I wrote this down too and we got up and left.
As fate would have it, we came across an expert in the attitudinal/educational program Son-Rise. He had worked with hundreds of autistic children and their families while employed at the Option Institute in Sheffield, Massachusetts. In my first telephone conversation with him, he told me about Dr. William Shaw’s book, Biological Treatments for Autism and PDD. After a few tests, the decision was made to eliminated casein (cow’s milk) and gluten (wheat, rye, oat and barley) from Tommy’s diet. We also decided to eliminate artificial sweeteners and colourings, refined white sugar, baker’s yeast and all foods containing vinegar. This was to combat a candida yeast overgrowth.
With the aid of a holistic nutritionist and her team, we eventually eliminated Tommy’s food allergens and began a supplementation and detoxification regime. We supplemented his diet with vitamins, minerals, probiotics, digestive enzymes and essential fatty acids.
For detoxification, we used a herbal formula consisting of red clover, milk thistle, dandelion, echinacea and cleavers as well as chlorophyll and vitamin C. Rebounding was an encouraged daily event as it helps in the detoxification process.
As Tommy became more tolerant of people, we introduced chiropractic adjustments, cranial sacral therapy and NAET acupuncture. He bathed in Epson salts and we incorporated squeezes and massage when ever possible. We also used various homeopathic remedies. What a regime!
Biological interventions alone were not the miracle answer. The other essential piece of the puzzle was Tommy’s one-on-one, home-based program. His program was made up of the attitudinal/educational program Son-Rise, Intense Behaviour Intervention (IBI), Brain Gym and other learning methods.
Son-Rise is a child-centered, home-based program based on the Option Process described in the book and TV movie Son-Rise written by Barry Neil Kaufman. We converted a room in our basement into Tommy’s playroom. The walls were plain and the floor was vinyl. The door to the playroom had a two-way mirror that allowed us to observe Tommy and to provide feedback to volunteers and eventually workers who worked with him. The room featured a mirror on the wall and toys on high shelves. The room eliminates the distractions of the outside world.
Tommy had total control of everything in the playroom, except the door, which was locked. We never physically manipulated him. We didn’t judge him or his behaviors. When Tommy chose to escape into his own little world, we joined him wholeheartedly. We followed his lead and used what motivated him to help him learn. Excitement, energy and enthusiasm filled the air with every glance and word. We showed him that with the slightest effort, he could have an impact on his world. What a dignified program for a child who is simply trying to look after himself and do the best he knows how.
The combination of biological interventions and the one-on-one, home-based program has made Tommy a different boy today. After following this strict regime for three years, Tommy no longer garners the label “autistic”. His diet is no longer restricted, although we eat healthier as a family. All the repetitive behaviours have dissipated and he sleeps through the night. He is indistinguishable from other kids.
Three years have passed since Tommy entered grade one with no educational assistant and no individual education plan. Today he goes to birthday parties, sleepovers and summer camp. He has a phenomenal memory and wonderful sense of humour. In grade two, he received a certificate for academic achievement for maintaining a grade average of 80 percent or better. In grade three, he received the Citizenship Award. Teachers, principals, professionals, parents, neighbors and family are all in awe of what a different little boy he has become.
In an effort to inspire other parents and share the message that autism is treatable, I have accepted the position as Executive Director of Autism Canada Foundation. Working alongside a dedicated Board, many themselves parents of autistic children, I am in a position to help.
We believe that Autism Spectrum Disorder is a defined neurological condition that dramatically affects not only brain function but also many other systems within the body. By establishing autism as a medical condition and treating it as one, our intent is to encourage more research towards a cure. We aim to expand the understanding of autism beyond current thinking so that new innovative ways of treating Autism Spectrum Disorder can, in time, be developed. This is our vision for the future.
We are all good people doing the best we can do. There are real children who do recover. I know this firsthand. There are many more who make great progress. There’s hope out there.
Autism Foundation Canada is hosting a conference November 3rd and 4th in London, Ontario. See below for more details or visit www.autismcanada.org, e-mail info@autismcanada.org or call 519-695-5858.
*********************
5) ISSUE UPDATES
Ontario’s Energy Plan Needs an Environmental Assessment
Ontario’s McGuinty government is caving in to the nuclear industry and rewriting its environmental protection laws to allow its $40-billion dollar nuclear electricity plan to bypass an environmental assessment.
In March 2006, Greenpeace, the David Suzuki Foundation and the Pembina Institute released a legal opinion prepared by the Canadian Environmental Law Association showing that the government’s electricity plan (the Integrated Power Supply Plan or IPSP) would be required to undergo an environmental assessment under the Ontario’s Environmental Assessment Act.
But a day after the McGuinty government announced it would spend over $40 billion dollars rebuilding old and building new nuclear reactors, the Globe and Mail revealed that the government had secretly passed a regulation to “exempt” its nuclear electricity plan from an environmental assessment!
This is the latest example of how the McGuinty government has blocked any meaningful public discussion on Ontario’s energy future despite promising “open and public debate” on the future of nuclear power.
An environmental assessment of the plan is the best way for Ontarians to understand the risks and costs of the government’s electricity plan, and to assess the green energy alternatives to its multibillion dollar nuclear plan. A good electricity would stand up to public scrutiny.
Tell the Ontario government to withdraw the proposal to exempt its nuclear electricity plan from a provincial environmental assessment!
More at http://greenpeace.ca/e/action/nuke_ea/index.php
******
Province Orders Treatment for Victoria Sewage
The BC provincial government’s announcement on July 21st that Victoria must finally treat its sewage was a significant step forward in improving the health of Georgia Strait.
The announcement came after years of campaigning on the part of Georgia Strait Alliance and its partners, T. Buck Suzuki Environmental Foundation, Sierra Legal Defence Fund and other members of the local Victoria Sewage Alliance, including Mr. Floatie and POOP (People Opposed to Outfall Pollution). In particular, our work to have the seabed around Victoria’s sewage outfall declared a contaminated site was key to this breakthrough.
More at http://www.georgiastrait.org/Articles2006/action_sew...
******
Environmental Defence Working to Ensure Ontario’s Endangered Species Protection Law Will Set a High Standard for the Rest of Canada
This month, Environmental Defence encouraged dozens of organizations and individuals to participate in the government consultation on proposed changes to Ontario’s Endangered Species Act. With our partners in the Save Ontario’s Species (SOS) campaign, Environmental Defence is urging decision-makers to address all key issues. Some subjects of discussion include a science-based process for listing species at risk, protection for all threatened and endangered species and their habitat, adequate financing, and timely development and implementation of species recovery plans.
For updates, visit http://www.environmentaldefence.ca/sos/index.htm.
******
Study: Health and Health Care Use in Canada and the United States, 2003
Americans in the lowest income groups are much more likely than their Canadian counterparts to be in fair or poor health, according to a study comparing health status and access to health care services between the two nations.
The study was based on the Joint Canada/United States Survey of Health, a unique population health survey conducted jointly by Statistics Canada and the US National Center for Health Statistics of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention between November 2002 and June 2003.
The study, published recently in the journal Health Affairs, found almost one-third (31 percent) of Americans with the lowest incomes reported fair or poor health, compared with 23 percent among their Canadian counterparts.
More at http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/060803/td060803.....
*********************
6) MEDIA WATCH
You Can’t Spin Mother Nature: PR Pro Jim Hoggan Picks a Fight with the Climate Change Deniers
http://thetyee.ca/News/2006/07/13/JimHoggan/
Global Warming is Happening
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/GlobalWarming2.php
Oceans and Global Warming
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/OceansGlobalWarming.php
Seattle’s Green Mayor Brings Kyoto to the Backyard
http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=11005
Another Inconvenient Truth: Meat is a Global Warming Issue
http://www.emagazine.com/view/?3312
Losing My Veginity: Why I’m Putting Out for Local Seafood
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2006/08/15/Veginity/
Canada Lags US on Industrial Pollution Cuts
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/3...
New Fight Over Canadian Environmental Battleground
http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=10982
Canada Aims to Produce Biofuel Production
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/3...
Toronto Buildings Going Green on Top, But Very Slowly
http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=10950
Heinz Center Release Paper on Impact of Magazine and Lumber Production on Greenhouse Gas Emissions
http://www.enn.com/net.html?id=1574
DuPont Scientists Outline Company’s Biofuel Strategy at World Congress
http://www.checkbiotech.org/root/index.cfm?fuseactio...
Drying Up the Okanagan
http://thetyee.ca/News/2006/08/17/Okanagan/
Farmers Use as Much Pesticide with GM Crops, US Study Finds
http://www.checkbiotech.org/root/index.cfm?fuseactio...
World’s Water Resources Facing Mounting Pressure
http://www.earth-policy.org/Indicators/Water/2006.ht...
Seaweed Extract Protects Against Cervical Cancer
http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm?art=2656
Diet and Exercise: The Real Fountain of Youth
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?artic...
Type II Diabetes Erases 15 Years from Your Life
http://www.mercola.com/2006/jul/22/type_2_diabetes_e...
All Up in Your Grill: Umbra on Recycling Foil
http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2006/07/12/foil/inde...
Scientific Foul Play at the FDA
http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_1179.cf...
Drug Errors Injure 1.5 Million
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?artic...
Vioxx Should Be Allowed Back on Market Advises Expert Panel
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/175/3/234?etoc
Cervical Cancer Vaccine May Soon Come to Canada
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/175/3/235?etoc
Government of Canada Launches New Web site on Access to Medicines for
Developing Nations
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ahc-asc/media/nr-cp/2006/2006...
One in Four Hospitals Offer Complementary and Alternative Services
http://healthy.net/scr/news.asp?Id=8519
2,000 Hospitals in the US Will Start to Serve Natural and Organic Foods
http://healthy.net/scr/news.asp?Id=8523
Company Can Sell Supplement to Mental Health Patients
http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2006/07/28/...
Open Letter to the FDA: Take Aspartame Off the Market
http://healthy.net/scr/news.asp?Id=8526
Breast-Fed Babies Handle Stress Better Later in Life, Study
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?artic...
Workers on Organic Farms Treated as Poorly as Their Conventional Counterparts
http://www.grist.org/news/maindish/2006/08/02/mark/i...
100-Mile Diet’s Unlikely Capital: Powell River
http://thetyee.ca/Life/2006/08/08/LocalEating/
Eating Local: There’s No Plate Like Home
http://www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_1463.cf...
Flavonoids Linked to Colorectal Cancer Protection
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=69...
Antioxidant Supplements: Myth or Misunderstood?
http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=69...
Canada: The WTO Rules on Genetically Modified Organisms
http://www.checkbiotech.org/root/index.cfm?fuseactio...
Pandemic Threat Overblown by Both Experts and Media
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/full/175/4/341?etoc
Rich Countries, Like Poor, Face Water Crisis
http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=11073
For more current stories, check out “News” at www.hans.org.
*********************
7) Calendar of Events
Firm and Fit: Fitness Tips and Secrets
Who: Andre Noel Potvin, MSc, CES, CSCS
Cost: FREE
When: Tuesday, Sept 12th, 6 – 7 pm
Where: EnerChanges, Unit M-11, 601 West Broadway
Contact: 604-681-8380 to reserve your seat. Seating is limited.
Web: www.enerchanges.com
What does being Fit and Firm mean to you? Have you ever wished, “If only I knew then what I know now?” This lecture is both “then “and “now”. Join Andre as he outlines and identifies your personal plan for your genetics, age, hormones, diet, lifestyle, goals, attitudes and more.
Learn about many unknown and misunderstood barriers behind stubborn fat loss. Take home strategies that you can implement into your life that will keep you fitter, firmer and functional for life!
******
Anti-Aging and Andropause
Who: Dr. Brian Martin, BSc, ND and Dr. Gideon Frame, MD
Cost: FREE
When: Tuesday, Sept 19th, 6 – 7 pm
Where: EnerChanges, Unit M-11, 601 West Broadway
Contact: 604-681-8380 to reserve your seat. Seating is limited.
Web: www.enerchanges.com
By the time men are between the ages of 35 and 55, they can experience a normal part of aging, a male menopause, called andropause.
Andropause occurs very gradually and can produce a profound and widespread range of symptoms. It’s characterized by changes in attitudes and moods, fatigue, a loss of energy, sex drive, weight gain and decreased strength or endurance. Are you or someone you love experiencing any of these symptoms?
Attend this one hour informative lecture and learn the latest information on testosterone and human growth hormone therapy. Learn what options are available.
******
The Ultimate Preventive Medicine
Who: Dr. Carolyn Markolin, PhD
When: Sept 26th, 7 – 9 pm
Where: Firefighters’ Banquet and Conference Center, 6515 Bonsor Ave, Burnaby (five minutes walk east from Metrotown Skytrain Station)
Cost: Pre-registration $10 HANS members, $20 non-members, at the door $15 HANS members, $25 non-members
Contact: Reserve tickets by phone at 604-435-0512 or at www.hans.org/
This important lecture is valuable to everyone affected by cancer or other illnesses. Caroline Markolin, PhD, will give us scientific insight into the link between emotional distress and disease.
******
Anti-Aging and Menopause
Who: Dr. Brian Martin, BSc, ND
Cost: FREE
When: Tuesday, Sept 26th, 6 – 7 pm
Where: EnerChanges, Unit M-11, 601 West Broadway
Contact: 604-681-8380 to reserve your seat. Seating is limited.
Web: www.enerchanges.com
Eventually every woman will move into a stage of life called “Menopause”, which marks the decline in the essential female hormones estrogen and progesterone. This lecture is a must for every woman who wants to maximize her health, happiness, life and years. You will receive the most up-to-date information and tests that give women the knowledge, power and choice to safely and effectively save time and suffering.
Learn how and what thyroid, insulin, menopause and blood sugar have to do with stubborn weight loss. Learn how each body is different and how successful weight loss depends on knowing and treating these differences. Learn alternative ways to treat symptoms. Learn what healthy body composition is and how to lose weight safely and effectively.
******
“Autism: A Medical Condition” Conference
Who: Presented by the Autism Foundation Canada
When: Nov 3rd and 4th (Fri, Sat)
Where: University of Western Ontario, London, ON
Contact: By phone at 519-695-5858, e-mail info@autismcanada.org, or visit www.autismcanada.org
November 3rd, 7 – 9 pm
Features the documentary “Autism: There’s Hope Out There” and a chance to meet and greet the Autism Canada Foundation Board Members.
Speaker: David Patchell-Evans, Founder and CEO of GoodLife Fitness Clubs; President, Autism Canada Foundation
November 4th, 9 am – 4:30 pm
Speakers: Dr. Sidney Baker, Dr. Derrick MacFabe and Dr. Wendy Edwards
*********************
Founded in 1984, Health Action Network Society is a membership-based, non-profit charitable organization dedicated to gathering and disseminating health promotion information.