> Robert Seeberger <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >From: "Dan Minette" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> >but the basic statistics on second hand > >smoke have been supported by real testing. <snip> > I think it is a mistake to look for single causes > when the potential > for synergistic effects should be evident. Yes, tobacco and other air pollutants/contaminants can be contributory, additive or synergystic (that was touched on in some of the air pollution abstracts I posted); a uranium miner who smokes a couple of packs a day likely has a greater statistical chance of developing lung cancer than a non-smoking miner, or a smoker non-miner (I say likely b/c I can't recall the exact reference, but will track it down if requested). > Just what is in that underarm deodorant anyway? > And how much of it gets into your lymphatic system? <nod> Yes, a recent study links breast cancer with aluminum-containing deodorants -- the question may be, as in Alzheimer's, does aluminum _cause_ the mutation/tangle, or does the mutated cell/fibrillary tangle bind Al more tightly for some reason? > If you can smell it or taste it, or rub it on your > body, its likely in > your bloodstream seconds later. Organic solvents are particularly nasty for penetrating the skin; many water-soluble chemicals are repelled effectively by intact skin. Mucous membranes are more vulnerable to both, as well as to penetration by microbes, which is why the digestive system has such a high concentration of immune tissue. Our defenses are pretty darn good against the hordes of bacteria and viruses waiting to pounce, and over the millenia we've recruited our own host of protective bugs to aid in the battle, but we haven't had time to develop good strategies against some of the chemicals that never existed in our environment before the industrial revolution. Some can be interpreted as a variant of our own self-generated hormones, and wreak mischief. Certain 'communities' of bacteria, OTOH, as a group can adapt to fairly toxic organic compounds, one breaking a portion from it, and passing the metabolite on to the next in the chain. Debbi who'd better stop before she whirls off in a tangent on the web of life... ;) __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Hotjobs: Enter the "Signing Bonus" Sweepstakes http://hotjobs.sweepstakes.yahoo.com/signingbonus _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
