Pesticides: Having a professional treat for pests is not a guaranty of safe use of pesticide. Some professionals use too much chemical to avoid return of the pests. In other instances, the problem is consumers not following directions or storing the leftover chemicals in the home. These products are often poisons for people as well as pests. Another common problem is a neighbor of a chemically sensitive individual’s use of chemicals in yards and homes.
New homes: There are hundreds of products off gassing chemicals in new construction. We have found some very unusual sources of toxic gasses in new homes. In one case, the problem in a $750,000 home was defective flexible ductwork. The homeowners could not live in the home until the ductwork was removed and replaced.
Home improvement and building supplies: You have probably heard about the Lumber Liquidators formaldehyde in flooring problem. Carpet, counters, sheathing, and almost every product in the home can have plastic which is made by chemistry that depends on heat, catalysts, timing, mixing and a host of factors that result in the imperfect creation of very complex chemicals. Some of those chemicals can be toxic to people and will evaporate from the materials. Cleaning products: The use of very concentrated cleaning supplies can create toxic residue and fumes. We have found numerous instances of offices becoming unhealthy as a result of these industrial strength products.
Drugs: We have found homes and multi-family units that were toxic with the residue of drug manufacture. As an example, the manufacture of Meth uses Drano, lye and sulfuric acid, and other toxic chemicals
Soil Gases: Many homes and other buildings are built on reclaimed industrial sites and farms. The chemicals and pesticides that may have entered the soil can be very safe in an open field. Buildings constructed over this soil can suck those chemicals into the air occupants breathe.
Stored Products: Just about every container will leak fumes over time. One nasty smelling home we found was venting gases from the stored chemicals that were used to build model rockets. Another home had the chemicals from a photo lab. Another family thought it was a great idea to store chemicals used to dry clean clothing.
Neighboring Environmental Problems: in one case, a neighbor had a side business that used toxic chemicals. He would pour those chemicals down their drains. The chemicals would evaporate into the neighboring home from the sewer making those people deathly ill. A nearby fracking operation was a problem for one homeowner who was using a HRV system to pull outside air into their home.
Misuse of Everyday Products: The safety of products is judged on “normal” use. As an example, many of the plug-in products to make your home smell good anticipate a minimal use in a home. Put one of those in every room and you can have a toxic level of exposure.
Imagine: It is a happy time of celebration. It could be a wedding, graduation, church picnic, reunion or a house warming party. There is a single unwanted guest at this joyous event….and we are not talking about obnoxious Uncle Harry. It is a smaller and much more destructive guest. It is a mosquito carrying the Zika virus.
With one tiny mosquito bite during an otherwise joyful event, the life of a family and its unborn child are changed and challenged forever.
Talk about insidious and sneaky! Four out five persons that are bitten and infected by a mosquito carrying the Zika virus will not have a single symptom of the disease. If that victim is pregnant, the very first sign of the virus could be a child born with the lifelong birth defect of microcephaly. This defect results in a child being born with a small, under developed head and brain on a regular sized body.
Birth Defects are forever. We must do all that we can to stop the Zika virus and protect the health of our children.
This is not a bad science fiction movie. It is not hype. It is not a fictional media frenzy for ratings. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Pan American Health Organization, and countless other organizations this is a serious pandemic stretching across the world from Africa, to the Pacific Rim, then to South and Central America and now, to the United States.
WHO DOES THIS AFFECT?
“The Zika virus could reach regions of the United States in which 60 percent of the population lives, or some 200 million Americans.” According to The Lancet (a renowned international general medical journal) It can affect not just residents of the affected areas, but tourists and visitors to those areas.
Click here for additional details
WHAT CAN WE DO TO PROTECT THE ONES WE LOVE?
We must take every possible precaution to interrupt the process of mosquitoes infecting people with the Zika virus.
· Wear light covered, loose fitting clothing that covers as much skin as possible
Click here for May Clinic information on avoiding mosquito bites
· Apply insect repellant using safe products and methods
Click here to download a copy of WEBMD’s Safe Use of Pesticide Directions
· Remove any items that contain standing water from the area
(such as tires, water buckets, roof gutters, bird baths, etc.) Click here for more details
· Use screens in windows and air conditioning in sealed homes where possible
Click here for the CDC information on control of the Zika virus
· Conduct a barrier spray program.
Treating the grounds for a special event like a wedding or pool party may meet your needs. If you have a possible home exposure of a pregnant woman, a barrier spray program may better meet your safety needs. Based on the life cycle of mosquitos, a 14-day cycle may provide the best control and safety.
Click here for more information about barrier control programs