By: Bethany Colson, Managing Editor of LuxEco Living.
Walking around plush suburban America in Hazmat suits because the environment is saturated with toxic chemicals? Well, maybe we aren’t too far away from such a scenario- at least Dr. Sanjay Gupta and CNN think we may be closer than we realize.
On June 2nd and 3rd, CNN will be broadcasting a segment called “Toxic America” that delves into the issues associated with environmental chemicals, many of which are toxic, untested and unregulated. “Toxic America” will look at the devastating results when only 200 chemicals of the 80,000 used in this country have been tested by the EPA and only 5 have been banned.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta‘s two-part program is a shocking culmination of his year-long investigation. This is particularly timely due to the mounting concerns over the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the environmental and health ramifications of the glut and the clean-up.
The program on Tuesday night, June 2nd, will investigate “Toxic Towns” and the environmental health and social justice problems plaguing the community of Mossville, Louisiana. Mossville is not an isolated example, but instead a poster child for a broken chemical safety system.
Wednesday night’s program, titled “Toxic Childhood,” reveals the effect toxins have on unborn babies many of whom enter the world with 200-plus dangerous chemicals in their blood including flame retardants, dioxins, endocrine-disrupting and hormone-replicating compounds and VOCs. The effects of these chemicals been linked to obesity, autism, ADHD, lower IQs, sexual reproduction problems, cancer and many other diseases.
Joining scientific expert Dr. Phil Landrigan, LuxEco Living and Healthy Child Healthy World founders, Jim and Nancy Chuda were invited to share their story with America during this segment. As Co-Founders of Healthy Child Healthy World they were on the vanguard of understanding the dangerous levels of toxicity in the environment at a time when people didn’t realize the serious health risks associated with them. Inspired to action by the death of their only child Colette, who lost her life to a rare non-hereditary cancer called Wilm’s Tumor, the Chudas have dedicated their 20 years of environmental activism to provide other people with support, education and alternatives to protect their families.
On CNN’s “Toxic Childhood,” the Chudas will continue to spread the educational mission of Healthy Child Healthy World which has grown into the country’s leading children’s health organization. It has become a powerful force that provides families with the crucial information they need in order to make better choices for prevention against harmful environmental dangers while advocating for tighter regulations to protect and conserve nature and the community at large.
Watch Healthy Child’s video, “A Wake Up Story” for a more comprehensive examination of the effects and ubiquitous presence of dangerous chemicals and their devastating potential to harm our children. Additionally, it poses the virtually effortless solution for advancing a healthy eco-friendly lifestyle.
CNN’s “Toxic America” Promo
