Did You Know?

YOUR AIR - DID YOU KNOW?

People breathe 30 to 35 pounds of air daily (that’s more than food and beverage consumption combined so watching what you eat is still important but what are you breathing?)
Canadian Industry released over 4.3 billion kg of respiratory toxins in 2003
4 out of 10 Ontarians will get asthma by age 40. (I for CES)
1.4% of all deaths are attributed to air pollution. (WHO)
In the Niagara Region, there are 100 premature deaths annually due to breathing toxic air and this is only “reporting on those who are functioning well… who have no expectation of early death” July 2006 (OMA)
In Toronto, there are 1000 premature deaths annually and 5500 hospitalizations due to toxic air. (PH)
50% of all illness is caused by indoor air pollution. (EPA)
In 2001, there was a 35% increase in daily hospitalization of children under 2 on days of elevated particulate in the air. (HC)
Up to 90% of our time is spent indoors and indoor air is typically 2 to 5 times more polluted than outdoor air. (EPA)
Over 50% of homes and offices suffer from “Sick Building Syndrome”. (EPA)
From 1985 to 1990, there was a 35% increase in prescriptions for airway drugs. (AS of C)
From 1979 to 1998, heart disease mortality decreased by 36.6% while lung disease mortality increased by 19.3%. (ALA)
Lung Cancer has now passed Breast Cancer as the leading form of Cancer among women. (CLA)
In 2001, it was shown that people have a 50% greater risk of heart attack within 2 hours of exposure to elevated air pollution. (J of AHA)

YOUR WATER - DID YOU KNOW?

Canadian Industry released over 14 million kg of hormone disruptors and over 1 billion kg of reproductive/developmental toxins in 2003
840 million lbs. of pesticides are applied annually to U.S. agricultural land. (U of A)
67 million lbs. of pesticides are applied annually to our lawns. (EPA)
An estimated 6 - 8% of over 5 million underground chemical storage tanks are leaking. (U of A)
42% of 33 000 abandoned hazardous waste sites are known to involve groundwater contamination. (U of A)
Each person produces approximately 1800 pounds of solid waste garbage per year. (EPA)
Although children consume less water, they are more adversely affected by waterborne viruses. (U of A)
In 2 - 5 year old children:

those who drink tap water have 40% more infections than those drinking filtered tap water.

those who drink bottled tap water have 17% higher disease than children drinking POU treated water.

Drinking 8 glasses of water daily can decrease:

Colon cancer by 45%

Bladder cancer by 50 %

Potentially reduce breast cancer

Drinking 5 glasses of water daily can:

significantly lower fatal coronary heart disease compared to drinking < 2 glasses daily

surpass the benefits of taking aspirin, moderate amounts of alcohol and other preventative measures (AJ of E)

“NOT DRINKING ENOUGH WATER CAN BE AS FATAL TO YOUR HEART AS SMOKING”
In the1993 Milwaukee Parasite Waterborne Outbreak:

Owners of fine (cyst) filtration systems reported substantially lower incidence of diarrhea.
Of the more than 100 people who died, not one had a fine (ability to remove fine particulate) water filtration system.

“Cancer risk among people who drink chlorinated water is 93% higher than those whose water does not contain chlorine.” (US Council of Environmental Quality)
A 2% decrease in the body’s water supply can trigger the following dehydration signs:

Fuzzy short-term memory

Trouble with basic math

Difficulty focussing

Infants and young children are the most susceptible to serious dehydration.
Neurological, heart and endocrine systems are the most likely systems to be affected from dehydration.