Bad Vibrations: 5 Health Effects of Fracking

In an effort to source gas and oil that lies beneath the earth’s surface, the practice known as fracking was born. The term fracking means to fracture a solid rock using heavy duty hydraulic equipment. The fracking industry has long claimed that fracking is a completly safe and beneficial practice; that it is an efficient way of sourcing American gas and oil. Those who live near fracking sites and have experienced property destruction and health deterioration firsthand disagree. Here are 5 things that we know about the health effects of fracking:

 

1. Cancer

The exposure the environmental toxins is a huge concern for the increase in cancer cases near fracking zones. Some environmental cancers take years to present themselves, but others have been presenting themselves in a rapidly increasing fashion.

 

2. Infertility

Fracking involves a huge amount of toxic chemicals, with a large percentage of these being are endocrine disruptors, which mimic hormones and can wreak havoc on an otherwise healthy body. The reproductive system is especially sensitive to chemical exposure and the alarmingly high rate of infertility in fracking areas has been documented.

3. Respiratory Issues

Venting emissions that occur during the fracking process are a major culprit to the air pollution that is thought to cause intense bouts of respiratory distress among residents living near a fracking site.

 

4. Low Birth Weight

Babies born to mothers living in a fracking zone are at a much increased risk of being born at a low birth weight than babies born outside of the area. The exposure to toxic chemicals does not allow the fetus to grow as it would without the harmful effects of the chemicals.

 

5. Headaches and Dizziness

Constant exposure to toxic chemicals from a fracking site can cause a great deal of distress. Many residents experience some level of headaches and/or dizziness, starting only once the fracking operation began.

 

Fracking is an issue that is currently being hotly debated, and deserves more research and insight. Good Vibrations industrial sensors have been used to prove the impact that fracking has on the surrounding environment. These sensors have shown that fracking has the equivalent effect as a micro earthquake. These findings, along with accounts of health problems plaguing areas near fracking sites must be taken seriously to protect the families that are being affected by the fracking industry.

Categories: babies born, birth weight, Effects, Fracking, fracking industry, fracking site, fracking sites, health, health effects, nbsp, Toxic Chemicals

Could Iron Supplements Prevent Behavioural Problems in Kids?

If you’re baby is born underweight, giving him or her iron supplements may reduce the risk of behavioural problems later in life. This is according to a new Swedish study, published in the journal Paediatrics, which has found that low-birth-weight babies who did not receive iron supplements were 4.5 times more likely to show signs of behavioural problems at the age of three compared with low-birth-weight babies who did receive iron supplements during early infancy.

 

When babies have a low birth weight – meaning that they weigh less than 5.5 pounds or 2,500 grams – they are at a higher risk of developing behavioural problems as well as iron deficiency, albeit this condition has itself been linked to behavioural problems. Therefore, the results of the study suggest that you may be able to partially prevent your child’s risk of behavioural problems by giving them iron supplements, in a kind of two-birds-one-stone situation. Dr. David Mendez, a neonatologist at Miami Children’s Hospital, who was not involved in the study, explains that the findings support the current recommendation that you should provide iron supplements to low-birth-weight babies starting at one month of age.

 

The American Academy of Paediatrics states that healthy babies should receive iron supplements starting at four months of age if they are breastfed, although babies who are exclusively formula fed will receive enough iron this way. However, because babies who are born with a low birth weight grow quite rapidly, and may not have received enough iron from mothers during pregnancy to last them the duration of their first few months of life, they may need to start having supplements at an earlier age. However, as most of the babies in the study were breastfed, Mendez comments that the study needs to be replicated in different populations to confirm the effect seen on behaviour problems.

 

Dr. Andrew Adesman, chief of developmental and behavioural paediatrics at Steven & Alexandra Cohen Children’s Medical Centre of New York, notes, ‘In some ways [the findings are] not surprising because we know iron is an important micronutrient in the diet of very young children.’ Animal studies, for example, have shown that iron is an essential nutrient in the development of the brain. Still, Adesman asserts that the behaviour assessment used in the study could not diagnose behavioural problems by itself, so additional evaluations are needed. He adds that the results would also have been stronger if teacher assessments had been included.

 

The researchers themselves caution that the study was too small to rule out the possibility that iron provided by exclusive formula feeding could have affected their results. Nonetheless, many of the babies were at least partially breastfed for up to six months. However, Mendez points out another reason the study needs to be replicated; iron has a bad taste. It’s often hard to get babies to take iron supplements every day, and this is reflected in the study results. 23% of children in the study had poor compliance, meaning that less than 70% of the supplement doses were given.

 

However, while it is recommended to give iron supplements to low-birth-weight infants, the long-term impact this has on their wellness has not been rigorously studied. More over, studies suggest that too much iron may linked to health risks, such as impaired cognitive development. Plus, researchers have barely even touched upon the specific risks and benefits of iron supplements for babies who are marginally low birth weight (between 4.4 to 5.5 pounds) so it’s important to tread with caution. As your baby’s wellbeing could be at risk from too much iron, it’s important to speak to your child’s doctor about iron supplementation before you proceed.

Categories: babies, behavioural problems, birth weight, iron, Iron supplements, receive iron, Research, study, Supplements, weight babies