Contra Costa County
Environmental Health Services Report
by Fernando Diaz

I didn't expect much when browsing the web for environmental health services in Contra Costa County, i figured i figured there may be some food inspections and maybe some kitchen inspections but I was actually pleasantly surprised to find out we have a lot of unsung heroes in our community keeping us safe from harm, albeit a different kind of harm.

There are specialists in the areas of recreational health (pools, spas), hard waste, medical waste and even body art -- all in the name of protecting us from health dangers that are conducive to physical harm, toxicity and communicable diseases. I am now curious to see what other counties offer.


Contra Costa County
Environmental Health Services Report
By Fernando Diaz

I still can't figure out why I'm sitting on this couch right now and not sitting in front of the County Supervisors office protesting the amount of pollutants they are allowing to be spread throughout Contra Costa County. It is completely shocking that I am living in one of the top 10% dirtiest counties in America. There are gas and oil companies surrounding me and it's truly unbelievable. Companies like Tesoro, Chevron, Shell and other gas companies are polluting the county at a consistent rate and all the environmental justice data tells us that minority and low income residents are much more likely to be impacted by this, and that is truly sad. Fortunately the lead issues are pretty low at 1% yet 2800 homes are still at high-risk of lead poisoning.

There are 3 superfunds in my county, Superfund is the name given to the environmental program established to address abandoned hazardous waste sites in all aspects. One of the superfunds is the Naval Base in Concord and it seems as if they will be just be cleaning up solid waste and chemicals. It's kinda neat to know places like that won't stay untouched, but that there is someone to address those particular matters for the well-being of the public.

The air is also surprisingly clean, with good or moderate air quality at 80% and 20%, respectively. The water though, is a different story -- ranking worst in the country. 

The site is very helpful and informative and I shared it with my friends on facebook as well so they can learn more.

Watch Jane Hoolihan, Toxicologist, previously at Environmental Working Group - My Reaction

Today I woke up and went through my usual routine of shower, brushing my teeth and putting on cologne. But it was different this time, suddenly I felt as if all I was doing was hurting my body while performing these tasks that I have been used to my whole life.  The video truly changes your perception of the things going on around you and how harmful chemical compounds exist in almost everything we use or come in contact with. Knowing that companies have relatively free reign when adding chemicals to their products is a bit scary. And to learn that chemicals are already being induced into children before they're born is even scarier.

I feel that much more research must be done for this cause. I've always felt relatively knowledgeable about environmental health issues but I've already realized I haven't even scratched the surface. Doing so could possible open up a pandora's box of health risks associated with many common chemicals found in our everyday products similar to what we have learned about BPA's.

We would be remiss not to explore these concerns further as a country and environmental health should no longer take a back seat to other issues in our country. This is something that affects us all.  And as usual, poor people and minorities take the worst of it.

Fernando Diaz: Household Products

Product 1: Lysol Brand All Purpose Cleaner, Lemon Scent-Old

Main Concerns: Eye Contact: Causes eye irritation. Skin Contact: May cause skin damage. Inhilation: None expected. Ingestion: May be harmful if swallowed.

Reaction: No real surprise here. I pretty much grew up knowing that anything under the sink is considered bad for my health. Whenever I tried to open up the cabinets under the sink my mother would scold me and tell me all that stuff was bad and only used for cleaning. So i stayed away from that, and from cleaning. Apologies to my wife. It's mama's fault.

Product 2: Ajax with Bleach Powder Cleanser

Main Concerns: Eye contact: Causes eye irritation on direct contact. Skin contact: May cause skin irritation upon prolonged contact. Inhalation: No adverse effects due to inhalation are expected. Ingestion: May be harmful if swallowed in large quantities.

Reaction: Again no surprises. At this point of my life i pretty much expect anything under the sink to be poisonous enough to take down a horse. If i had a child though, I may rethink this whole thing.

Fernando Diaz: Personal Care Products Ingredients

Product 1: Suave Skin Therapy Moisturizing Lotion

Main Concerns: 

• Fragrance Components include risks such as immunotoxicity, severe allergic reactions to skin, and potential effects on the reproductive system.
• Demithicon as an ingredient is known to cause organ failure.
• Glycerin as an ingredient may be derived from animal fat.

My Reaction:

The fragrance components of the lotion I have been using every day for the past 10+ years has a high-risk of compromising my immune system which i was honestly shocked by! Who would of thought that this silky, smooth skin of mine may have been messing with my immune system!  Not only that, it also has negative effects on the reproductive health system which is of great concern to me since my wife uses it as well and we plan on having a baby in the future and cannot imagine that being an issue due to the lotion we have been using.  I also found out that there may be animal fat being used in the Glycerin ingredient in my lotion, disgusting!  And though minimal, the thought of Demithicon causing me organ failure is just downright scary! I am never using this lotion again!

Product 2: Caress Silkening Body Bars, White Peach & Silky Orange Blossom

Main Concerns:

• Fragrance Components include risks such as immunotoxicity and severe allergic reactions to skin.
• BHT as an ingredient is known to cause risk of cancer, immunotoxicity, and is also used to preserve food products.

My Reaction:

CANCER?! How is this even legal? Again, the efforts to maintain my child-like skin have once again been misled. I would certainly rather have dry skin after a shower then a giant tumor growing in my head which was shown in a study done with rodents using this product. BHT is also used to preserve food products and can compromise your immune system as well. This is very concerning to me as I use this product twice a day and have actually grown very fond of it. No more!