Day 65: These products can cause cancer

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 65: These products can cause cancer

I'm slightly ticked off today as I learned that Juul has suspended their marketing campaign in the U.S. Apparently, they targeted teens and some people were offended. What else is new.

The health nuts will have a field day. Oh smoking/vaping is bad for you. You know what else is bad for you? The following products:

Hormonal treatments

Millions of women are put at risk of breast cancer by taking hormonal treatments. As soon as women enter menopause and experience hot flashes, doctors recommend hormones. Are these women informed of the dangers? 

Weapons

Millions have died due to weapon use, but is there a ban on weapons? No, Americans scream at the top of their lungs that it is their constitutional right. Never mind that people are being gunned down at work, in schools, on the street, in cinemas, at gatherings.  

Alcohol

Alcohol is the leading cause of vehicle accidents, causing drivers, passengers, other road users and pedestrians to die, get crippled or at least sustain serious injuries. 

Alcohol is also responsible for divorce, domestic violence, child abuse, pet abuse, and job loss.

The use of alcohol leads to liver cancer, heart attack, stroke and a number of other ailments.

Yet, is there a no alcohol campaign in place? No. On the contrary. Alcohol is being advertised on TV, in magazines and newspapers in the most enticing way. Seldom do you see old people with a beer in their hand. No, ad campaigns select beautiful sexy people, having fun, or relaxing.

  

Junk food

Whether it’s burgers, hotdogs, pizzas or another type of junk food, they all have one thing in common ... they raise people’s cholesterol, leading to heart attacks and strokes. Yet are people offended by advertising these foods? No, young and old gorge on them. Never mind that 39% of adults and 18% of children in the U.S. are overweight or considered obese. Oh no, let nobody tell them that they can’t have their greasy cheeseburger anymore.

Personal hygiene

Where it comes to cancer, you might not be aware of a few other products that put you at risk. Every day people wash and condition their hair, shower and put on deodorant. The chemicals in those products can lead to cancer.

The moisturizer you put on your face, the lotion you put on your body, the makeup you apply ... all of it can cause cancer.

 

Not to mention what goes on in hair salons. Millions of women straighten, perm and/or color their hair, but are they worried ... not at all. They are completely oblivious to the chemical used.

Purchase receipts

  

Supermarket staff is especially at risk for cancer. You know those paper receipts that are handed to you at the end of a purchase? They are loaded with chemicals that can lead to cancer. You may only touch them a few times a day, but the supermarket staff handles them all day long.

Scented candles

Another seemingly harmless product is scented candles. They too can lead to cancer. The chemicals fill the air, you breathe in that air, and there you go, those chemicals go into your lungs and bloodstream.

Fact ... anything and everything can give you cancer.

Fact ... billions of currency are lost by boycotting smoking. Yeah, the non-smokers will say, but a lot of money is saved in healthcare. Really, be honest with yourself and think for a moment how many people you know personally who died of smoking cigarettes/vaping? Not, a friend told me, or my auntie told me, do you know anyone personally? A handful of people may know someone. But did that person die of smoking cigarettes or vaping? Or did something else cause the person's death? The reason for his/her lung cancer could be car fumes, airplanes fumes, the use of aerosols, contact with asbestos, inhaling perfumes, etc.

And if, and that's a big if, smoking/vaping causes lung cancer, what causes brain cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer? Are you going to blame smoking for that too? 

Before the 1980s just about everyone smoked and lived long lives. Take my own (smoking) family for instance. My granddad lived to be 92 (died of natural causes), grandma 91 (died of blood clod due to a kick of a horse), dad 88 (died of a hospital bacteria), mom 84 (died of brain tumor after a fall). 

With each passing generation people are turning more and more into whimps. They can’t have this, they can’t have that, the are non-tolerant of this and that, they are allergic to this and that. Are they healthier and live longer? No, they get sick at a drop of hat and they die younger and younger. 

All this health babble makes me bloody mad. First the smokers were no longer allowed to smoke inside but were given a smoking room; then they were forced to smoke outside, then they had to be away 6 feet from a door.

Fact is, before all this no smoking nonsense started the Cancer Society was an itty-bitty company. Since the no-smoking campaign, they have grown into a multibillion-dollar organization. Coincidence? I think not.

____________________

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Day 74: Looking back on 2017

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 74: Looking back on 2017

The year is drawing to an end and if you’re like me you’re thinking back on all that’s happened over the past months. All in all, I think it was a rather uneventful year, but let’s have a look how 2017 treated me.

January

The year had hardly started and I was down on my luck already. I was nearly knocked down by a car and not once but three times. The first time by a driver of a Mercedes who was reversing without looking in his rearview mirror. The second time by an SUV who was in such a hurry to slip into traffic that he paid no attention to me. The third time by a Toyota who slid across the zebra path.

February

In February nothing happened, except that someone took one of my stories about a cat and included it in her cat anthology. Some people seem to think that it’s okay to help themselves to other people’s work.

March

In March I was threatened with legal action. I had written an in-debt review of Contena, a site where freelance writers can find all kinds of writing gigs. Before (almost) joining I had done research about the site and found nothing but good reviews. This itself seemed fishy to me. If something is too good to be true, it usually is. I found a number of flaws with the site and listed them in my review. Within a matter of days, Kevin (the founder of the site) sent me a rather nasty email and threaned legal action. So that’s why there are no negative reviews of Contena to be found. Anyone who has anything but praise for the site gets threatened. My biggest problem with Contena was that members have to pay $99 per month for the site's services. There are plenty of other writing sites around and none of them charges their members one cent.

April

In April a pair of finches came to have a look at our balcony. Shortly afterward, Mr. and Mrs. Finch started making a nest. For days they flew back and forth with twigs and pieces of fluff and when the nest was finished, Mrs. Finch took up residence and over the course of six days deposited six eggs. What amazed me the most was the patience of Mrs. Finch who sat on her eggs for hours on end without moving.

May

In May the chicks hatched and fought for space within their nest. We followed their growth with interest. Every time when the parents weren’t around, we went out and took a peek at the young ones who were nothing more than six little balls of fluff.

June

June saw planting season. The time when we make our way to the Home Depot nursery and buy flowers. As a rule, I always choose petunias because I know they are non-toxic to cats.

At the end of June the six little balls of fluff who were now properly feathered birds flew off. The remarkable thing was, as soon as they left our balcony they were joined – in mid-flight – by one of the parents who guided them to the rest of the family.

July

In July, we started looking for a new place to live. I contacted an estate agent and the first property ad he sent us was a hit. From the outside, the house didn’t look like much, but inside the whole place was renovated and was just perfect. The advertised price was perfect too, just $159,000. As it turned out, the estate agent had made a mistake though, the price was not $159,000 but $1,159,000. Needless to say, our interest went from hot to ice cold.

August

In August, I started this 365 creative writing prompts project. Some posts are current events, some are memories, every now and then I vent about something or another, and when I find nothing to write about I turn to my cats for inspiration.

September

In September nothing happened, absolutely nothing. The only thing worth mentioning was that I read ‘The Alchemist’. This book had a huge advertising campaign, quite a few people were talking about the book so eventually, my curiosity got the better of me and I bought the book. And it wasn’t bad, it was an enjoyable read. But to make such a hoopla about it … no, I didn’t think the story was that good.

October

The same applies to ‘Origin’ by Dan Brown. A much-anticipated book, a huge promotional campaign, but the book itself … a bit of a disappointment. Very well written of course, very engaging, but Dan Brown’s theory about how life started on earth … no, not something I agree with. I have all Dan Brown’s books and I dare say, ‘Origin’ is my least favorite.

October also saw the start of the #metoo campaign, started by Alyssa Milano and followed by a number of other sluts. When looking at pictures of these women, I very much question their motives. I don’t doubt that they were, at some point, harassed by men but then what woman hasn’t been. I daresay that every single woman at one time or another has been on the receiving end of harassment. But to make such a big deal of it. Just take a look at the pictures of these so-called victims and then draw your own conclusions.

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-38-look-no-underwear

November

In November, I tackled quite a few issues. Rather than writing it all again I’ll give you the subjects along with the links.

Discrimination – old vs. young

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-55-discrimination-old-vs-young

Children and electronics

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-55-children-and-electronics

Does Deodorant increase the risk of breast cancer

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-59-does-deodorant-increase-the-risk-of-breast-cancer

What’s the difference between a turkey and a tiger

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-60-whats-the-difference-between-a-tiger-and-a-turkey

The dangers of parabens

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-61-the-dangers-of-parabens

Online Christmas shopping

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-62-online-christmas-shopping

December

On December 6^th one of our beloved cats, Mickey, passed away. I noticed that his breathing was labored. I suspected a cold and took him to the vet for medication. As it turned out he had congestive heart failure. Treatment would have cost thousands of dollars and would have been very painful for Mickey. I loved Mickey too much to put him through this and so I decided to let him go and cross Rainbow Bridge.

http://connymanero.weebly.com/blog/day-66-rest-in-peace-mickey-2007-2017

And so, that’s it. Christmas has passed, New Year’s is upon us and tomorrow 2017 will be history. We can only wait and wonder what 2018 will bring.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

$418 million payout

Some woman in Los Angeles just received $418 million for allegedly having contracted ovarian cancer after using Johnson & Johnson baby powder.

As part of her personal hygiene, she adopted the routine of taking a bottle of baby powder and sticking it … well, need I say more.

Who in their right mind sticks a bottle of baby powder in their privates? As one woman said, she’s been using Johnson & Johnson baby powder for years, but she wouldn’t dream of using it inside her.

So, ladies, all of you who have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, why not unite online and start a lawsuit too?

But why stop there. Cancer patient everywhere, no matter what type of cancer you have, let’s all unite and sue someone. I’m sure we can all do with some money.

Perhaps I should start the group. I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016. I had surgery followed by radiation. Nobody gave me a dime. Worse, I had to pay for my own transportation, which I could ill afford.

Maybe I should have sued a deodorant company, then I too would have received millions. 

She says she wasn't looking for a payout, she just wanted to draw attention to protect other women. Okay, then why not just write to one or several of the major newspapers? 

And why not hold the FDA responsible? They're the ones who approved the baby powder. 

And what about the lawyers? Did any of them look into the sexual habits of this woman? How many partners she had.

Mammograms - friend or foe

For the past few days, I’ve been avoiding the homepage of Facebook. Lately, there always seems to be something in the news or a post of a member that tick me off. Since I have to cut down on stress I decided to avoid Facebook.

Unfortunately, while checking Facebook’s home page to see if any of my friends have birthdays, I noticed a post of a woman who stated that she was having her boobage squashed. She was referring to a mammogram.

Her word usage ruffled my feathers. Why couldn’t she just say “I’m having a mammogram” or if she had to be graphic “I’m having my breasts squashed”. Why call breasts boobage?

It ticks me off when grown women use words such as boobage, boobies, etc. Are they women or are they big children who don’t dare to use the word breasts?

It makes me wonder how they refer to their husband’s penis. Do they call the organ a pippi? And what kind of a name do they assign to their vagina?

I was silly enough to join the conversation and stumbled across some disturbing statements. Trying to help I put in my two cents, but this was not well received.

After leaving the conversation I did some research and found that on the subjects of mammograms medical opinions are divided. Some doctors are in favor of mammograms as it is a way for early breast cancer detection, others consider the risk of radiation too high and advice to avoid mammograms.

As a general rule, women between the ages of 35 and 50 should have a mammogram once a year, while women over the age of 50 every two years. If a woman has concerns between mammograms, she can have a manual exam or an ultrasound.

If a lump gets detected, standard procedure is to do a biopsy. Three samples are removed from the lump, send to the lab and within a matter of days, the results show whether the lump is benign or malignant.

While mammograms do expose patients to a certain amount of radiation, early breast cancer detection is key for survival. So every woman should decide for herself … will she have an annual mammogram and have the benefit of catching a cancerous lump early, when treatment is simple, and live; or avoid the exam and risk that by the time a cancerous lump is found, it’s too late to do something about it.

I don't know what ticks me off more, women who use baby talk or women who stick their heads in the sand.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

Bald and Beautiful

I found myself among a group of cancer patients the other day, waiting for their radiation treatment. The environment was just perfect. Deep, comfy armchairs, discreetly lit giant fish tanks, juice and salty crackers on coffee tables, all in the most perfect temperature (not too hot, not too cold).

While there was a big screen TV mounted to the wall, nobody paid any attention to it. Most of the people were reading, doing a crossword puzzle, or talking to a companion.

A short distance away from me were two women, one wearing a baseball cap, presumably to hide her bald head. She had a rather teary conversation with the woman next to her. She wasn’t talking and then crying, she was doing both at the same time. Nobody listened openly, but I think everyone felt sorry for her. She projected such misery. Her conversation partner didn’t say much other than “I’m so sorry,” and “I wish I could help.”

More patients came and went, some men, some women, some looking normal, others wearing a scarf or a baseball cap after chemo treatment. One or two were in a wheelchair, others walked but looked so down they were obviously having a rough time.

The room was getting downright depressing when in came a woman, I guessed her to be in her late 30s early 40s, sporting sunglasses on her bald head.

She walked purposefully, with a bounce in her step, and a smile on her face that lit up the room. While I know it’s not polite to stare at someone, I found myself doing just that, fascinated by this woman. She positively radiated joy and a zest for life. I admired her. While most women hid their baldness under scarves, caps or wigs, she obviously had no problem with her hairless appearance. And it suited her. She was the embodiment of bald and beautiful.

With a variety of chairs to choose from, she positioned herself opposite the teary woman and started speaking to her. She said how much she admired her, how she faithfully read the blog the woman was writing and how much support it had given her. She didn’t speak in hushed tones, neither did she shout, but her clear voice carried all through the room.

I doubted very much that this woman needed support. She didn’t look like the kind who needed cheering up, but it worked. Within no time the woman dried her tears, put her tissue away and was visibly feeling better.

Not only that, those who had been talking quietly were listening, those who had been struggling with a crossword puzzle had their pens hovering over the paper, and those who had been reading had their book or Kindle in their lap.

I guess we were all thinking the same thing … what an amazing woman!

When the radiation technician came for her, she rose from her chair, wished her conversation partner all the best, bestowed a glowing smile on the technician and disappeared from the room.

I took away two things … being bald doesn’t have to be embarrassing and while sympathy is fine, expressing admiration is often more effective than feeling sorry for someone.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

Vaseline linked to cancer

Some people never cease to amaze me.  On the one hand they are so concerned with their health that they almost turn neurotic and look down on others who don’t share their views, yet on the other they do their very best to sabotage their health.

Take the use of Vaseline also known as petroleum jelly for instance.  Some people happily smear it on their baby’s bottom, while others use it to treat dry skin, or add shine to their lips.  Did you know that women who use lip gloss regularly, eat about seven pounds of the Vaseline in a decade.

Little do they know that Vaseline does not moisturize, it draws moisture to the surface, as such robbing skin of what it so desperately needs, and they risk all kinds of cancers.

Vaseline is made of petroleum sludge, a type of wax that forms on oil rigs.  The wax interferes with the proper working of the rods on the rigs and has to be removed from time to time.  The wax contains hydrocarbons, a substance found in women with breast cancer. 

Still, people ignore advice given online and state that Vaseline has been around for years, that their grandma used it, and that only fools would believe that the greasy wax could be bad.  Not only that, some articles actually promote the use of Vaseline/petroleum jelly. 

Why anyone would do this is beyond me.  You only have to look at and touch Vaseline to know that something so greasy cannot be good for your skin.  It leads to acne, impurities, irritation and worst of all, certain cancers.  This possibility alone should be enough to scare people off.  Sadly, this is not the case.  The product is cheap, has been used by their mother and grandmother, so they figure it must be good.

What is even more mind boggling is why the Cancer Society hasn’t made it its business to warn the public about the use of Vaseline.  If the product has been linked to cancer, you would think this is right up their alley.  On the one hand they raise millions of dollars for cancer research and promote pink ribbons to make women aware of breast cancer, yet on the other hand they keep silent about the dangers of Vaseline. 

If you want to moisturize your skin or give shine to your lips, do it with something safe like an organic oil.  Oils such as olive oil, almond oil, cacao butter, shea butter and coconut oil will be more expensive than Vaseline, but at least they are risk free.

Before you buy your next beauty product READ THE LABEL.

PMF Scam - Update

If you read yesterday’s post about the Princess Margaret Foundation scam, you might have come to the conclusion that I’m puzzled by the way they handle their money.

To get clarity, I wrote to them and ask them for an explanation.

Dear Sir or Madam,

I had a look at the sweepstakes and when I add all prizes together I come to about 10 million dollars.

Wouldn't it be better to invest that money into healthcare instead of all those items?

How can you afford all those houses, cars, vacations and electronics?

I'm looking forward to your answer,

Conny

This morning I found a reply …

Hello, Conny, and thank you for your note.

This is a long-standing debate. The problem is, without the prizing, especially the largest of the prizes, the lottery doesn’t hold the same cachet. It would be all but impossible to have people pay $100 (or any sizable amount of money) for a ticket without offering something very substantial in return. The homes, cars and trips provide dreams for ticket buyers, but these dreams fund essential cancer research work at The Princess Margaret in turn. And we need the lottery proceeds because they are the single largest source of funding, outside the government funding, that the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre receives. Since the first Princess Margaret lottery was presented in 1996, more than $227 million has been raised for cancer research programs at The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. We wouldn’t have had that source of revenue without the lotteries.

I hope you better understand why we hold the lotteries and why we offer such wonderful prizes.

Respectfully,

Kevin Shea

The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation

This fund raising still doesn’t make any sense to me.  Do people really need a reward to find a cure for cancer?  Isn’t healing (and subsequent living) enough?

The Cancer Society was founded in 1913 by 15 doctors and businessmen.  So they’ve been in operation for 99 years.  Although progress in the diagnosis and treatment of certain cancers has been made, cancer is still a dirty word that for a lot of people sounds like a death sentence.

In comparison, vaccines have been formulated for viral and bacterial diseases.  Nearly all these vaccines were formulated quite some time ago, without the use of computers and with limited funds.  So why is it, that with all our technology no more cures our found. 

One cure our brilliant scientists did find.  The cure for erectile dysfunction (Viagra) and it only took them 13 years. 

When can we expect a cure for cancer?  My guess is never. 

Imagine if you will that a cure was found.  No more donations for the Cancer Society, Princess Margaret Foundation and a list of other cancer related organizations.  No more cancer related doctors and nurses, no more machinery and oh dear, no more drugs.  That translates into a loss of not millions but of billions of dollars.

For the longest time I thought I was the only one being skeptical about the use of all those donations, but after talking to quite a few people, it turns out I am far from the only one.  All kinds of people are more than a little suspicious of cancer “research”.

In general they all agreed, cancer is not just an illness, it’s a business.

Are people really spending $100 on a ticket for the Princess Margaret Foundation?  They bitch and whine about the gas prices; they switch to LED lights to save electricity; they go to the store with coupons; they complain about unemployment after the recession; there’s all kinds of advice on frugal living.  In short … do you really see these people throw away $100 on a ticket that might or might not win?

And speaking of winning … where is last year’s list of winners?  Who won the houses and the cars?  Were they won?

The Princess Margaret Foundation Scam

It’s that time of the year again … the Princess Margaret Foundation is pulling the wool over your eyes.

The usual slogan is “Help Conquer Cancer” and they want you to contribute to their scam by buying a ticket.  To make the deal a little sweeter, they promise a series of prizes.  Million dollar homes, sports cars, vacations, etc.

Of course, the prizes are reserved for the already rich.  Think about it … who can afford to drive a $229,825 Ferrari or a Porsche 911 valued at 130,940?  Do you have any idea of the taxes and insurance on those cars?  

As for the homes, lets see:

A condo valued at $379,000

Oakville home: $4,300,000

Muskoka cottage: $1,200,000

In addition one can win seven vacations, ranging from $2,000  to $7,000

And there are the electronics:

3 – Apple MacBook Air Laptops
Valued at $1,132.09^††

10 – Sony Tablets
Valued at $451.99^††

95 – Apple TV Devices
Valued at $124.29^††

1,500 – Nikon Digital Cameras
Valued at $112.99^††

2,920 – Sony Noise-cancelling Headphones
Valued at $90.39^††

Above prizes supplied by Henry’s

3 – Samsung 55" LED 3D TVs
Valued at $3,135.74^††

25 – LG 32" LCD TVs
Valued at $593.24^††

25 – Toshiba 19" LED TVs
Valued at $261.02^††

120 – Hamilton Beach Juice Extractors
Valued at $112.99^††

699 – Sony iPod Docks
Valued at $103.33^††

4,000 – Sony DVD Players
Valued at $80.73^††

Above prizes supplied by The Brick

1 – Apple iMac Computer
Valued at $1,368.42^††

15 – Apple iPad 3 Devices
Valued at $588.38^††

15 – Samsung Galaxy Tablets
Valued at $396.28^††

25 – Bose SoundDock Series II Digital Music Systems
Valued at $284.13^††

40 – Monster Beats Solo Headphones by Dr. Dre
Valued at $226.10^††

25 – Microsoft XBOX 360 Gaming Systems
Valued at $225.99^††

25 – Sony eReader
Valued at $169.60^††

100 – Apple iPod nanos
Valued at $146.99^††

5,200 – Apple iPod shuffles
Valued at $56.60^††

Above prizes supplied by Future Shop

1,800 – Cash Prizes of $100 each

With a rough estimate, I get to about $10,000,000.

How exactly does that benefit the cancer patients?  How can the Princess Margaret Foundation afford to throw 10 million dollars out the window?  Just how many tickets do they have to sell to make a profit?

Wouldn’t it be better to invest that 10 million in healthcare?

I personally know a woman who approached the foundation for a headscarf.  Not a fancy wig, just a scarf.  They foundation sent her packing and none to friendly either.

Or is this whole sweepstakes a fraud?  Do people buy tickets without getting anything in return? Is this just another scam?