It was discovered over 150 years
ago that natural gas was an unwanted product that flowed from “oil sands” being
tapped for their oil supply. Soon after
this discovery, natural gas was used to fuel gas lights and then also as heat
source.
Today natural gas is a fuel that
has widespread use including heating homes and fuel for electric generating
plants as an alternative to coal and nuclear sources.
Drilling for natural gas is not a
new phenomenon. What is new is the
combination of horizontal drilling technology for natural gas combined with
hydraulic fracturing also known as “fracking” from subsurface sandstone and
deep from shale rock.
Natural gas flows freely from oil
sandstone, but shale rock must be broken or fractured to provide pathway for
the gas to migrate to the well. During
the process of fracking, high pressure is used to pump water, sandand or
ceramic pellets, and chemicals down a bored hole into the gas bearing shale
rock. The sand or ceramic pellets prop
open the fractures in the rock. Oil,
gas and the pumped water flows to the well and is recovered on the surface.
The bored hole used for fracking
goes down 6-10,000 feet ( 1-2 miles) to the oil and gas bearing reservoir. Naturally occurring toxicants that are from
deep in the earth, ie. heavy metals, volatile organics and radioactive
compounds are also mobilized during gas extraction and return to the
surface.
Some of the naturally occurring
toxins and radioactive compounds include- arsenic, lead, strontium, barium,
benzene, chromium, radium-226, radon-222, uranium-238 amongst others.
Even though these materials are all
toxic, the current standards state, “drilling fluids, produced wastes and other
wastes associated with the exploration, development and production of natural
gas…. are considered solid wastes which are not hazardous wastes.”
This allows the water waste
solutions to be spread on roads as deicing solutions and as solutions to
minimize dust. The wastewater is often
stored in open well pads which can readily spill into nearby well water, soil
and animal grazing pastures. Volatile
compounds like benzene arsine become airborne and effect air quality and health
of adjacent communities.
The fracking process takes place
over 2-5 days, but one well may be used multiple times over the 25-40 year
lifespan of a well.
There are almost 1,000 products
used in natural gas production. Of
these, about 650 are chemicals. About
90% of these chemicals have at least one known potential health effect on the
body. Almost half are known to disrupt
the endocrine system, affecting development and reproduction.
The endocrine system is the bodily
system of glands and hormones that regulate body growth, response to stress,
sexual development and behavior, production and use of insulin, rate of
metabolism, intelligence and behavior and ability to reproduce. The endocrine system operates at very low
concentration of hormones, making it very susceptible to damage at very low
exposure to harmful chemicals.
Affects of exposure on the
endocrine system include reduced sperm production, infertility, hormone
imbalances and other effects on the glands (pineal, pituitary, thyroid, thymus,
pancreas, adrenals, ovaries, testes).
These affects may not show up for years after exposure.
Immediate symptoms seen are:
- burning
eyes, rashes, coughs, sore throats, asthma-like effects, nausea, vomiting,
headaches, dizziness, tremors and convulsions.
- Cancer,
organ damage, and harm to the endocrine system may not appear for months or
years.
Many chemicals affect more than one system of the body.
- Over
75% are associated with skin, eye or sensory organ effects, respiratory
effects, gastrointestinal or liver effects
- Half
effects the brain and nervous system
- About
40% effect the immune system and kidneys
- Half effect the cardiovascular system and
blood
- 25%
are linked to various types of cancer
- 30%
are linked to genetic mutations
- Approximately
210 chemicals are water soluble
- 131
are volatile (are easily airborne)
- The
volatile chemicals produce higher percentage of affects on the organ systems of
the body because they can be inhaled, swallowed and also reach the skin
Knowledge is power and we have
natural remedies and health regimens to help protect yourself if exposed to the
chemicals released during fracking.
The following Herbal Teas are available to offset the effects of fracking on the body:
- Seven
Seeds
- Men’s
Formulas
- Women’s
Formula
- Lung
Builder
- Heart
Care
- Liver
Care
- Kidney
Care
- Good
Digestion
- Anti-Tumor Formula
- Man
Power
Below are lists of other herbs, foods and essential oils to
include in your health regimen:
Endocrine Restoring Herbs
- Astragulus
- Ashwanganda
- White
ginseng
- Red
ginseng
- Siberian
ginseng
- Rhodiola
- Gynostemma
Liver Herbs
- Burdock
root- cleanse the liver and lymph
- Dandelion
root- detoxifies and nourishes
- Nettle
leaf- liver and blood tonic, especially for women
- Seaweed
- Wild
Yam- important hormone precursors
- Yellowdock-
tonic herb for the liver and cleanser, blood and overall health
Liquid minerals- cellular function, enzyme production
To Encourage Proper Hormone health
- Keep
the liver clean
- Consume
enzyme rich foods- raw foods
- High
fiber diet
- Avoid
processed foods, foods grown with chemicals, body and hair products with
chemicals and use of any synthetic chemicals.
Essential Oils for Endocrine Health
- Tea
Tree
- Cardamom
- Melissa
- Myrtle
- Niaouli
- Orange
Juicing
- Alfalfa- high in minerals
- Asparagus- kidney health
- Beet juice- anti-cancer
- Brussel sprouts- pancreas health
- Celery juice- for the skin- eczema and psoriasis
- Cucumber- skin health
- Potato juice- heavy metal detoxification
- Radish juice- thyroid balancing
- Tomato juice- liver health
- Wheatgrass, Barley grass- High in chlorophyll, blood
building and cleaning
One of the most common
frustrations for those suffering from depression is the lack of motivation to
do regular daily activities, an inability to find enjoyment and an overwhelming
amount of negative thoughts. Depression cannot be simply cured by “mind over
matter”, but that does not mean it can’t be treated and improved significantly.
Depression is not an illness that one should have to suffer through alone,
treatment and therapy can be crucial to the healing process back to better
health. 